It’s that time of year again! The Reading Rush is a readathon happening from July 20 – July 26 and it’s the perfect excuse to do nothing else but read for a full week. The last time I participated in this readathon it was still called the booktube-a-thon, yes I’m old. And lately I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump with everything that’s going on in the world right now… So I’m hoping this week of reading will get me back into the swing of things.
The Reading Rush has seven challenges to complete during the week and you can pick a book for each or double up so you can hit more multiple challenges with one book. This is something I’m doing for sure. There is no way I’m gonna be able to read 7 books in 7 days… So let’s get into my picks for The Reading Rush!
1. Read a book that matches the colour of your birthstone
Now, I was born in December. So my birthstone is either Zircon, Tanzanite, or Turquoise. Basically just different shades of blue. So the book I picked for this challenge is Hotel Silence. This is a novel by an Icelandic author about a middle-aged man who is going through a lot of hardship, and plans on taking his own life. He moves to a different country to do so, but there he starts to see his own problems in a different light.
2. Read a book that starts with the word ‘The’
For this challenge, I’ve chosen to read The Hate You Give. I think everyone has heard about this book. It’s about a young black girl named Starr who sees her childhood best friend get shot by a police officer. It’s a story about police brutality in the USA, which is obviously a very important topic to read about. I’ve had this book on my shelf for the longest time and it’s time to actually get to it.
3. Read a book that inspired a movie you’ve already seen
For this one, I am also going to pick The Hate You Give. Like I already said, you can double-up on challenges per book since there’s no way I will be able to read 7 books during this readathon. I saw the movie of this book about a year ago but have never finished the book.
4. Read the first book you touch
This is a challenge that is very open to interpretation. Personally, I picked a random book off of my shelf with borrowed books. And I first touched Wilder Girls, a book I borrowed from a good friend of mine which she really loved. It’s a story about an all-girls boarding school where a virus has broken out. I’m hoping it’s fast-paced so I can speed through it very quickly.
5. Read a book completely outside your house
Where I live, we are allowed to go outside while keeping our distance. So it’s possible for me to go out to a park and read. Regardless, I’m a slow reader and don’t feel like sitting in the park for hours and hours next week. So… I picked a graphic novel for this challenge. I am going to be reading Pumpkin Heads. To be honest, I am not too sure what this book is about, but I’ve read and loved Rainbow Rowell’s books in the past so I’m assuming this will be an enjoyable read!
6. Read a book in a genre you’ve always wanted to read more of
I’ve been a bit flexible with this challenge, cause I haven’t necessarily picked a ‘genre’ rather than a topic. I’ve been wanting to read more books with LGBTQI+ characters cause I haven’t really in the past. So for this challenge I’ve chosen to read Red, White & Royal Blue. Not only does this ‘fit ‘ (not really but we’ll pretend it does) the challenge, it is also my best friends’ favourite book of all time.
7. Read a book that takes place on a different country than where you live
I’m gonna double-up again… I would really love to read a book set in a continent other than Europe or North America, but I know I won’t be able to read another book within a week. So I’m gonna opt to pick Red, White & Royal Blue for this one as well. Half of this book (as far as I know without having read it) takes place in North America, and I live in Europe so that counts. After The Reading Rush I would love to try this challenge again and read a book that doens’t take place in Europe or North-America. So recommendations are more than welcome in the comments!
After The Reading Rush I will update you guys on what I have actually managed to read (hopefully all of these books). Are you guys participating? Let me know what books you’re excited to read!
I never did watch the Hate you Give movie, thanks so much for the reminder!!
How’s the readathon going for you so far?
Here’s my TBR if you want to take a look https://readwithstefani.com/reading-rush-to-be-read-list/
It’s going pretty well so far! Finished four books so hoping I can actually manage the seven books in seven days 😉
How about you? I see you have a Kazuo Ishiguro book on your TBR! Loved his book ‘Never Let Me Go’, let me know how you get along with it 🙂