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I don't know about you, but we're feeling hopeful about what's to come in 2021. One yearly tradition we're excited to embark on? The seventh annual POPSUGAR Reading Challenge!
This list of 50 fun and unique book prompts will help you accomplish your 2021 reading goals, whether you simply want to read more books this year or you want to diversify your reading by diving into niche genres, discovering lesser-known authors, or branching out of your book comfort zones.
If 50 books sounds like a lot, we break it down for you with 40 standard book challenge prompts and 10 "advanced" prompts for the overachievers out there. For 2021, the advanced section has a new theme we're excited about: your own TBR list! For many of us, our "TBR" (to-be-read) pile is embarrassingly long. In fact, when we reached out to our POPSUGAR Book Club members about their TBR lists (learn how to join the group here!), more than 900 readers said their lists were longer than 20, with some in the thousands! At least this year you'll be able to check off 10 of the books you've been meaning to read, whether they're on your bookshelf, on hold at the library, or just saved in your "want to read" section on Goodreads.
Book-lovers, no matter if this is your first time taking the challenge or you've been a devotee since the beginning, we hope the 2021 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge reinvigorates your passion for reading in the new year and encourages you to learn something about yourself, others, and the world around you. Most importantly, have fun with it! At the end of the day, you make the rules, so feel free to break them.
Ready to get started?
- Download our printable list here, checking off the books as you go, and pin the handy graphic ahead for reference.
- Join the POPSUGAR Book Club on Facebook, a well-read community of enthusiastic POPSUGAR editors and fellow readers from around the world. Swap book picks for the challenge, reach out when you're stumped on a prompt, share bullet-journaling ideas, or just chat about the latest page-turner you're obsessed with.
- If you're looking for an easy way to digitally track and rate the books you've read for the challenge, we'd suggest also joining this Goodreads group made up of readers who participate in the POPSUGAR Reading Challenge every year.
- Follow POPSUGAR Books on Twitter and share your progress on social with the hashtag #popsugarreadingchallenge.
Now keep reading for the 2021 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge, plus curated book suggestions from our editors and book club members for what to read for all the prompts!
— Additional reporting by Allison Ingrum