Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

There are always trends in titles and book covers, and this week, we are investigating the trend of having a two word title, starting with the word "The". These short and sweet titles can often hide complex stories!

Note: For people who don't traditionally read English-language books, feel free to translate "the" to the equivalent word in your reading language.

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Suggestions:
This prompt lends itself really easily to searching through your TBR, but if you are still struggling for ideas, check out our Listopia for suggestions!

ATY Group Listopia

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Optional Questions
1. What are you reading for this category?
2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?

My TBR provides me with lots of choices so this one will effectively be a mood read. Some of my options are The Emissary, The Binding, The River, The Dreamers, The Invisibles, The Slap, The Storm, The Sympathizer, The Knockoff, The Toymaker.

After much shuffling, I've decided on The Changeling by Victor LaValle. I've heard so much positive buzz on the book that I am excited to check it out.

I have quite a few on my list that fit this prompt (though not as many as I would've thought).

I thought I'd have too many choices for this, but my physical/Kindle shelves only have:

The Changeling
The Miniaturist
The Missing
The Power
The Road

I will probably read The Goldfinch since it doesn’t look like I’ll get to it this year.

I have many choices:
The Cross by Sigrid Undset, The Help by Kathryn Stockett, The Moviegoer by Walker Percy,
The Binding by Bridget Collins, The Professor by Charlotte Bronte, or The Likeness by Tana French

I’m excited about The Deep by Rivers Solomon.

I read a lot of books with this title format this year! I am looking forward to The Foundling next year since The Familiars) was one of my faves this year.

I think I'm going to do The Miniaturist for this one.

There are a lot of books I want to read for this category, and I own none of them. I have to take a trip to the library and see what I can get.

1. What are you reading for this category?
The One by John Marrs

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
Not really.

This is the next prompt I’m going to read, and I’ve chosen The Confession. I don’t really know much about this book, but I read The Muse by Jessie Burton last year and really enjoyed it so I thought I would try another book by her.

For this week, I read The Troop

I enjoyed this book. It was a creepier and more complex version, as well as updated version of Lord of the Flies HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

I read

It was okay, not what I was expecting!

I read The Dreamers

It was easy as I really wanted to read this but I did notice I had lots of other books I could have chosen.

I'm reading The Odyssey for this prompt. So far I'm enjoying it more than I expected to!

Ended up reading The Animators, which was really a crazy read... a lot darker than the very bright and vibrant cover would make you expect.

For this category I'm reading the next book in the Patrik Hedstrom series, The Stranger. I'm very keen to continue the series as the first three were really good! It was very easy to fill this prompt as a lot of books on my tbr are two word titles starting with the

What are you reading for this category?
I read The Hollow by Agatha Christie

Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No it was very easy. I found I had lots that would have fitted.

1) Most likely The Deep by Rivers Solomon
2) Not by itself, but it was kinda hard to find a suitable title for both this and Blackathon

Optional Questions
1. What are you reading for this category?
The One by John Marrs

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No, it came up on my feed at just the right time.

There are so many for this. Top contenders so far are: The Godmother by Hannelore Cayre; The Chain by Adrian McKinty; and The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary.

I think a lot will depend on library availability since these all have long hold lists at the moment.

1. What are you reading for this category?
I am reading The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova.

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No as this book has been on my owned TBR for a while now. The prompt was great inspiration for me to finally pick it up.

1. What are you reading for this category?
I am reading The Warehouse, by Rob Hart.

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No. In fact, I checked it out online and finished it in a day and a half --- ahead of schedule because I was so excited to start it. I highly recommend it, if you like dystopian novels. I listened to the audio version, narrated by Emily Woo Zeller, and I thought it was fabulous.

I read The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. This was just meh for me. 2 stars.
The was the first book that I read by this author.

1. What are you reading for this category?
The Institute

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No, it was very easy.

I read The Alienist by Caleb Carr and it wasn't too difficult - I had about 15 books to choose from.

I read The Apology for this prompt.

1. What are you reading for this category?
I read The Foundling by Stacey Halls, I enjoy her style of historical fiction and I enjoyed this though not quite as much as The Familiars. Maybe it was the lack of witches, but the history around the Foundling Hospital was something I didn't know about, and I felt I could sympathise with both sides.

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No, this is such a common title format. I was happy that I managed to fit in an anticipated release as soon as it came out though.

1. What are you reading for this category?

I read The Tour

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?

Surprisingly i only had a couple of options. This has been on my TBR for ages so it seemed like a good time to get it read.

It was a "nice" book easy read for a flight or beach read. A little escapism with plenty of good characterisation. I would read more by this author

1. What are you reading for this category? The One
2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt? Not at all harder to decided which one to read.

I read The Likeness by Tana French. No trouble at all finding a book for this, I had loads on my TBR with this format for the title.

1. What are you reading for this category?
I have read The Deep.

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
This is a book that I was looking forward to reading based on reading An Unkindness of Ghosts last year. So it was not hard to find it to fit this prompt.

1. What are you reading for this category?
The 13th by Shadow Stephens

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No. I am trying to read books I have on hand to clear out my TBR list this year and it was on my Kindle from a free give-away!

1. What are you reading for this category?
I read The Awesome by Eva Darrows. And can I just say that I recommend her highly. Both this and Belly Up were just great.

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
Not at all. :)

1. What are you reading for this category?
The Forgotten by Linda S. Prather
2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
Not really. I had several choices, but couldn't get into the first one I tried. This one was a good paranormal thriller with a Choctaw heroine, but the time spent in the killer's head as he abuses and kills children and animals is very difficult to read and is definitely not for everyone.

I am reading The Unseen by Katherine Webb. It was fairly hard to find a title but I now have a choice of two.

1. What are you reading for this category?

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
I did not do any pre-planning for this year so I'm just fitting things in as I read. This one was an easy fit.

1. What are you reading for this category?

I read The Wanderers

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?

No, I had a lot of options.

I had several possibilities on by TBR list: - The Armies, The Heretic: A Novel of the Inquisition (the original title in Spanish is just El Hereje), The Well and The Muse.

In the end I went with The Muse as I'd enjoyed The Miniaturist and the blurb suggested I'd enjoy the theme (art, women artists, feeling an outsider/observer of a society you've recently moved into) and the settings (London in 1967 and Spain in 1936). I did enjoy it but just found it hard in places to suspend my disbelief, but no spoilers here.

I have plenty more books waiting for me that begin "The" but with more than one additional word in the title. The Muse would also work for prompt 10 - my edition was over 400 pages, prompt 15 - it's set in London, very definitely a global city, and also prompt 25 a book related to the arts.

1. What are you reading for this category?
I am reading The Wonder by Emma Donoghue

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No, I just had a look at the Listopia for this topic, and chose the first book on that list that was also on my TBR list

1. What are you reading for this category?
The Outsiders
2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
Not at all

1. For this category, I read The Orenda.

2 It wasn't hard to find a book for this prompt, as I had several options to choose from. I went with this one because I meant to get to it last year but ran out of time.

The Egyptologist
I picked this book up at the library book sale (fill your bag for $5!), and I was surprised by the quality of the plot. I gave it four stars. It's a dense psychological thriller with interesting and fluid prose. It's also an epistolary novel with multiple narrators with distinct voices.

1. What are you reading for this category?

Regular: The Institute
ABC: The Outsiders

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt?
No, both are books I had on my TBR shelf.

I just finished The Prophet for this category, and I'm so glad I finally got around to it. What lovely poetry

What are you reading for this category? The Missing by Andrew O'Hagan
Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt? I didn't think so. Until someone had to point out to me that The Bluest Eye didn't fit the prompt!!

This book, part-memoir and part-true crime, really gripped me. It traces the author's interest in those who go missing, from the reason his family moved from Glasgow (where violence, and the disappearances of young women, made his parents look to raise their children somewhere safer), to disappearances which touched his childhood in Ayrshire, to his adult life as a journalist in England covering various missing cases and the murders of Fred and Rosemary West. I've read one of O'Hagan's fictional works, and it was interesting to read about his childhood and further back to the generations before him who lived in the East End of Glasgow. As a native of the West of Scotland myself, that appealed to me. But actually I think it would be an interesting read for those who aren't as familiar, as the sectarianism and the Bible John murders - particularly in O'Hagan's telling - are intriguing. This is not a salacious book, and I really appreciated how O'Hagan focuses on the victims and those left behind. Particularly where those missing have been victims of violent crime, he gives them their names and talks about their lives rather than their demises - he doesn't even use the name Bible John, and his discussion on the Wests is focused far more on those who they abused. He is compassionate and introspective in the telling, and I think that's what made this feel very human.

1. What are you reading for this category? I read The Chain by Adrian McKinty

2. Was it hard to find a book to fit this prompt? no this was an easy prompt to fit.

What are you reading?
The cows by Dawn O'Porter Read: 16 March 202

I read The Dressmaker for this prompt. It wasn't hard to find a book for this and I ended up choosing one from my physical bookshelf that had been there for quite a while.