Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion

Use this space to discuss books you're reading or that might fit the 24th Read Harder task.

Love this prompt and for it I chose The Dog Lived!

I am finally going to read The Friend. So many people I know loved it, but I really don't like books about animals. We shall see.

any tips on how i could go about finding books that fit this task?? besides lurking here ofcourse

Esther wrote: "any tips on how i could go about finding books that fit this task?? besides lurking here ofcourse"

This - particularly non-dog books! A little close to home at the moment otherwise.

My book club has just finished Fleabag: Scriptures: Hilary the guinea pig is an important character.

Esther wrote: "any tips on how i could go about finding books that fit this task?? besides lurking here ofcourse"

Try Book Riot -- I know about this list but I am sure there are others https://bookriot.com/25-favorite-book...

If anyone is interested in horror with a humorous protagonist, The Twisted Ones T. Kingfisher is good and the protagonist who is telling you the story mentions the dog makes it in the first chapter, so it's not even a spoiler really.

A kind of interesting one is Kristin Cashore's Jane, Unlimited. It's a genre-bending book with multiple timelines where the dog manages to live each time.

A lot of cozy mysteries feature the detective's pets.

Another mystery where the dog lives is The Stranger Diaries.

Hollow Kingdom is a comedy-horror which is a twist on the "pet dies" trope where the pet bird, who is the protagonist, faces the apocalypse after his human dies. (I do have to mention there are a lot of other pet deaths, though.)

I loved Hollow Kingdom and highly recommend it for this task.

If you haven't read The Travelling Cat Chronicles I definitely recommend it for this prompt.

Would a cozy mystery work for this? I've been meaning to read some because it's not really a genre I've ever read. I did some searching and Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown seems like a good fit.

Spoiler alert, but can anyone verify for me whether the dog lives in The Call of the Wild by Jack London and/or in Strider by Beverly Cleary? (And whether the dog in The Call of the Wild is a pet?)

Also, if you haven't read it already, Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck would fit this challenge and is a wonderful book.

Jennie wrote: "If you haven't read The Travelling Cat Chronicles I definitely recommend it for this prompt."
Thank you! This looks wonderful.

I'll be reading something by Susan Wilson. I enjoyed One Good Dog and will read another book by her as there are several.

Does anyone know if The Dog Who Saved Me works for this?

I'm hoping to get Olive, Mabel and Me: Life and Adventures with Two Very Good Dogs for Christmas... both dogs are very much alive and regularly featured on the author's Twitter (@MrAndrewCotter) with charming Scottish commentary.

Bobby wrote: "Spoiler alert, but can anyone verify for me whether the dog lives in The Call of the Wild by Jack London and/or in Strider by Beverly Cleary? (A..."

I really liked Travels With Charly even though I don't much like animal books. Great suggestion! It made me recall a book I loved even more Travels with Lizbeth: Three Years on the Road and on the Streets

I'm curious. Would We Bought a Zoo work for this prompt? It's been on my tbr for years at this point. I know at least one animal dies in it but it's about a lot of animals so idk??

I've been intending to read Pax for years, so here's my chance! Going to read this one with my kids.

Has anyone read A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World? There are at least two dogs, but I don't know if they both survive.

Elizabeth wrote: "Would a cozy mystery work for this? I've been meaning to read some because it's not really a genre I've ever read. I did some searching and Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown seems ..."

I think that would work, and so would the Cat Who series by Lilian Jackson Braun.

Bonnie G. wrote: "Esther wrote: "any tips on how i could go about finding books that fit this task?? besides lurking here ofcourse"

Try Book Riot -- I know about this list but I am sure there are others https://boo..."

Be careful ... these have animal MCs but I scanned the list and immediately recognized some that do not end well for the animals.

I intend to read Nala's World: One Man, His Rescue Cat, and a Bike Ride around the Globe for this one.

This site gives all sorts of crowd-sourced trigger spoilers for books, movies, and TV shows. You can narrow the category by genre (i.e., books). It will tell you if the dog or cat or horse or other animal dies, but I don't think it tells you if it's a pet unless someone has written that into the description. Mostly it's yes and/or no answers.

https://www.doesthedogdie.com/

Elizabeth wrote: "Would a cozy mystery work for this? I've been meaning to read some because it's not really a genre I've ever read. I did some searching and Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown seems ..."

Perfect! There's a lot of cozy mysteries with pet detectives and their humans... hm...

Esther the Wonder Pig is a great memoir about a pet pig! I loved it.

Lol, this is not a prompt I’m looking forward to. I dislike most cosy mysteries, for one, and I’m not a fan of animal books.

It might have to be an SFF or historical fiction book for me.

For fantasy fans, if a horse counts as a pet, I recommend The Immortals Quartet: Wild Magic; Wolf-Speaker; Emperor Mage; The Realms of the Gods (Wild Magic, The Emperor Mage and Realms of the Gods)

I have a gigantic soft spot for romance novels that have some sort of beloved pet sidekick in them, and since romances have happy endings, it's pretty rare to see the pet die in them, unless you're going for grittier, emotional rollercoaster type romances (or books that aren't actually genre romance and people call them romance because they have a love story), so I'm probably going to read this category fairly early in the year by complete accident.

The Baking Bad would be a wonderful one for this.

Elizabeth wrote: "I have a gigantic soft spot for romance novels that have some sort of beloved pet sidekick in them, and since romances have happy endings, it's pretty rare to see the pet die in them, unless you're..."

That reminds me, I remember reading in someone’s review that romance author Linda Lael Miller is an animal-lover who always has pets in her stories. I don’t know if they ever die, though.

Tanvi wrote: "Lol, this is not a prompt I’m looking forward to. I dislike most cosy mysteries, for one, and I’m not a fan of animal books.

It might have to be an SFF or historical fiction book for me.

For fant..."

Horses definitely count as pets!

Bonnie G. wrote: "I am finally going to read The Friend. So many people I know loved it, but I really don't like books about animals. We shall see."

While the dog is mentioned throughout the book I didn't feel it was a typical animal book. It dealt with love, friendship and grief. Though the question of the dogs life ends ambiguously so may not count for this prompt.

Tracie Margaret wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "I am finally going to read The Friend. So many people I know loved it, but I really don't like books about animals. We shall see."

While the dog is mentioned thro..."

Thanks for your thoughts and the helpful info. Though I have had pets I loved, I am not big on anthropomorphizing pets and I am not a fan of things sentimental. Not surprisingly, I despise typical animal books, so the fact this is different works for me. The prompt requires that a beloved pet be featured, not that the book be about the animal. My understanding is that in The Friend the dog was a beloved pet of the person who died and that the pet does not die in the book, so I will likely still go for it.

Elizabeth wrote: "I have a gigantic soft spot for romance novels that have some sort of beloved pet sidekick in them, and since romances have happy endings, it's pretty rare to see the pet die in them, unless you're..."

The Friend Zone and The Happy Ever After Playlist work for this, if you haven't read them yet.

Bonnie G. wrote: "Tracie Margaret wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "I am finally going to read The Friend. So many people I know loved it, but I really don't like books about animals. We shall see."

While t..."

yes you are right that the dog features but isn't a main character more of a catalyst. I think it will be a good fit based on your tastes, However while the dog's owner does die, the dog itself may also die (of old age) or not depending on how you interpret the ending.

Thanks for the info!

If you're looking for candy, Nora Roberts has a few The Search, The Obsession and a few others.

In My Side of the Mountain, the main character's falcon survives the book, if you're in the mood for middle grade.

Bonnie G. wrote: "Tracie Margaret wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "I am finally going to read The Friend. So many people I know loved it, but I really don't like books about animals. We shall see."

While t..."

Spoiler alert!
(view spoiler)[
I agree. I read it some months ago and had this same discussion with my book club. Although the book does not explicitly say that the dog died, it is implied with a beautiful metaphor.
(hide spoiler)]

If I remember correctly The Familiars would work

Would Crazy Stupid Bromance work for this? I know the female lead has cats and its a big plot point that she runs a cat cafe, but I'm not sure if any cats die :(

Ronni wrote: "In My Side of the Mountain, the main character's falcon survives the book, if you're in the mood for middle grade."

Kirsten wrote: "If you're looking for candy, Nora Roberts has a few The Search, The Obsession and a few others."

This a wonderful book! I read it when I was in middle grades and remember getting teased because I was reading a "boy's book"

I can absolutely recommend The Finders I'm reading the sequel for this prompt.

I've decided on Free Days With George: Learning Life's Little Lessons from One Very Big Dog. It sounds hopeful and uplifting!

Get a Life, Chloe Brown prominently features a beloved kitten in the plot who doesn’t die. It also is a double dipper for fat positive romance.

I am not too much into cozy mysteries and I don't really need dogs or cats so I was wondering. Would you say Life of Pi could count? Do you have other suggestions ?

Bodie on the Road is on sale today (12/20/20) for kindle owners. Sounds like it probably counts.

Julia, Life if Pi is most definitely not about a pet. you might want to consider Travels With Charley or Travels With Lizbeth.

The Cat Who Could Read Backwards is the first in a long series of cozy mysteries which could work for this.

Also set in the Midwest (unnamed or fictional towns but strongly implied to be in the area of the Great Lakes).

Kaitlyn wrote: "Would Crazy Stupid Bromance work for this? I know the female lead has cats and its a big plot point that she runs a cat cafe, but I'm not sure if any cats die :("

Yes, I think it works! Alexis' cat Beefcake definitely survives the book and has a few scenes.