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Extreme Reader Challenge Category Definitions 2021

2021 Extreme Reader Category List and Definitions

Updates have been made to:

12. A book set in a city that has hosted the Olympics
46. A play
54/55. Two books that share the same title

1. A book about climate change 

      • Features the impacts of climate change (long-term shift in global or regional climate patterns) and global warming  

2. A book about music or musicians 

3. A book about or involving social media use 

4. A book about or with art or museums 

      • A museum can be either the central focus of a story or the location of at least one scene to count for this 

5. A book about or written by a journalist 

      • A journalist is an individual who writes for newspapers, magazines, or news websites or prepares news to be broadcast 

6. A book about or written by a woman in STEM 

      • Written by or featuring women involved in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math 

7. A book about social justice 

      • Social justice sees the inherent dignity of all people. It is a call to action to dismantle systems of oppression and ensure each of us has the right and opportunity to thrive in our communities 
      • Social justice topics can include gender inequality, voting rights, ageism, hunger or food insecurity, healthcare, immigrant issues, human trafficking, racism, poverty, etc. 
      • In fiction, this will often present as characters grappling with and/or taking action on an issue or injustice 

8. A book about the American Civil War 

      • This encompasses the time period between 1861 to 1865 

9. A book in which a natural disaster takes place 

      • A natural disaster includes earthquakes, floods, fires, hurricanes, tornadoes,  monsoons, etc. 

10. A book of your own choosing 

11. A book published in the year you were born 

      • Use the Advance Search feature in Novelist Plus, a TPL online resource, opens a new window, to find books by publication year. Novelist Plus can check title availability in the TPL catalog and link directly to it 
      • To find the publication year of a book from the Novelist plus, do the following: www.tacomalibrary.org, opens a new window>Online Library> A to Z eResources List>Novelist Plus>Advanced Search>under 'Limit your results' set both fields of the published date to your birth year>click 'Search' 

12. A book set in a city that has hosted the Olympics 

13. A book set in an abbey, cloister, monastery, vicarage, or convent 

      • A portion of the story needs to take place in one of these locations, not necessarily the entire story

14. A book set in Ireland  

15. A book set on a mode of transportation 

      • Examples: airplane, bicycle, boat, bus, car, subway, train, etc.   
      • A portion of the story needs to take place on one of these modes of transportation, not necessarily the entire story  

16. A book that passes the Bechdel Test 

      • The Bechdel Test, opens a new window is a measure of the representation of women in fiction. It asks whether a work features at least two women who talk to each other about something other than a man 

17. A book that takes place during the 1920s 

18. A book that takes place during the Middle Ages  

      • A book in which all or a significant portion of the story takes place between 500 AD to 1500

19. A book that takes place during winter  

20. A book where the characters save (or attempt to save) the world 

      • Broadly, it can refer to any action taken with the intent to increase the chances of the future of complex life  

21. A book with a book on the cover 

      • This can include any part of a book; cover, page, spine, etc.

22. A book with a character who is older than you 

      • The character does not need to be older than you for the entirety of the book to apply   

23. A book with a glyph in the title

      • A glyph includes punctuation marks and other symbols used in typography 
      • This can include any symbol that isn’t a letter or a number 
      • Examples: Love & Gelato, #Girlboss, Dumplin’  

24. A book with a heist in it 

25. A book with a map 

      • The map can be located on the cover or within the book 

26. A book with a medical professional  

      • A medical professional is an individual who practices in any medical field or healing tradition  

27. A book with a metallic cover 

      • Metallic colors include brass, copper, gold, platinum, or silver 
      • Covers that have a metallic sheen also count  
      • At least a portion of the cover must have a metallic component 

28. A book with a person’s name in the title 

      • Examples: Man Named Ove, Mr. Fox, Miss Marple’s Final Cases 

29. A book with a royal moniker in the title  

      • Examples: Countess, Earl, Duchess, Prince, Queen, Sheikh, Sultan

30. A book with a skull on the cover 

31. A book with a title featuring repeating words 

      • Examples: Everything, Everything, Mirror Mirror, There There 
      • Examples: Life After Life, The Sea! The Sea!, Will Grayson Will Grayson 

32. A book with an unlikely pair 

      • An unlikely pair is that in which the individuals are not likely to join forces or find common ground; such as when opposites attract 
      • A pair can include human or animal friends, couples, family, frenemies, etc. 

33. A book with crafting or related to the Do-It-Yourself “DIY” movement 

34. A book with military personnel  

35. A book with one of the four elements (Fire, Water, Earth, Air) in the title 

      • Can be any iteration of the words: 
        • Fire (fired, fires, fiery) Water (watered, waters, watery) 
        • Earth (earthiness, earthly, earthy) 
        • Air (aire, aired, airiness, airs, airy) 

36. A book with only words on the cover 

      • The cover must not contain any images or graphics  

37. A book with parents or parental figures in it 

38. A book written by a South American author 

      • A book written by an author who was born in South America or who identifies as South American 

39. A book written by an author that uses an initial(s) in their name  

      • Examples: George R.R. Martin, J.R. Tolkien, J.A. Jance 

40. A book written by an author you’ve never read before 

      • Titles written under the pen name of an author whose other works you’ve read apply 

41. A book written in the first person 

      • Storytelling or narration in which events are recounted from one’s own point of view using "I" or "we", etc. 

42. A book you finished in one day  

43. A Goodreads Choice Awards winner 

44. A legal thriller  

45. A magical realism book 

      • Characterized by the inclusion of fantastic or mythical elements into seemingly realistic fiction  

46. A play  

      • A form of writing for theater, which narrates a story with elements of conflicts, tensions, and actions through dialogues of characters  
      • A screenplay also counts for this category

47. A prequel or a sequel to another book or series 

48. A Pulitzer Prize winning or finalist book from the non-fiction category 

49. An Afro Futurism book 

      • A movement in literature, music, art, etc., featuring futuristic or science fiction themes which incorporate elements of Black history and culture  

50. An alternate history book 

      • Stories in which one or more historical events occur differently. These stories usually contain "what if" scenarios at crucial points in history and present outcomes other than those in the historical record

51. An anthology book  

      • A compilation of literary works such as poems, plays, and short stories  

52. An antiracist book 

      • Books that focus on learning (and un-learning) things about race and systemic racism 
      • These books can also focus on moving from nonracist to antiracist 

53. Reread a favorite book 

54. Two books that share the same title (Title A) 

      • Two titles must be read to complete this dual category prompt.
      • Titles that contain differences in articles such as 'a' 'an' 'the' will still count for this dual category.

55. Two books that share the same title (Title B) (use list for #55) 

      • Two titles must be read to complete this dual category prompt.
      • Titles that contain differences in articles such as 'a' 'an' 'the' will still count for this dual category.
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