Middle Grade Madness! discussion

5 years on and we’re still going strong with these!

Here are the tasks for 2023’s TBR Challenge:
1. Read a book with a number in the title
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cover
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty
5. Read a book about empowerment
6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together
7. Read a book about a natural disaster
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world
9. Read a book about a new start
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022

Why I chose these tasks:
1. The population has passed 8 billion!
2. The Cambridge Word of the Year for 2022 is homer which is a baseball term for home run.
3. Pantone Colour of the Year for 2023 is Viva Magenta, a shade of red.
4. In honour of Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee and in remembrance of her death.
5. In remembrance of the protests in Iran after the tragic death of Mahsa Amini.
6. In celebration of all the amazing teams that worked together during the FIFA World Cup and the winning team Argentina.
7. In recognition of the many floods, droughts, and other natural disasters that occurred around the world in 2022.
8. In celebration of the return to Pandora in Avatar 2, the sequel to the 2009 movie Avatar.
9. New year, new you, new books!
10. It’s always nice to finish something before we start the next chapter in life.

Please note that the events I chose to highlight above were not the only important events of 2022, they were just the ones I could come up with a task in relation to them.

For task 5. the book can be about the empowerment of any group of people it doesn’t have to be female empowerment.

For task 9. the book can be about anything new: new school, new job, new country etc. It’s just the idea of change and trying something new that’s important.

For task 10 if you didn’t DNF any books in 2022 then you can pick any book you wanted to read in 2022 but didn’t.

I'm in.

1. Read a book with a number in the title - 40-Love by Olivia Dade 1/12/2023 *** 1/2
2. Read a book about sports - The Failed Audition by Krista and Becca Ritchie All of the characters in this book are involved in gymnastics or acrobatics. 1/14/2023 ****
3. Read a book with a red cover - Better than Fiction by Alexa Martin 1/5/2023 *** 1/2
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty - The Kingmaker by Kennedy Ryan 2/28/2023 *** 1/2
5. Read a book about empowerment - Ship Wrecked by Olivia Dade - Maria, is proud of her body even though she is characterized as "fat." 1/3/2023 ***
6. Read a book centered around a team/group of characters that work together - Steadfast by Shirleen Davies - A group of SEALS goes undercover as a motorcycle club to stop trafficking in their local area. 1/8/2023 ***
7. Read a book about a natural disaster - The Fall of Númenor: and Other Tales from the Second Age of Middle-earth by J.R.R. Tolkien, Edited by Brian Sibley - This story is about a giant flood that overtakes Numenor and destroys it. 1/26/2023 *****
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world - Sidekicks: A Graphic Novel - This world has superheroes and talking animals 8/2/2023
9. Read a book about a new start - The Runaway by Lisa Childs - Rosemary admits that Genevieve is really her daughter instead of her sister and begins a new relationship with her. 1/4/2023 ** 1/2
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022 - Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn 5/18/2023 ***

I'm in!
1. Read a book with a number in the title: The One and Only Ivan
2. Read a book about sports Legacy and the Queen
3. Read a book with a red cover: Dragon Pearl
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty Princess Academy
5. Read a book about empowerment Fever 1793
6. Read a book centered around a team/group of characters that work together City Spies
7. Read a book about a natural disaster The Elephant's Girl
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow
9. Read a book about a new start Children of the Quicksands
10. Read a book from 2022 The Lock-Eater

This will be a great challenge! Such good ideas. Thanks, Kadi!

Yes guys! Lynn and Georgann happy to have you on board!

Hopefully these tasks are different enough from the previous years to make us search through our TBR shelf more. I’m looking through my shelves now for books to fit each one👏🏻

Ok finding books for these is proving to be harder than I thought it’d be. I keep finding good books for tasks I’ve already assigned a book to and can’t find anything for the natural disaster or sport ones! There must be something, I just really have to dig deep to find it. I hope you guys find it easier to fit books to the tasks!

Thanks for putting together this great challenge!

Jeanne

Kadi wrote: "5 years on and we’re still going strong with these!

Here are the tasks for 2023’s TBR Challenge:
1. Read a book with a number in the title
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cov..."

Happy new year everyone!

This is great! Count me in!

Kadi wrote: "5 years on and we’re still going strong with these!

Here are the tasks for 2023’s TBR Challenge:
1. Read a book with a number in the title
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cov..."

This looks like a lot of fun!

I'm in

1. Read a book with a number in the title
2. Read a book about sports Chunky
3. Read a book with a red cover
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty
5. Read a book about empowerment
6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together
7. Read a book about a natural disaster: The Elephant's Girl
8. Read a book set in a fantasy worldThe Hobbit
9. Read a book about a new start: The Unhoneymooners
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022: Josephine Against the Sea

Welcome to 2023 everyone! I’m so happy we have some more people taking part, I’m looking forward to seeing what all your book choices are!

Here are mine:
1. Read a book with a number in the title - Thirteen
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cover - Super Human
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty - Here Lies Arthur
5. Read a book about empowerment - Speak
6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together - Snatched
7. Read a book about a natural disaster - Alone
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world
9. Read a book about a new start - The Castle (new stepdad)
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022 - Lemonade Mouth (read 62% before DNFing)

I’m still looking for books for the sports one and fantasy one and for a few others I’m still waiting for copies to come in so they might change.

Oh and I’ve started Thirteen for task 1 and I’m loving it so far! It feels like a great start to the year!

I didn't fare well last year but I'll try again.

✔ 1. Read a book with a number in the title
172 Hours on the Moon
2. Read a book about sports
Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
3. Read a book with a red cover
Ruby Red
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty
Red Queen
✔ 5. Read a book about empowerment
Uglies
✔ 6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together
The Lightning Thief
7. Read a book about a natural disaster
Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world
A Court of Mist and Fury
9. Read a book about a new start
In the Woods
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022
Inkheart

definetly gonna give this a try

Yesss go for it guys! Looking forward to seeing your picks!

I'm in, some of them are re reads.

1. Read a book with a number in the title First Flight, Dragon School #1 - Read, 3 stars


2. Read a book about sports Soccer . The Kicks book #1

3. Read a book with a red cover Royal Academy Rebels #3



4. Read a book with a character that is royalty Royal Academy Rebels #1


5. Read a book about empowerment MC tries to get unfair school dress code changed


6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together


7. Read a book about a natural disaster Read 4 stars


8. Read a book set in a fantasy world Royal Academy Rebels # 2 or or or


9. Read a book about a new start - read 3 stars


10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022 , started to read it and liked it but never finished.

Hi guys,
Here's what I found so far:
1. Read a book with a number in the title Two Naomis

2. Read a book about sports

3. Read a book with a red cover: The Door of No Return

4. Read a book with a character that is royalty: The Royal Rabbits Of London

5. Read a book about empowerment:Finding Junie Kim

6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together

7. Read a book about a natural disaster: Earthquake In The Early Morning
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world: Anya and the Dragon

9. Read a book about a new start: Twins: A Graphic Novel

10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022

So I forgot to update but I read one of the books!
I gave Thirteen 5 stars and it was a great read to start off the year with! Check out my review here if you're interested:

1. Read a book with a number in the title - Thirteen
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cover - Super Human
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty - Son of Shadow
5. Read a book about empowerment - Speak
6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together - Snatched
7. Read a book about a natural disaster - Alone
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world - Storm Front
9. Read a book about a new start - The Castle (new stepdad)
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022 - Lemonade Mouth (read 62% before DNFing)

I also changed my choice for task 4 from Here Lies Arthur to Son of Shadow because I bought a paperback copy of the book last year which is shocking because I never ever buy physical books and I really want to make sure it was worth the money by actually reading it.

Also I put Storm Front down as my book for task 8. I'm not really sure it counts because it's urban fantasy so it's set in the real world but an alternate version because it's our world with magic. That's kind of a fantasy world I guess? I really want to read it anyway so I guess I shouldn't be too strict about that.
So that means I'm only looking for a sports book in my TBR now. I think this might be a hard one because it's not a genre I read or add to my TBR. Hopefully I'll get lucky...

Kadi wrote: "So I forgot to update but I read one of the books!
I gave Thirteen 5 stars and it was a great read to start off the year with! Check out my review here if you're interested:

1. Rea..."

Yes that counts if you're not being super strict about it. Most Fantasy is like that at least MG ones.

AurorainBookland wrote: "Kadi wrote: "So I forgot to update but I read one of the books!
I gave Thirteen 5 stars and it was a great read to start off the year with! Check out my review here if you're intere..."

I just read this am I too late to suggest any books to read for year 2023?
Anyway here trying my luck- The School of good & evil

Sherlina wrote: "I just read this am I too late to suggest any books to read for year 2023?
Anyway here trying my luck- The School of good & evil"

Hey Sherlina, you're absolutely not late! You can start this one anytime of the year and take as long as you like with it as it's an individual challenge. It's not like a readathon where we have a deadline to add to the book list.

For this challenge you have to pick 10 books from your TBR shelf to match the tasks above and then try and finish all 10 books within the year. If you want to take part just go ahead and start perusing your TBR shelf for some books to fit the tasks!

I’M BACK (hopefully lol)

crazily enough the one book i’ve read in like the last year and a half fits one of the topics whoop

9. wild is the witch

Ohhh I just noticed this, I want to take part!

jessica wrote: "I’M BACK (hopefully lol)

crazily enough the one book i’ve read in like the last year and a half fits one of the topics whoop

9. wild is the witch"

Welcome back! It's so nice when a book just happens to fit the criteria isn't it! Love that feeling

Jos wrote: "Ohhh I just noticed this, I want to take part!"

Awesome! Go ahead Jos, you can start whenever you want and take as long as you need. I'm actually reading on of my book choices for this one right now

So quick update for this one! I’ve changed my book choices for tasks 3 and 4.

1. Read a book with a number in the title - Thirteen
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cover - Sleeper Code
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty - The Once and Future Geek
5. Read a book about empowerment - Speak
6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together - Snatched
7. Read a book about a natural disaster - Alone
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world - Storm Front
9. Read a book about a new start - The Castle (new stepdad)
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022 - Lemonade Mouth (read 62% before DNFing)

I also forgot to say that I read my book for task 6 Snatched as part of Mystery March. I gave it 4 stars and it was pretty good! Here’s my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Book 2 looks meh but book 3 looks really interesting so I may keep reading the series in the future.

For now I’m about halfway through Sleeper Code for task 3 and it’s not too bad.
But I’m still looking for a book for task 2! If anyone knows any books with characters who play sports that aren’t actually books about sports please let me know! I feel like there must be something hidden on my TBR that could apply.

sports Bounce back by Rocks!

Bittersweet by Winnie Mack

AurorainBookland wrote: "sports Bounce back by Rocks!

Bittersweet by Winnie Mack"

Alas. neither of those are on my TBR but I have added Bittersweet to it now because it sounds really good! I want to choose a book that’s already on my TBR though so I think I’ll just have to trawl through it😩

aw okay. good luck.

Hey everyone! I decided to join in and I'm really sorry for the late sign-up but I hope I'm not late for this😅😅I want to join for this but I've got really busy and didn't make a comment soon. I already made progress and I hope I finished it all:)

-Happy reading everyone!

1. Read a book with a number in the title - Man Mission: Four Men, Fifteen Years, One Epic Journey

2. Read a book about sports - Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library(There are some sports here like badminton)

3. Read a book with a red cover

4. Read a book with a character that is royalty - A World Without Princes (The character here is a prince)

5. Read a book about empowerment

6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together - The Dirt Bike Detective

7. Read a book about a natural disaster

8. Read a book set in a fantasy world - The School for Good and Evil (I mean, this is a fantasy book and has a fantasy world)

9. Read a book about a new start

10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022

Patricia wrote: "Hey everyone! I decided to join in and I'm really sorry for the late sign-up but I hope I'm not late for this😅😅I want to join for this but I've got really busy and didn't make a comment soon. I alr..."

Oh no worries, this is an all year challenge so it’s a sign up whenever you want and read at your own pace kind of thing. I’m still working my way through my picks and we’re more than halfway through the year now!

I’ve finished my pick for task 3:

1. Read a book with a number in the title - Thirteen
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cover - Sleeper Code
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty - The Once and Future Geek
5. Read a book about empowerment - Speak
6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together - Snatched
7. Read a book about a natural disaster - Alone
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world - Storm Front
9. Read a book about a new start - The Castle (new stepdad)
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022 - Lemonade Mouth (read 62% before DNFing)

Sleeper Code was quite predictable and didn’t really go anywhere. I haven’t written a review because I’m super lazy lately but I gave it 3.5 stars.

Next I reckon I’ll finish Lemonade Mouth for task 10 before august starts and then read my picks for tasks 4 and 8 as part of the August challenge so I can kill two birds with one stone!

Kadi wrote: "Patricia wrote: "Hey everyone! I decided to join in and I'm really sorry for the late sign-up but I hope I'm not late for this😅😅I want to join for this but I've got really busy and didn't make a co..."

haha, thank you! I'll try to read more books as I can:D

Ooh I want to sign up. I'm late to the party (when am I not? lol) but this sounds great!

1. Read a book with a number in the title
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cover
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty
5. Read a book about empowerment
6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together
7. Read a book about a natural disaster
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world
9. Read a book about a new start
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022

i keep falling off the face of the planet and then poofing back into existence. i am DETERMINED to be more active and read more. which I’m pretty sure i said last time. adulthood is not fun lol
i WILL read though

I have finished this challenge thanks to the August team challenge. See above.

I listened to the sad story The One and Only Ivan for my final book for the challenge, a book with a number in the title. Thanks again, Kadi, for another great challenge!

progress has been made:

1. Read a book with a number in the title
2. Read a book about sports
3. Read a book with a red cover
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty -- Amal Unbound
5. Read a book about empowerment -- You're Cute When You're Mad: Simple Steps for Confronting Sexism
6. Read a book centred around a team/group of characters that work together -- *in progress* Wilder Girls
7. Read a book about a natural disaster
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world -- *in progress* Fairy Tale
9. Read a book about a new start -- Wild Is the Witch
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022

Georgann wrote: "I listened to the sad story The One and Only Ivan for my final book for the challenge, a book with a number in the title. Thanks again, Ka..."

Glad you enjoyed the book and the challenge Georgann! I’m rustling up another one for next year and will post it in a few days!

jessica wrote: "i keep falling off the face of the planet and then poofing back into existence. i am DETERMINED to be more active and read more. which I’m pretty sure i said last time. adulthood is not fun lol
i W..."

This is literally me! But it’s not ideal when I actually run the group! I don’t do New Year’s resolutions but I think my goal for next year is to actually be more active on the group.

@kadi that’s fair — but ya know, life and other priorities. but same goal for sure!

Yes I know that I am coming a year and a half late with this. However, I just wanted to see how many prompts I can fulfill with the books I had read in 2023 and then fill in the blanks later on.

1. Read a book with a number in the title Twelfth Night completed on 1/22/23
2. Read a book about sports Check, Please! Book 1: #Hockey completed on 9/11/23
3. Read a book with a red cover One of Us Is Next completed on 7/19/23
4. Read a book with a character that is royalty Legendborn completed on 9/10/23
5. Read a book about empowerment Babel completed on 8/16/23
6. Read a book centered around a team/group of characters that work together The Silvered Serpents completed on 8/10/23
7. Read a book about a natural disaster No Judgments or Ivy Aberdeen's Letter to the World
8. Read a book set in a fantasy world Nimona completed on 8/22/23
9. Read a book about a new start A Tropical Fish Yearns for Snow, Vol. 1 completed on 7/25/23
10. Read a book you DNF’ed in 2022 Once Upon a K-Prom completed on 7/12/23

*note that I did not have any books that I DNFed that year because I do not DNF often so I just used a book that I wanted to read in 2022 that I read in 2023

Without planning, I really only have one (or two if I don't count the school book for the first prompt) to do. I will try to finish the last prompt with either the book I found or a different one just to complete it.