Hooked on Books discussion
3RC Reading Challenge
>
Ridiculously Random Reading Challenge: Izzy
Mod
Just to shake things up a bit more and keep them really random, I'm throwing caution to the wind for this challenge. Your prompts will be given to you in random order, with everyone following a different path. I'll be tracking your prompts on a separate spreadsheet to make sure we don't miss one.
If you would like to pick your starting place, tell me your favorite number between 1 and 72 before, or tell me to choose for you!
random.org tells me my favorite number is 56.
Mod
The largest sand castle in the world measured 54 feet high.
It took 168 trucks over a week to deliver enough sand for this carefully sculpted masterpiece.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🏝 1. Read a book with sand visible on the cover.
🏝 2. Read a book with a 5 OR a 4 in the page count.
🏝 3. Read a book with a 1, 6, AND 8 in the publication date.
🏝 4. Read a book that took place over more than a week's time.
Prompt # / Name: #56: Largest Sand CastleBook: Catching You
Author: E.M. Lindsey
Date Read: 2026.03.02
Pages: 261
Task: 4. Read a book that took place over more than a week's time
How it Fits: Takes place over an entire pregnancy.
In case it's relevant, random.org informs me that my next favorite number is 68
Mod
Haha.. but it wouldn't be random if you choose! Unless you rather go in the order you choose? That's an option if you want.
Let me know...
I don't care. It is still random. I'm honestly going to random.org and telling them to give me a random integer between 1 and 72. I could probably ask them for a random permutation, too... hmm...Here it is (removed 56 because that's already completed):
68 32 2 6 8 12 5 13 60 36
59 26 29 44 14 33 16 37 35 45
42 53 52 62 17 38 61 57 50
66 11 48 55 40 63 58 18 27 67
65 20 43 19 64 25 54 23 72 21
28 15 41 70 1 22 69 7 31 24
3 10 9 71 30 34 51 49 47 4
39 46
(source: https://www.random.org/sequences/?min...)
Mod
..."
I love it! Let's go with this plan! ... so next up is 68... going to grab it now!
Mod
Dr. Seuss wrote "Green Eggs and Ham" on a bet.
Theodore Geisel's editor didn't believe the author could write a book in 50 words or less. The finished product contains 50 words on the dot.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🍳 1. Read a book where a character eats a meal.
🍳 2. Read a book with a 50 intact in the page count.
🍳 3. Read a book where a main/major character is a doctor.
🍳 4. Read a book where someone makes a bet of any kind.
Prompt # / Name: #68: Green Eggs & HamBook: Barn Burner by
Author: Jodi Oliver
Date Read: 2026.03.03
Pages: 276
Task: 1. Read a book where a character eats a meal.
How it Fits: 25% MC cooks a meal (chicken dinner with all the trimmings), sits down to eat it with host family.
Mod
Coca-Cola consumers will pay more to drink less ounces.
Coca-Cola consumers prefer smaller packaging of their beverage and are willing to pay more per ounce. While soda consumption is declining in the U.S., Coca-Cola had a net revenue of $33 billion worldwide last year. Talk about vanity sizing!
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🥤 1. Read a book with a dashed word in the title.
🥤 2. Read a book where someone drinks a cola, soda, pop, whatever you call it where you're from.
🥤 3. Read a book with two 3s in the publication date.
🥤 4. Read a book you were willing to pay for.
Prompt # / Name: #32: Coca-ColaBook/Author: Confetti Hearts by Lily Morton
Date Read: 2026.03.07
Pages: 307
Task: 2. Read a book where someone drinks a cola, soda, pop, whatever you call it where you're from.
How it Fits: 3%, MC grabs a Coke out of the fridge.
Mod
The 100 folds in a chef's hat represent 100 ways to cook an egg.
Yes, that tall, pleated white hat that chefs wear — technically called a toque — has 100 folds for a reason! According to Reluctant Gourmet, the pleats used to signify a chef's level of experience, like the number of ways he or she knew how to prepare eggs.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
👩🏼🍳 1. Read a book with a mostly white cover. {Your discretion.}
👩🏼🍳 2. Read a book where the MC is described as being tall.
👩🏼🍳 3. Read a book with a 1 and 2 0s found in the publication date.
👩🏼🍳 4. Read a book where the author's first AND last initials are found in RELUCTANT GOURMET.
Prompt # / Name: #2: Chef's HatBook/Author: Pucking Strong by Emily Rath
Date Read: 2026.03.08
Pages: 678
Task: 4. Read a book where the author's first AND last initials are found in RELUCTANT GOURMET.
How it Fits: ER are the first two letters of REluctant.
Mod
Bog Snorkelling takes place in a 55-metre-long water-filled trench carved out of a peat bog (comprised of dead plant material).
Competitors wear snorkels and flippers and cannot use traditional swimming techniques, but rather must rely solely on flipper power to get across and back. Kirsty Johnson set the record back in 2014 with a time of 1 minute and 22.56 seconds.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🤿 1. Read a book published in 2014.
🤿 2. Read a book with a title that starts with a letter in SNORKELLING.
🤿 3. Read a book with some type of plant material on the cover.
🤿 4. Read a book that does not follow a "traditional" style. {dual-timelines, epistolary, etc.}
Prompt # / Name: #6: Bog SnorkellingBook/Author: All the Hidden Paths by Foz Meadows
Date Read: 2026.03.11
Pages: 511
Task: 3. Read a book with some type of plant material on the cover.
How it Fits:
Mod
Apple Pie isn't actually American at all.
The next time you call something "as American as apple pie," you might want to consider the fact that neither apple pies nor apples originally came from America. Apples are in fact native to Asia, and the first recorded recipe for apple pie was actually written in England.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🥧 1. Read a book set in America, England, or Asia.
🥧 2. Read a book that includes a recipe.
🥧 3. Read a book with a cliché in the text.
🥧 4. Read a book with an apple or other fruit on the cover.
Prompt # / Name: #8: Apple PieBook/Author: The Sleeping Soldier by Aster Glenn Gray
Date Read: 2026.03.13
Pages: 302
Task: 1. Read a book set in America, England, or Asia.
How it Fits: Takes place in Indiana
"We stole it, now it's ours." Seems pretty American to me!
Mod
🤣🤣
Mod
The Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling & Wake is an annual event that takes place each spring near Gloucester, England and involves a 9 pound round of cheese, which is rolled from the top of a hill.
Competitors race after the cheese and the first person to reach the finish line at the bottom wins the cheese.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🧀 1. Read a book where a character eats cheese, or does something foolish.
🧀 2. Read a book set at least partially in England.
🧀 3. Read a book with all the letters of SPRING in the title.
🧀 4. Read a book with a 9 in the page count or publication date.
Prompt # / Name: #12: Cheese RollingBook/Author: The Lilbury Murder by James Quentin
Date Read: 2026.03.19
Pages: 404
Task: 🧀 2. Read a book set at least partially in England.
How it Fits: Set in Dorset and London
I spent 3 years in Gloucestershire. The first time I heard about the cheese rolling, I was gobsmacked. I'm still not entirely sure how it works.
Mod
Gobsmacked sounds like the right reaction to have for this!
Mod
The longest wedding veil was longer than 63 football fields.
If you thought Meghan Markle's wedding veil was long, get this: there's a woman in Cyprus who set the Guinness World Record for the longest wedding veil. How long was it, you ask? Nearly 23,000 feet, which is the same length as about 63.5 football fields.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
👰🏻♀️ 1. Read a book with something related to a bride on the cover.
👰🏻♀️ 2. Read a book where someone gets married.
👰🏻♀️ 3. Read a book that is long - more than 400 pages.
👰🏻♀️ 4. Read a book with a 6 and a 3 in the total number of reviews.
Prompt # / Name: #5: Wedding VeilBook/Author: Hidden Species: The Complete Series by Louisa Masters
Date Read: 2026.03.19
Pages: 1099
Task: 👰🏻♀️ 3. Read a book that is long - more than 400 pages.
How it Fits: 1099 > 400
Mod
The voices of Mickey and Minnie Mouse got married in real life.
Wayne Allwine and Russi Taylor were married for 18 years until Allwine's death in 2009.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🐭 1. Read a book where someone dies.
🐭 2. Read a book published in 2009.
🐭 3. Read a book with a 1 and an 8 in the page count.
🐭 4. Read a book with some type of animal on the cover.
Prompt # / Name: #13: Mickey & MinnieBook/Author: The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa
Date Read: 2026.03.25
Pages: 281
Task: 🐭 1. Read a book where someone dies.
How it Fits: The human MC loses his parents in an early flashback in this book.
Mod
Unicycle Basketball is a variation of the traditional game but where all of the players are mounted on unicycles during play.
The same rules apply, such as dribbling the ball while riding, and trying to score in the other team’s net. The game is played on a regulation basketball court and players tend to use 24” unicycles.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🏀 1. Read a book that takes place within a 24-hour period of time.
🏀 2. Read a book where a sport is watched or played.
🏀 3. Read a book with the word COURT found in the text.
🏀 4. Read a book where the author's first AND last initials are NOT found in UNICYCLE.
Prompt # / Name: #60: Unicycle BasketballBook/Author: The Marriage Policy by Riley Hart
Date Read: 2026.03.27
Pages: 318
Task: 🏀 2. Read a book where a sport is watched or played.
How it Fits: Watch a hockey game.
Mod
Parkour is the act of running, jumping, swinging, climbing, etc. based on military obstacle course training techniques.
It is often practiced in urban environments with the aim of getting from one point to another as quickly and as efficiently as possible without the use of specialized equipment.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🏃🏼♀️ 1. Read a book with a character who is in the military.
🏃🏼♀️ 2. Read a book set in an urban environment.
🏃🏼♀️ 3. Read a book where the title starts with a letter in PARKOUR.
🏃🏼♀️ 4. Read a book with any of these words in the text: running, jumping, swinging, climbing. {variations accepted}
Prompt # / Name: #36: ParkourBook/Author: Twisted Shadows by Allie Therin
Date Read: 2026.04.01
Pages: 384
Task: 🏃🏼♀️ 4. Read a book with any of these words in the text: running, jumping, swinging, climbing.
How it Fits: 12% “My entire job is, after all, running a facility for empaths who aren’t quite themselves anymore.”
Mod
Chocolate is (kinda) a fruit.
In more great chocolate news, the cocoa powder that goes into our fave best dark chocolate bars comes from the "beans" — or fruit of the cacao tree.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
❓1. Read a book with a brown cover. {Your discretion.}
❓2. Read a book with all the letters of CACAO found in the title.
❓3. Read a book with the word BEANS found in the text.
❓4. Read a book where a character gets great news.
Prompt # / Name: #59: A Fruit?Book/Author: Swordcrossed by Freya Markske
Date Read: 2026.04.03
Pages: 378
Task: ❓4. Read a book where a character gets great news
How it Fits: Well, to avoid any spoilers, basically the news saves the house, and everyone lives happily ever after.
Mod
A baby puffin is called a "puffling."
To feed its chick, a puffin parent will carry around 10 fish in its beak at one time, but the biggest recorded haul is a whopping 62 fish, according to Audubon Project Puffin.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🐠 1. Read a book with a bird on the cover.
🐠 2. Read a book where the MC is a parent.
🐠 3. Read a book with a 6 and a 2 in the page count.
🐠 4. Read a book with all the letters of PUFFIN found in the title/subtitle.
Prompt # / Name: #26: Baby PuffinsBook/Author: The Magpie Lord by K.J. Charles
Date Read: 2026.04.07
Pages: 271
Task: 🐠 1. Read a book with a bird on the cover.
How it Fits:
Mod
The lyrebird can mimic almost any sounds it hears — including chainsaws.
Wildlife watchers have recorded the Australian species copying not only other birds but other animals, like koalas, and artificial sounds such as car alarms and camera shutters.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
📸 1. Read a book set in Australia.
📸 2. Read a book where one book seems to mimic another in plot or design.
📸 3. Read a book with a piece of machinery on the cover.
📸 4. Read a book with the word CAR or CAMERA found in the text.
Prompt # / Name: #29: The LyrebirdBook/Author: Glitched Fates & Stolen Mates by T.J. Rose
Date Read: 2026.04.10
Pages: 537
Task: 📸 4. Read a book with the word CAR or CAMERA found in the text.
How it Fits: p42 "Felix got hurt," Kit said very seriously, as if I'd been in a car crash.
Mod
About 700 grapes go into one bottle of wine.
That's approximately 2.6 pounds, if you're wondering how much "fruit" you get when you uncork your favorite red.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🍇 1. Read a book with less than 700 reviews on Goodreads.
🍇 2. Read a book with a red or purple cover. {Your discretion.}
🍇 3. Read a book with a 2 and a 6 in the publication date.
🍇 4. Read a book where the MC's first initial is NOT found in UNCORK.
Prompt # / Name: #44: 700 GrapesBook/Author: Shadow Throne King by Kai Butler
Date Read: 2026.04.10
Pages: 384
Task: 🍇 4. Read a book where the MC's first initial is NOT found in UNCORK.
How it Fits: MCs Prince Airón and Emperor Tallu. T and A not in UNCORK.
Mod
The largest known living organism is an aspen grove.
Pando (Latin for "I spread out") is a group of genetically identical quaking aspens in Utah with an interconnected root system. It's an estimated 80,000 years old and takes up more than 100 acres.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🟡 1. Read a book set in Utah.
🟡 2. Read a book with more than 80,000 ratings.
🟡 3. Read a book with more than 100 reviews.
🟡 4. Read a book with a mostly yellow cover. {Your discretion.}
Prompt # / Name: #14: An Aspen GroveBook/Author: Extraordinary Quests for Amateur Witches by Kayla Cottingham
Date Read: 2026.04.13
Pages: 406
Task: 🟡 3. Read a book with more than 100 reviews.
How it Fits: 155 reviews
Mod
In Outhouse Racing, an outhouse (outdoor toilet) is kitted with wheels, brakes, and a steering system, and is raced down hills with competitors sitting on the toilet seat inside.
Competitors decorate their outhouses with clever names like “Royal Flush” and the first outhouse to make it across the finish line wins.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🚽 1. Read a book where a character decorates something.
🚽 2. Read a book with all the letters of OUTHOUSE in the title and/or subtitle.
🚽 3. Read a book with something with a steering system on the cover.
🚽 4. Read a book where a character sits down.
Prompt # / Name: #33: Outhouse RacingBook/Author: Twisted Pretty Things by Ariana Nash
Date Read: 2026.04.16
Pages: 328
Task: 🚽 4. Read a book where a character sits down.
How it Fits: 18% "He sat, not caring about the wet grass and mud, and stared into the misty fog swirling over the lake."
Mod
M&M stands for Mars and Murrie.
Forrest Mars (son of the Mars Company founder) first spotted the British confection Smarties during the Spanish Civil War and noticed the candy shell prevented the chocolate from melting. He teamed up with Bruce Murrie (son of Hershey Chocolate's president) and the company later trademarked the "Melts in Your Mouth, Not in Your Hand" slogan.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🔴 1. Read a book with an alliterative title.
🔴 2. Read a book with at least two men on the cover.
🔴 3. Read a book tagged SPACE any number of times.
🔴 4. Read a book where the MC's first initial is found in HERSHEY.
Prompt # / Name: #16: M&MsBook/Author: The Witch and His Crow by Ben Alderson
Date Read: 2026.04.17
Pages: 429
Task: 🔴 4. Read a book where the MC's first initial is found in HERSHEY.
How it Fits: MC: Hector
Mod
Only one NFL team has a plant for a logo.
The New Orleans Saints' fleur-de-lis is actually a stylized lily historically associated with the French monarchy. It's also the state symbol of Louisiana and appears on the Quebec flag.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
⚜️ 1. Read a book where a character plays or watches football.
⚜️ 2. Read a book set in Louisiana, France, or Canada.
⚜️ 3. Read a book with a logo or a flag on the cover.
⚜️ 4. Read a book with all the letters of MONARCHY in the title.
Prompt # / Name: #37: Fleur-de-LisBook/Author: Mistletoe in the Maritimes by Reneé McLean
Date Read: 2026.04.22
Pages: 334
Task: ⚜️ 2. Read a book set in Louisiana, France, or Canada.
How it Fits: Set in Nova Scotia (Canada)
Mod
Pumpkins, squash, and gourds are all technically the same species.
That's right, your zucchini and Jack o' lanterns are one and the same: Cucurbita pepo, a species that originated in Mexico more than 10,000 years ago. Farmers have since developed the many cultivars we know and use today.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
👩🏽🌾 1. Read a book with some type of vegetable on the cover.
👩🏽🌾 2. Read a book with at least 10,000 ratings.
👩🏽🌾 3. Read a book set in Mexico.
👩🏽🌾 4. Read a book where the author's first AND last initials are found in CUCURBITA PEPO.
Prompt # / Name: #35: Pumpkins, Squash, and Gourds...Oh My!Book/Author: The Curse of Challion by Lois McMaster Bujold
Date Read: 2026.04.24
Pages: 490
Task: 👩🏽🌾 2. Read a book with at least 10,000 ratings.
How it Fits: 43518 ratings
Mod
Snail Racing is essentially a race between ordinary garden snails, with snail racing events taking place around the world.
The snails tend to race on a 13 - 14 inch circular track and start in the center with the winning snail being the first to reach the perimeter. Racing numbers or stickers are often put on the shells in order to distinguish each competitor.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🐌 1. Read a book with the word CRAWL in the text.
🐌 2. Read a book where the MC's first initial is found in SNAIL.
🐌 3. Read a book where the author's last initial is found in GARDEN.
🐌 4. Read a book where the publisher's name starts with a letter in SHELL.
Prompt # / Name: #45: Snail RacingBook/Author: The Outlaw and the Heir by Romeo Alexander
Date Read: 2026.04.30
Pages: 387
Task: 🐌 2. Read a book where the MC's first initial is found in SNAIL.
How it Fits: MC Ambrose Isaiah
Hooked on Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Bear, Otter and the Kid (other topics)Archmage's Ire: The Wandering Inn, Book 18 (other topics)
We'll Prescribe You Another Cat (other topics)
The Outlaw and the Heir (other topics)
The Curse of Chalion (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
T.J. Klune (other topics)Pirateaba (other topics)
Syou Ishida (other topics)
E. Madison Shimoda (other topics)
Romeo Alexander (other topics)
More...
Ridiculously Random Reading Challenge
Individual, Open-Ended
(New) Duration: March 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027
New Sign-ups: Open Through April 30, 2026
You know how most reading challenges you join have some type of theme or main idea, kind of like the books themselves? Well, this one...not so much! We'll look at Crown Jewels, Greasy Pole Climbing, Model Ts, Zorbing, and anything and everything in between. So buckle up for the ride and enjoy!
This challenge originally started in March 2025 but is being re-opened for NEW sign-ups.
Each time you satisfy a task, make a post here IN YOUR OWN THREAD. Please use the following example for your Completion Post.
Prompt # / Name: {For example: #1: Octothorpe}
Book:
Author:
Date Read:
Pages:
Task:
How it Fits:
If you have any questions about this challenge, please post them in the Ridiculously Random Q&A Thread.
Challenge Rules:
📘 Standard Rules Apply
📘 I will create an individual thread for you after you sign-up.
📘 Your first prompt will be posted after you respond to the question in your thread's second message.
📘 Books must be completed after the task has been posted. For example, if your task is posted on April 15, you can't use a book you completed on April 14.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If a set of tasks is too difficult or just out of your comfort zone, you have 4 SKIPS to use in this challenge. In order to use a SKIP, read any book that meets the Standard Book Qualifications for Hooked on Books. The link is in the Challenge Rules above. Simply list SKIP on the Task line.