The 52 Book Club: 2025 / 2026 Challenge discussion

WEEKLY CHECK-IN
July 9, 2023 -- Week 28

For those participating in the summer reading challenge, how's it going?

How many prompts are you aiming for? How many have you finished so far? Any fun new favorites to recommend for the summer prompts?

We want to hear all about it!

I'm 2 books away from being two thirds done. So far, the best one has been A Street Cat Named Bob: And How He Saved My Life by James Bowen and If I Ever Get Out of Here by Eric Gansworth. The first has been on my TBR list pretty much since it came out, and I'm just now getting to it, the second I never would have even heard about if it weren't for this challenge.

I’m just filling in prompts as I read and we’ll see how it shakes out at the end. I have books for 6 of the summer challenge prompts but am constantly rearranging which books go where, so I’m not sure what it will look like when I’m done.

I am aiming for 8, one for each category. I am behind rn but that's because I tend to read 4-5 books at once, and then I'll fill on 4 prompts within a few days as I finish the books. If I do more than 8 I'll be super happy.

I am however double dipping...i am using each book I read from June-August for a summer prompt AND a "regular" prompt where possible

I'm half way through!
Finished:
1) Destination - A. Beach - My Killer Vacation by Tessa Bailey
Enjoyed as it was a read I meant to read last year. Funny!

3) Vehicle - A. Camper Van - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
It was okay. After watching the movies for years it's hard to judge the book itself.

4) Snacks - A. Hot & Spicy - Talk Flirty to Me by Livy Hart and Dragon Down Under by Angela Castle
I read 2 as you can't stop at just one snack. Both very funny and very fitting of the "Hot & Spicy".

6) Sights to See - C. Mountains - You Shouldn't Have Come Here by Jeneva Rose
Kept me guessing until the end. Really suspenseful and thankfully unpredictable.

Currently Reading:
7) Mishap - B. We're Lost! - The Library of Lost Things by Laura Taylor Namey
Will finished 7/10. Okay so far. While the story I'm starting to feel is getting rocking, I feel for the main character and her situation.

Still to Read:
2) Buddies - C. Family - Marrying Off Morgan McBride by Amy Barry
Can't wait to start this on 7/10 - after finishing The Library of Lost Things

5) Music - A. Classical - Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

8) Conclusion - B. Memoir - Forever Young by Hayley Mills

I feel that I'm doing pretty good. My first aim is to do a full journey and then I see if I can check the remaining prompts too!

I finished the 8th book for this challenge Friday night. And since I only have 2 left for the 52 Challenge (and no double-dipping for me between the 2 challenges), I think I might go back and choose 8 new prompts and start over. Of the 8 I read, I gave 3 of them 4 stars. My favorite of those was What Lies in the Woods.

This is the first year I have heard of this challenge group, and I was so excited to see a summer challenge. I am still trying to get books for the transportation leg of the journey, and I have completed only 2 prompts so far. This is not from a lack of trying. LOL, I have read several books with the hopes it would have the car. However, I am simultaneously reading from the 'Bookopoly' prompts of the game I'm playing with my teenage son, and the combined prompts are slightly harder to peg. For instance, I landed on Apocolypse with a Summer card and was trying to get one of our transportation prompts, and this is a hard find. :)

I'm doing the summer challenge and I'm going in order of the prompts.
I'm only on the 2nd one... hoping to wrap that one up today or tomorrow! LOVE LOVE this book I'm reading though
Road Trip Buddy as best friend option is The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See. Definitely one I'm glad I decided to read!

I read Beach Read by Emily Henry for my Road Trip Destination by the beach option!

I have chosen not to double up on these with my main challenge books.

Megan wrote: "I'm doing the summer challenge and I'm going in order of the prompts.
I'm only on the 2nd one... hoping to wrap that one up today or tomorrow! LOVE LOVE this book I'm reading though
Road Trip Budd..."

I have Beach Read on my tbr list too!

I already read 7 books. I just need to read one more book to finish the challenge.

I am planning on doing it once, but it is not going well. Or maybe it is just this week that I have been busy so I feel like it isn't going well.
If I can do it a 2nd time, I will. I had my sister pick the prompts and then books to fill them and that will be my 2nd time, if it gets done.

Great! I finished my first road trip to New York City and I started my second one in the woods.

I am hoping to do all the prompts and thus all three trips. I haven’t started to put the books I’ve read to the prompts yet but think I might be nearly done with two trips with a book to go and half done on the third trip.

I have read Gudabröllop by Li Österberg for the prompt #3 Title starting with the letter “G”. I loved Li Österbergs comics so much that after reading the ones from the library, bought my own copies. This is greek mythology in a new way.