Rebecka’s Comments (group member since Feb 17, 2017)

Rebecka’s comments from the A challenge of relative ease and merriment 2017 group.

There are lots of interesting suggestions for next year's challenge. I personally wouldn't feel comfortable reading a book that was published after an author's death, if said author didn't expressly asked for it to be published. I definitely wouldn't read a book that has been published against the expressed wishes of an author.

I'd like to suggest a category for reading a book written by a POC (person of colour).

I've finished the challenge, here is the complete list of what I have read:

a book released in 2017: Difficult Women by Roxane Gay

a book written before 1900: The Awakening by Kate Chopin

a non-fiction book: The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel A. van der Kolk

a kids book:UppfinnarJohanna & skrämselmaskinen by Ann-Christine Magnusson

a YA novel:Ash by Malinda Lo

a book of fantastical fiction (fantasy/scifi/paranormal):Blackout by Connie Willis

a cozy mystery:The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

a debut novel:Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

a book of poetry or drama:Falling Awake by Alice Oswald

a biography/autobiography/memoir:Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir by Tom Hart

a book written by someone under the age of 30: Lyssna till ditt hjärta by Johannes Hinrich von Borstel

a media tie-in: Doctor Who: Tales of Trenzalore: The Eleventh Doctor's Last Stand

an LGBTQIA* book:Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta

a book about food:Mat för hormonell balans by
Mia Lundin

a scary/creepy book:Det svenska hatet: en berättelse om vår tid by Gellert Tamas

a book that is part of a series but not the first book (could be a later released prequel though):Ha'penny by Jo Walton

a Goodreads Choice Awards winner: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

a book with an animal on the cover:Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley

a book mostly set in the desert:Cities of Salt by Abdul Rahman Munif

a book that was adapted into a movie:Hidden Figures: The Untold True Story of Four African-American Women Who Helped Launch Our Nation into Space by Margot Lee Shetterly

I read Sara Baume's Spill Simmer Falter Wither which I enjoyed very much so I can imagine that A Line made by Walking is wonderful. It is on my to read list :)

Berit and Martha.O.S, well done for completing the challenge! :)

Which of the books that you read for this challenge is your favourite?

Bunny, thanks for the suggestions. My library has three of the books you suggested, so I will read whichever I can get my hand on first :)

And I might was well update my progess:
A kids book: UppfinnarJohanna & skrämselmaskinen by Ann-Christine Magnusson
This is a lovely book for children. It is about a girl named Johanna who is an inventor, and in this particular book she invents a scary machine. I love the publisher Olika, because they go beyond gender stereotypes and they don't reinforce the predominance of "white" main characters and/or heroes. I wish this publisher had been around when I was a child!

A media tie-in: Doctor Who: Tales of Trenzalore: The Eleventh Doctor's Last Stand
This is the first media tie-in I have ever read. As a huge Doctor Who fan I had to go with something related to Doctor Who. I found this book a bit uneven, but I think it is only natural since there are four stories written by four different authors. Overall, I enjoyed my read.




Read 14/20

Bunny, I never read cozy mysteries so I honestly don't know the criteria. I googled lists of cozy mystery books, and kept finding And Then There Were None on most of the lists I went through.

But if you don't think it counts as a cozy mystery then I will remove it from my list. In that case I'd love suggestions of cozy mystery books that will be accepted for this challenge, as I don't want to keep reading books that I think fit the category and then don't. Mystery or cozy mystery aren't really genres that interest me.

It's been a while since my last update, here are the books I have read since then for the challenge:


A book released in 2017: Difficult Women by Roxane Gay was not what I expected. It was a tough read in the sense that the women in the stories led very hard and challenging lives.

A scary/creepy book: Det svenska hatet by Gellert Tamas is a must read for anyone who knows Swedish, particularly at a time like this when racism is flourishing in Sweden.

Read 12/20

Pocki: Thanks for the recommendation :) I'll add it to my reading list.

I enjoy reading about the books you have selected for this book challenge, and as always I find myself adding some of them to my to read-list, which always seems to be getting longer and longer no matter how many books I read ;) So many books, so little time!

Since my last update I have finished these categories:

a book of fantastical fiction (fantasy/scifi/paranormal)
Blackout by Connie Willis is set in 2060, when historians time travel to research. The book focuses on a few historians who go back to different times in WW2. I am picking up the second book at the library tomorrow-yay!

a biography/autobiography/memoir
Rosalie Lightning is a graphic biography about the author's experience of his little daugther's death. A beautiful and sad book.

a Goodreads Choice Awards winner: I had never read anything by Neil Gaiman before, and now after having read The Ocean at the End of the Lane, I will definitely have a look at his other books.

Read 10/20

I have finished another four categories since my last update.

A book with an animal on the cover: I recommend Lily and the Octopus for those of you who don't know which book to choose for this category. It is a beautiful book.

A YA novel: Ash by Malinda Lo

A book written before 1900:
I have had The Awakening by Kate Chopin on my "to read" list for a while, and I am so happy I finally got around to reading it. Wow! I can't believe I wasn't made to read this in school.

A book of poetry or drama: Falling Awake by Alice Oswald

Read 7/20

Here are some of my suggestions:

Yaa Gyasi is under 30, and her debut novel is called Homegoing:


Helen Oyeyemi was a teenager when her first book "The Icarus Girl" was published.


Other books by Helen Oyeyemi that were published before she turned 30:




Claire North (Katherine Webb) was 28 when The First Fifteen lives of Harry August was published.

Pocki, Yay! A fellow Rebecka with the correct spelling ;)

Darth Olive, thanks for the suggestions, I will look into them :)

Here is my progress my progress so far:
I have read 3/20.

a book released in 2017
a book written before 1900
a non-fiction book: The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
a kids book
a YA novel
a book of fantastical fiction (fantasy/scifi/paranormal)
a cozy mystery
a debut novel
a book of poetry or drama (that is to say a play, not just ~dramatic~)
a biography/autobiography/memoir
a book written by someone under the age of 30
a media tie-in (clarification in a thread)
an LGBTQIA* book
a book about food
a scary/creepy book
a book that is part of a series but not the first book (could be a later released prequel though):Ha'penny
a Goodreads Choice Awards winner (any year, any category)
a book with an animal on the cover
a book mostly set in the desert
a book that was adapted into a movie: Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

Hi everyone!
My name is Rebecka and I'm from Sweden. I wasn't a part of the 2016 challenge. I did, however, have my own challenge together with my best friend, we were only allowed to read books by women.

I'm pretty much an "omnivore" when it comes to reading, I read most genres. There isn't really a genre I hate, but I prefer not to read "chick-lit" (I do actually hate the name chick-lit though).

I think the categories are great! I look forward to reading an LGBTQIA book, and I expect that finding a book mostly set in the desert to be a challenge.