Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

Congratulations! Well Done! or should I say Well Read!

If you want to, feel free to answer these questions and let us know what you loved and didn't love about the challenge!

- 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
- Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc)
- My most creative twist on a prompt
- The prompt I "cheated" on
- My favorite prompt
- My least favorite prompt
- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!)

🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

Could this thread be pinned so that it won't get lost below everyone's plans in this folder?

Link to my ATY completion listing of all books read for the challenge:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Link to my ATY Anniversary List completions:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge:

- A book set underground, under sea or in an underworld
Twist by Colum McCann - 4/3/25 - 5* - My Review

- A book from the NPR “Books We Love” lists
The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook - 1/27/25 - 5* - My Review

- A book with a common household object on the cover

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone - 2/24/25 - 5* - My Review

- 2025: A book involving a "group" with at least 4 members that's not a family
Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space - 2/8/25 - 5* - My Review

My favorite prompt:
- A book that involves art, music, dancing or acting (always love these types of prompts!)

My least favorite prompt:
- A book related to one of the traditional full moon names (too narrow, IMO)

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
- A book title that could be a country song
Whiskey When We're Dry by John Larison - 6/13/25 - 4* - My Review

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!):
- A book with a sunset vibes on the cover

The Hearts of Men - 2/19/25 - 2* - My Review

Rae wrote: "Could this thread be pinned so that it won't get lost below everyone's plans in this folder?"

Yes it sure can, thanks for the reminder!

Just finished this morning! Very proud :) Link to my completed list in my planning thread

5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge - I read quite a few, I'm just realizing. Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng, Rupetta, The Marriage Portrait, Piranesi, The Fellowship of the Ring, Bloodchild and Other Stories, 'Salem's Lot, In the House Upon the Dirt Between the Lake and the Woods, The River Has Roots, The Last Murder at the End of the World, Poor Deer, Hillsborough - The Truth, This Is How You Lose the Time War, Peril at End House, and Sea of Tranquility.

Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc) - no twists for me, but maybe I'll get fancy next year. Now that I know the challenge is doable, reading in order doesn't seem as impossible.

The prompt I "cheated" on - no cheats here, but I had to laugh when the first book I read for this challenge (The Familiar) got entered into two other challenges besides this one. Felt a little naughty, I did it a couple more times over the challenge, and I'll do it again, lol

My favorite prompt - I really enjoyed #38/39 (two books with a connection from different genres) - I read Erebus: The Story of a Ship and The Terror for this one. I thought it was a very clever prompt.

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!) - Poor Deer for #3 (a book connected to something in the Do Re Mi song). I was really stuck on this one, and picked Poor Deer out of the listopia for this topic solely based on the cover and the genre (magical realism). It then turned out to be one of my favorite books I've read in years.

Congrats, Joy & Amy!

Karin wrote: "Congrats, Joy & Amy!"
Thank you! I'm so glad I found this group :)

Amy wrote: "Just finished this morning! Very proud :) Link to my completed list in my planning thread

I had to laugh when the first book I read for this challenge (The Familiar) got entered into two other challenges besides this one. Felt a little naughty

In my opinion, using a book for multiple challenges isn't cheating, it is the point! I am in several groups and I regularly choose books from my stash because they work for more than one.

Robin P wrote: "In my opinion, using a book for multiple challenges isn't cheating, it is the point! I am in several groups and I regularly choose books from my stash because they work for more than one."

Oh for sure - it just felt like cheating when I did it the first time :)

I finished the challenge a month or two ago. I didn't mean to zip through it so quickly. It just worked out that way.

Some faves were Kill For Love (something that starts with an A, T, or Y on the cover--torsos), I Cheerfully Refuse (set primarily in nature; this is a near-future dystopia set largely on the Great Lakes, like, literally on boats on the water), & Sundial (by an author whose career has spanned at least 10 years).

I didn't read anything specifically FOR the challenge. I just went with books I wanted to read anyway that happened to fit the prompts, or books chosen for other challenges that also fit the prompts here. There were definitely some duds: Tilt (published in 2025) was kind of a letdown (I wanted more chaos & less ruminating), Death of the Author (sci-fi by a woman) was one I was really looking forward to & it wound up falling flat, Pink Slime (recommended by NPR) never really went anywhere for me.

For two books with opposites in their titles, I read Rejection (loved) & Held (unbearable), & I was proud of that kind of poetic take on the prompt. They're not obviously opposites until you think about it. I kind of cheated on a book related to a collective name for animals & read Cuckoo, which has a nest on the cover. A nest is a collective noun for some animals, but it's not in the title, so I felt like I was bending the rules.

My fave prompt was probably witches, goddesses, & nuns. I read The Change, but honestly, I read a ton of books about witches & about nuns (I just read Matrix, which I loved), I can't get enough.

Least favorite was comfort read. That concept is just kind of meaningless to me. I read Dolls of Our Lives, which was a fun micro-history on American Girl dolls, which is one of my weird niche interests.

It took me a lot longer to finish this year than previous year. I finished today (2 July 2025)

- 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge -
Wizard and Glass by Stephen King (A book involving a "group" with at least 4 members that's not a family)
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (A book featuring adult friendships)
- Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo (A book involving a "group" with at least 4 members that's not a family)

- Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc) - I tried to read paper books to try to get my TBR down.

- My most creative twist on a prompt - I read The Panchatantra - by Vishnu Sharma for the translated novel from Asia prompt.

- The prompt I "cheated" on - I don't think I did.

- My favorite prompt - A book that involves digging up the past. I read The Sun Sister by Lucinda Riley.

- My least favorite prompt - A book that involves art, music, dancing or acting. It wasn't a terrible prompt, just not my favourite. I read It Could Never Happen Here by Eithne Shortall for this prompt

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!) - Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. I read it for the prompt "A book with an animal, vegetable (plant), or mineral in the title." This was a very complex story and very emotional.

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!) - Blood Sisters by Mark Manley. I read it for the prompt "Two books with a pair of opposites in their titles". It was really bad.

I actually finished on April 29 which was pretty fun. I doubt I will ever zip through it again like that, but it was cool to do it once.

- 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
Midnight Crossroad by Charlaine Harris
Day Shift by Charlaine Harris
Night Shift by Charlaine Harris
The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent
Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross
It Will Only Hurt for a Moment by Delilah S. Dawson
The Bone Shard War by Andrea Stewart
Anyone But Her by Cynthia Swanson
Black by Catherine Winters
The Opposite of Fate: Memories of a Writing Life by Amy Tan
The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yōko Ogawa
The Good Turn by Dervla McTiernan
Dirrayawadha by Anita Heiss
Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros
Yellow Crocus by Laila Ibrahim
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo
The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
An Honored Vow by Melissa Blair
Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness
Gwendy's Final Task by Stephen King and Richard Chizmar
Blood's Echo by Isabella Maldonado

- Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc)
Nope. I'm boring. My only thing was that almost every book I read from Jan 1 until I finished (except for one or two) was a part of this challenge.

- My most creative twist on a prompt
I think everything was pretty straightforward this year.

- The prompt I "cheated" on
Did I mention I was boring?

- My favorite prompt
14. A science fiction or fantasy novel written by a woman

- My least favorite prompt
The book list ones. They are way too limiting.

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
Christmas at the Gingerbread Inn by Michelle Stimpson - I specifically looked for this one to fill this prompt (27. A book set in the winter27. A book set in the winter). It wasn't a fabulous book, but I did enjoy it. It was a cute comfort read.

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!)
Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder - what an awful, terrible, disgusting, really bad book. It was a waste of time and energy. If I could have given it less than one star, I would have. This book is not worth the time it takes to read it. (9. A book that has been long-listed for the Tournament of Books in any year)

I generally complete the challenge more than once. I'm still working on a fiction and a nonfiction version of the challenge, but I have completed all 52 prompts with picture books.


- 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
Not A Monster
Aloha Everything
The Most Magnificent Thing
The Girl Who Built an Ocean: An Artist, an Argonaut, and the True Story of the World's First Aquarium
Soy Sauce!
Pencil
Pink!
The Most Boring Book Ever
Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre

- Any twists on the challenge? all picture books

- My most creative twist on a prompt
for adult friendship I read Frog and Toad Are Friends

- The prompt I "cheated" on
I read Boys Weekend for the tournament of books prompt because there really weren't any picture books on the list.

- My favorite prompt
book by an author you enjoyed but haven't gotten around to reading again for some time

- My least favorite prompt
connection from different genres

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
Moving the Millers' Minnie Moore Mine Mansion: A True Story

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!)
None less than 3 stars.

Wow, impressed that people have finished so quickly! Great job!!

I really enjoy people’s comments on favorites, cheats, hates, etc.

I finished on May 21 and am just posting now!

5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
The History of Sound by Ben Shattuck
Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood
Hester by Mrs. Oliphant
These Days by Lucy Caldwell
The Feast by Margaret Kennedy
You Can't Keep a Good Woman Down: Stories by Alice Walker
The Bookseller at the End of the World by Ruth Shaw
James by Percival Everett
Liars by Sarah Manguso

Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc)
No

My most creative twist on a prompt
No

The prompt I "cheated" on
None

My favorite prompt
42. A book set in a manor, mansion, or estate

My least favorite prompt
I liked all of them

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
These Days by Lucy Caldwell which I read for Irish author

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!)
The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky which I read for monster book

Completed 7/10/2025

5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
March: Book One
The Message
The Moor's Account
Crescent: A Novel
The Return: Fathers, Sons and the Land in Between

Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc)
No twists

My most creative twist on a prompt
For #30: a monster book, I used Moby-Dick; or, the Whale. Saying the whale is a monster is a bit of a stretch but I also counted it because the book was massive at about 630 pages!

The prompt I "cheated" on
#38 & #39: books with a connection from different genres. I feel like the books I chose were kind of similar genres (Contemporary/Romance), but one of them was YA and the other was Adult.

My favorite prompt
For regular ATY, #23: A book that involves art, music, dancing or acting & #33: A book by an author you enjoyed but haven’t gotten around to reading again for some time
For anniversary, 2021: A book related to a codeword from the NATO Phonetic Alphabet

My least favorite prompt
#4 A book set underground, under sea or in an underworld. I had a hard time finding a book for this one, but I did like the book I ended up choosing

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
There were many!
Victim (#6: serpentine element)
The Wild Huntress (#11: fictional location)
The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love (#23: art, music, dancing, acting)
The Brutal Language of Love: Stories (#28: pair of opposites in the title)
Wuthering Heights(#44: haunting book)
Kindred (#49: time travel)
You Dreamed of Empires (2022: 5 vowels in name)

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!)
You are Eating an Orange. You are Naked. (#5: weird title)
Harlem Rhapsody (#7: three name author)
The Grand Scheme of Things (#15: lies and deception)
Stupid and Contagious (2017: No "e" in title)

- 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
Gods of Jade and Shadow
When the Moon Hits Your Eye
The Summer War
Salvage the Bones

- Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc) - No, except that every book counted for at least one other challenge in one of my GR groups

- My most creative twist on a prompt - nothing really

- The prompt I "cheated" on - not sure if this cover is really sunset vibes, could be sunrise -

- My favorite prompt - I liked the 2 part ones - pair of opposites in title and 2 books from different genres with a connection
- My least favorite prompt - a book about witches, goddesses or nuns - I rarely read any of those

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!) - Gods of Jade and Shadow - for underworld

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!) - I Cheerfully Refuse - I read it for waves on cover. I probably would have at least started it anyway, because I loved other books by this author, but this was creepy and depressing.

Completed 7/12/25
...including the Anniversary List

I really enjoyed completing the challenge using a lot of books from favorite authors (Ali Smith, P.G. Wodehouse, Terry Pratchett) and books from favorite small/independent presses, like New Directions, Fitzcarraldo Editions, and Coffee House Press.

Challenge Completed 7/14

5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
A Magic Deep and Drowning, Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales, Silver and Lead, The Jewel of the Isle,High, Bride

- Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc)- no twists

- My most creative twist on a prompt- they were really all straight forward.

- The prompt I "cheated" on I did not cheat.

- My favorite prompt A book that deals with time travel, alternate universes, or alternate timelines. I love those types of books.

- My least favorite prompt A book involving 4 people who aren't family. This was much harder to find than I thought. In so many books with groups at least two of them are related.

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!) The Jewel of the Isle

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!) Unborn

Completed: 19/7/25

My lists: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

5 Star books:


Any twists
For one round I read only books published in 2016.

The prompt I cheated on
For the 2016 round I wild-carded #51 'book published in 2025' for obvious reasons. As I read Atmosphere for round 1, I read One True Loves, a 2016 book by the same author.

My favourite prompt:
#23 'book involving art, music, dancing or acting'

My least favourite prompt
#40 'A comfort read'

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I'm so glad I did!)
There were too many to name

A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn't!)
It Ends with Us
(really didn't like the way the ending was handled)

Finished 07/27/2025

Link to my reading list:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

- 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
...Glamorous Notions, Megan Chance
...West With Giraffes, Lynda Rutledge
...A Killer in the Crystal Palace, Deb Marlowe
...Hungry: The Inspiring Tale of Three Donner Party Survivors, B.E. Baker
...He Gets Us: Experiencing the confounding love, forgiveness, and relevance of Jesus, Max Lucado
...Rednecks, Taylor Brown
...Monster: A Novel of Frankenstein, Dave Zeltserman
...Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History, Erik Larson
...The Pianist, Władysław Szpilman
...Horse, Geraldine Brooks
...News of the World, Paulette Jiles
...The Dressmakers of Auschwitz: The True Story of the Women Who Sewed to Survive, Lucy Adlington

- Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc)
...Read main challenge in order
...REJECT for each prompt

My most creative twist on a prompt
Two books with a pair of opposites in their titles
...Sinkable: Obsession, the Deep Sea and the Shipwreck of the Titanic
and Unsinkable: A Novel
- one Non-fiction and one fiction, both related to the Titanic

- The prompt I "cheated" on
...None

- My favorite prompt
5. A book with a weird or intriguing title - The Old Buzzard Had It Coming, Donis Casey

- My least favorite prompt
22. A translated novel from Asia - Sweet Bean Paste, Durian Sukegawa

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
...West With Giraffes, Lynda Rutledge

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!)
...Sweet Bean Paste Boring!

🎉 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge


🎉My favorite prompt - 28. Two books with a pair of opposites in their titles: Book 1

🎉 My least favorite prompt - prompts that take you to other pages and don't provide the link to where you need to go!

🎉 A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
The Hard Road Out: One Woman’s Escape From North Korea, Jihyun Park | 5/21

🎉 A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!)
Dragon on Top, G.A. Aiken | 4/15

Just completed this morning! Here is my list

- My most creative twist on a prompt - Using A Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel by KJ Charles for 46. A book related to one of the traditional full moon names. I chose conflict moon, as it's a book with a lot of conflict in it!

- The prompt I "cheated" on - I feel a bit like I cheated on 3. A book connected to something mentioned in the Do Re Mi song, by picking Radiant Sin by Katee Robert. I mean, Apollo is god of the sun in Greek myth! So it does fit, just maybe not as tightly as I would've liked.

- My favorite prompt - This year it was probably 33. A book by an author you enjoyed but haven't gotten around to reading again for some time, as it gave me an excuse to get back into Katee Robert!

- My least favorite prompt - 26. A book by an author with a common noun in their name was a prompt I voted for last year, I think, but in practice it just baffled my poor brain.

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!) - Six Four by Hideo Yokoyama. TBH before I started reading it I would've said the prompt I read it for (9. A book that has been long-listed for the Tournament of Books in any year) was my least favourite one of the year, but I'm very glad it got me to read this absolutely incredible book. It pushed me out of my comfort zone, but it was SO GOOD and I'm really glad I experienced it. Quite possibly my favourite book of the year, even though I finished it relatively early on!

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!) - Stretching a little here, as I enjoyed the vast majority of my first time reads (for the challenge) this year, but I probably wouldn't have read The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood without the challenge (for 2018: An author's debut book, in the anniversary list). I mean, it wasn't awful! It just really wasn't to my taste.

Finished yesterday :)

- 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge
The Little White Horse
and I'm sure there were more.

- Any twists on the challenge?
nope

- The prompt I "cheated" on
I don't cheat. What's the point? You're only deceiving yourself.

- My favorite prompt
36. A book with a common household object on the cover
This prompt was a bit different without being too difficult.

- My least favorite prompt
10. A book about witches, goddesses or nuns
I hated the assumption that nuns are not normal human beings.

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!)
The Little White Horse

- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!)
none

- 5 Star books that I read for the ATY Challenge:
Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine
The Small and the Mighty: Twelve Unsung Americans Who Changed the Course of History, from the Founding to the Civil Rights Movement by Sharon McMahon
The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
Before Dorothy by Hazel Gaynor
Foster by Claire Keegan
Babylonia by Costanza Casati
The Round House by Louise Erdrich
Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson
By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult
The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak
Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy
Long Island by Colm Tóibín
Still Life with Bread Crumbs by Anna Quindlen
The Underground Rail Road by William Still

- Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc); not this year
- My most creative twist on a prompt: for the Anniversary List 2019 prompt (book related to one of the elements on the periodic table of elements), I read The Magdalene Deception, which is another take on the Holy Grail saga, similar to Dan Brown's series. There was gold involved.
- The prompt I "cheated" on: For prompt 14 (a science fiction or fantasy novel written by a woman) I used Babylonia by Costanza Casati. Goodreads tags have this as fantasy, but IMO it is mythology and ancient history. I used it for fantasy anyway.
- My favorite prompt: 3. A book connected to something mentioned in the Do Re Mi song
- My least favorite prompt: prompt 14 (a science fiction or fantasy novel written by a woman); neither is among my favorite genres
- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!) Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. Somehow, I missed this book in the six-and-a-half decades I have been reading! Charming. Plus, for the Read-It-Watch-It, I paired this with Anne with an E, which was also a nice surprise.
- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!): none!

Completed 9/4/25

Completed challenge 8/10/2025
Completed Anniversary List 9/6/2025
- 5 stars books I read for the ATY challenge
My Friends
The Light Pirate
The Small and the Mighty: Twelve Unsung Americans Who Changed the Course of History, from the Founding to the Civil Rights Movement
Finding Grace
- Any twists on the challenge? (ie in order, all nonfiction, all picture books, etc) None
- My most creative twist on a prompt . Not sure how creative this was but # 38 & 39 Two books with a connection from different genres. I did a fiction & nonfiction book on the Vietnam War.
- The prompt I "cheated" on - None
- My favorite prompt - #28 &29 Two books with opposites in their titles.
- My least favorite prompt - There were a few prompts I had a hard time finding a book I wanted to read but I didn't dislike the prompts.
- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (but I’m so glad I did!) The Light Pirate
- A book I might not have read if not for the ATY Challenge (and I wish I hadn’t!) All Fours