Books

THE GIST: The idea is to read books set in European countries or books by European authors. The books can be of any genre – fiction, nonfiction, novels, short stories, memoirs, travel guides, cookbooks, biography, poetry, whatever. You can participate at different levels, but each book must represent a different country — either written by an author from a different country or set in a different country, no two books from the same country. It’s supposed to be a tour! 

WHAT COUNTS AS “EUROPE”?: For this challenge, we use the standard list of 50 sovereign states that fall (at least partially) within the geographic territory of the continent of Europe and/or enjoy membership in international European organizations such as the Council of Europe.
These 50 European sovereign states are:

Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Macedonia, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and Vatican City.

I’m going to sign up for the level: FIVE STAR (DELUXE ENTOURAGE): Read at least five books by different European authors or books set in different European countries.

Not sure how many years I’ve done this challenge, but it’s been quite a few. Thanks to Carolina Book Nook for hosting. I like the fun of finding the books for the categories, & also that it’s a small challenge. It’s always fun to spice up my reading a little. The rules are simple: read a book with a title that fits the category. In 2022 the categories are:

• Compound word
• Speed
• Person and their description
• Mythical being
• Season
• Color

Looking forward to searching my shelves for the necessary books. Or maybe some library audio books.

The D.A. Calls it Murder, Erle Stanley Gardner
The Huckleberry Murders (Sheriff Bo Tully #4), Patrick F. McManus
Shots Fired: Stories from Joe Pickett Country (Joe Pickett #14.5), C.J. Box
The Tamarack Murders (Sheriff Bo Tully #5), Patrick F. McManus
A Turn for the Bad (County Cork #4), Sheila Connolly
Cruel Winter (County Cork #5), Sheila Connolly
Lady Clementine, Marie Benedict
Lord of the Wings (Meg Langslow #19), Donna Andrews
The Woman in Blue (Ruth Galloway #8), Elly Griffiths
A False Mirror (Inspector Ian Rutledge #9), Charles Todd
Many a Twist (County Cork #6), Sheila Connolly
The Lost Traveller (County Cork #7), Sheila Connolly
12 for Pike’s Peak
Half Moon Street (Charlotte & Thomas Pitt #20), Anne Perry
The Other Windsor Girl: A Novel of Love, Royalty, Whiskey, & Cigarettes, Georgie Blalock
What Angels Fear (Sebastian St. Cyr, #1), C.S. Harris
The Peppermint Tea Chronicles (44 Scotland Street #13), Alexander McCall Smith
The Language of Bees (Mary Russell #9), Laurie R. King
The God of the Hive (Mary Russell #10), Laurie R. King
TBH, This Is So Awkward (TBH, #1), Lisa Greenwald
One Bad Apple (Orchard, #1), Sheila Connolly
King of Scars (King of Scars #1), Leigh Bardugo
The Final Storm (World War II: 1939-1945, #4), Jeff Shaara
Pirate King (Mary Russell, #11), Laurie R. King
The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl, Timothy Egan
24 for Mount Blanc
A Moveable Feast of Murder: A Dorothy Parker Mystery, Agata Stanford
The General vs. the President: MacArthur and Truman at the Brink of Nuclear War, H.W. Brands
The Frozen Hours, Jeff Shaara
Memoirs of a Geisha, Arthur Golden
Uncommon Type, Tom Hanks
The Chalk Pit (Ruth Galloway #9), Elly Griffiths
The Dark Angel (Ruth Galloway, #10), Elly Griffiths
Gone Gull (Meg Langslow #21), Donna Andrews
A Distant View of Everything (Isabel Dalhousie #11), Alexander McCall Smith
Mourning Gloria (China Bayles, #19) by Susan Wittig Albert
Under the Wide and Starry Sky, Nancy Horan
Widow’s Tears (China Bayles #21), Susan Wittig Albert
36 for Mt. Vancouver
Isaac’s Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History, Eric Larson
Penny for Your Secrets (Verity Kent, #3), Anna Lee Huber
A Pretty Deceit (Verity Kent, #4), Anna Lee Huber
The Whitechapel Conspiracy (Charlotte & Thomas Pitt, #21), Anne Perry
The September Society (Charles Lenox Mysteries, #2), Charles Finch
All Creatures Great and Small, James Herriott (#1)
A Just Clause (Booktown #11), Lorna Barrett
Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding (Royal Spyness #12), Rhys Bowen
Love and Death Among the Cheetahs (Royal Spyness #13), Rhys Bowen
Still Life (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #1), Louise Penny
American Princess: A Novel of First Daughter Alice Roosevelt, Stephanie Marie Thornton
Bittersweet (China Bayles, #23), Susan Wittig Albert
48 for Mt. Ararat (my goal)
Shadow of a Bull, Maia Wojciechowska
The Last Mrs. Summers (Her Royal Spyness, #14), Rhys Bowen
A Burial at Sea (Charles Lenox Mysteries, #5), Charles Finch
Poisoned Pages (Booktown Mystery #12), Lorna Barrett
A Death in the Small Hours (Charles Lenox Mysteries, #6), Charles Finch
My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century, Rachel Harris
Magpie Murders (Susan Ryeland #1), Anthony Horowitz
The Staircase, Ann Rinaldi
Back Of Beyond (Highway #1), C.J. Box
Victoria, Daisy Goodwin
Gmorning, Gnight! Little Pep Talks for Me & You, Lin-Manual Miranda
The Afterlife of Holly Chase, Cynthia Hand
60 for Mt. Kilimanjaro

Additional challenge mountains not reached:
El Toro: Read 75 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Everest: Read 100 books from your TBR pile/s
Mount Olympus (Mars): Read 150+ books from your TBR pile/s

I’ve done this challenge off & on over the years and decided this was the year to do it again & spice up my reading choices. Here’s how it works:

~ Eight “key words” are given for each month. Your task is to read 1 book that includes one or more of the key words in the title. ~ Synonyms and different suffixes are allowed. For example, if the keyword is ‘Lake’ you may also use the words ‘Lakes’, ‘Water’, ‘Sea’, ‘Ocean’.

MONTHLY KEY WORDS

JAN – Last, Kingdom, Girl, Dark, When, Winter, Light, Window

FEB – Midnight, Never, Into, Sun, Love, Good, Spell, Search

MAR – End, Fall, Loud, Queen, Woods, Nine, Beautiful, Crown

APR – Race, Now, Chose, While, Stop, Burn, Red, One

MAY – Thorn, Catch, Black, Under, City, Cloud, Sing, Legacy

JUN – Sea, You, Hate, Perfect, Shade, Until, Beach, Little

JUL – Star, Next, Infinity, Iron, Word, People, Rise, Clear

AUG – Breath, Case, Hundred, Day, Happy, Language, Stay, Lie

SEP – Bright, Here, Out, Life, Strange, Rule, Story, Salt

OCT – House, Bone, Haunt, Body, Blood, Witch, Murder, Mystery

NOV – Many, Boy, River, Fever, Down, Gold, Jade, Hill

DEC – Still, Cabin, Cafe, Night, Lake, By, Holiday, Fire