Monday, December 21, 2015

Literary Loners Reading Challenge 2016

This challenge is too intriguing to pass up! It's hosted by Jamie at Whatever I Think Of! and you can read all about it, including helpful suggestions, and sign up here.

Here's a quick synopsis:

There will be two options for this challenge and you may choose one or both.  The first option is to read books featuring a character identified as a loner, outcast, recluse, wallflower, or introvert. This can be the main character (such as Bella from Twilight or Charlie from The Perks of Being a Wallflower) or a secondary one (such as Miss Havisham from Great Expectations or Boo Radley from To Kill a Mockingbird).

The second option will be to read works written by writers known to have been loners or recluses. The great poet Emily Dickinson was very much a loner as was author J.D. Salinger,  and this link says the ancient Greek playwright Euripides was something of a loner.  A biography of such writers may be read as well.

Cool, eh? I think this one will be fun. Leave any recommendations you have in the comments!

1. The Girl on the Train - Paula Hawkins (Main character seems to be a loner; doesn't have a lot of friends/acquaintances; spends a lot of time alone)
2. The Bat - Jo Nesbø (Main character described as a loner; doesn't seem to have a lot of friends/acquaintances)
3. The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky (Main character self-describes as someone who has few/no friends)
4. Cockroaches - Jo Nesbø (Main character is a loner)
5. The Redbreast - Jo Nesbø (Main character is a loner)
6. Around the World in Eighty Days - Jules Verne (Main character is a loner who self-describes as having no friends, only acquaintances)
7. Nemesis - Jo Nesbø (Main character is a loner)
8. The Devil's Star - Jo Nesbø (Main character is a loner)
9. The Blacker the Berry... - Wallace Thurman (main character cannot make friends)
10. The Redeemer - Jo Nesbø (Main character is a loner)
11. Where'd You Go, Bernadette - Maria Semple (titular character is a loner who has trouble getting along with others)
12. The Snowman - Jo Nesbø (Main character is a loner)
13. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith (main character is a loner)
14. The Rosie Project - Graeme Simsion (main character has 2 friends and is mainly a loner)
15. The Neon Bible - John Kennedy Toole (main character is a loner)
16. V for Vendetta - Alan Moore, David Lloyd (main character is a loner)

4 comments:

  1. Hi Jamie, thanks for letting me know about the challenge, I look forward to it!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi, I'm doing this one again next year. My post is already up.
    http://jannghi.blogspot.com/2016/10/literary-loners-reading-challenge-2017.html

    And I'm doing three new ones as well:
    http://jannghi.blogspot.com/2016/10/memoir-bingo-reading-challenge-2017.html
    http://jannghi.blogspot.com/2016/10/epistolary-reading-challenge-2017.html
    http://jannghi.blogspot.com/2016/10/humor-reading-challenge-2017.html

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Jamie, oh good, I liked this challenge this year, and I'll check out your new 2017 challenges!

    ReplyDelete