Popsugar started as a pop culture blog by a married couple, Brian and Lisa Sugar, and has grown to be so much more. Now it is an American media and technology company. When you visit their site, www.popsugar.com, you’ll find all sorts of posts on a variety of subjects. They are the #1 female lifestyle brand with over 32 million fans and followers.
In 2015 they started the Popsugar Reading Challenge. Who doesn’t love a challenge?!? Now a list of prompts are posted online a couple month prior to the end of each year. I discovered the challenge in 2018 (I think) and spent a few evenings that December planning what books I was going to read for what prompt.
Examples of past prompts include:
– A book that scares you
– A book based entirely on its cover
– A book set in Europe
– A book about a culture you are unfamiliar with
– A book by a person of color
– A steampunk novel
For 2020, this year they used 20 and the Olympics as themes for the various prompts:
– A book set in a city that has hosted the Olympics
– A book by an author that has written more than 20 books
– A book with more than 20 letters in the title
Part of the fun is the planning, the anticipation of books that you could read for the various prompts. I joined a Popsugar Reading Challenge Facebook group where Tara posted teases of prompts that would be included for 2020. It was fun to see the excitement of the people who couldn’t wait to get their hands on the whole list.
There is a Goodreads Ultimate Popsugar group that has been a huge help in figuring out what books fit for the various prompts. Between the Facebook and Goodreads groups, there is a ton of support from fellow readers.
2019 was the first year that I attempted it and I finished under the wire. I finished the last book I needed for a prompt on Dec 31st. I spent half of the year just reading what I wanted and hoping that it would fit a prompt. When I checked my progress in Oct I realized that was a bad strategy and I had 24 books that I needed to read for certain prompts before the end of the year. BUT! I did it… barely!
This year I’ve made decent progress but honestly, off the top of my head I have no clue how many I’ve read. Luckily, I have a spreadsheet that I use for planning and keeping track… I’ve read books for 24 of the 50 prompts and the year isn’t even half over… YAY!! I’m making good progress!!
The prompts, what I’ve read and possible ideas might make some fun blog posts!
Charlotte on Books 