2025 Reading Challenge discussion

Hi Everyone!

It is time to start nominating books for our April 2016 group read already! We are already in February, time goes by so fast. I am excited to see what you come up with for the theme. Our theme for the month is Spring Cleaning.

The theme is completely open to interpretation. As long as you can tell us why you think it should fit the theme, it counts. Please state why the book you are nominating fits the theme. I am looking forward to seeing what books you nominate!

Please nominate only one book and ensure you either link the book or give the name of the author as well to avoid confusion. Please do not nominate books from a series, unless it is the first book in the series. You can second someone else's nomination, but that will count as your own. Nominations cannot have been chosen for a past group read (past buddy reads are fine).

This thread will be closed by February 25th, and we will choose ten books for the poll. If there are more than ten books nominated, we will choose the ten most nominated. If there is still a tie to get into the top ten, we'll go back to the Goodreads average rating to see which is highest.

I'd like to nominate Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig


I guess my reasoning for it fitting in with the theme is that it's somewhat about a personal / mental health 'spring clean'.

I think for a lot of people, spring cleaning is about taking a good look at their lives and wellbeing, a life reboot of sorts, as well as actual cleaning or tidying! It talks about living with anxiety, depression etc. but from everyone I know who's read it, I've just heard very positive, uplifting things.

OK, this might be a tenuous link to the theme but how about Cinder by Marissa Meyer? It's a take on the fairy tale Cinderella, who was known for cleaning up after her wicked stepmother and stepsisters.

Thank you for both nominations!

I can see the connection with spring cleaning and mental health very well..

Cinder is on my tbr, I thought it was a neat connection ^^

How about I was Here by Gayle Forman since it has something to do with cleaning up the past and revealing what's under the surface? Just throwing that idea out there.

This theme will come up with a lot of different type if books I think, I like it!

Carly: good suggestion! Do you want to nominate it?:)

I'd like to nominate The Art of Happiness by the XIV Dalai Lama. From the Goodreads description: "Through conversations, stories, and meditations, the Dalai Lama shows us how to defeat day-to-day anxiety, insecurity, anger, and discouragement."

I think this connects to the theme because it's like cleaning out the cobwebs of your own mind and/or spirit.

I think 'Reasons to Stay Alive' could be very triggering for some people resulting in less participants, I think bookclubs should be about inclusion so triggering topics such as suicide would most likely go against that.

I'd like to second Cassandra's nomination of 'The Art of Happiness'.

I'd like to nominate Jojo Moyes' One Plus One because the main character is a cleaner.

This is the GR blurb: -
"One single mom. One chaotic family. One quirky stranger. One irresistible love story from the New York Times bestselling author of Me Before You

Suppose your life sucks. A lot. Your husband has done a vanishing act, your teenage stepson is being bullied and your math whiz daughter has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that you can’t afford to pay for. That’s Jess’s life in a nutshell—until an unexpected knight-in-shining-armor offers to rescue them. Only Jess’s knight turns out to be Geeky Ed, the obnoxious tech millionaire whose vacation home she happens to clean. But Ed has big problems of his own, and driving the dysfunctional family to the Math Olympiad feels like his first unselfish act in ages... maybe ever."

Hi, I know this isn't the correct post to be asking this question, but I can't see the poll for the March group book. Has it been put up yet, if so can you post the link here?
Thanks
Frank

Frank wrote: "Hi, I know this isn't the correct post to be asking this question, but I can't see the poll for the March group book. Has it been put up yet, if so can you post the link here?
Thanks
Frank"

Hi Frank. It is up! If you go to the main page for the group (click on 2016 Reading Challenge) and scroll down to the bottom. Please tell me if you still can't see it :)

I think I would like to nominate Jurassic Park because I have been wanting to read it for a while, and what are paleontologists if they aren't people who clean the dirt and mystery off of dinosaur bones?

I would like to nominate A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh. It's connection to the theme is obvious and probably applicable to most of us since we all would probably read than clean and will have more than "a handful of dust" in our homes during this spring cleaning season.

Great nominations, everyone!

Thanks for mentioning that, Edwina. It's something to keep in mind as we vote.

Winter wrote: "Frank wrote: "Hi, I know this isn't the correct post to be asking this question, but I can't see the poll for the March group book. Has it been put up yet, if so can you post the link here?
Thanks ..."

Hi Winter,
Thanks so much, I can see it now. Just casted my vote.
Cheers,
Frank

Frank wrote: "Winter wrote: "Frank wrote: "Hi, I know this isn't the correct post to be asking this question, but I can't see the poll for the March group book. Has it been put up yet, if so can you post the lin..."

Great, thank you!

I'll second Cinder.

I'll second I Was Here By Gayle Forman

Hi,
I nominate the novelization of Star Wars: The Force Awakens by Alan Dean Foster.
Spring Clean, The Force Awakens, where’s the link????
Spring Clean, for me, is out with the old and in with the new.
The Original Star Wars stories are classics, and by no way am I even hinting that they require a “Spring Clean”, that they were “old” and needed to be replaced with something new and shiny. The original Star Wars trilogy is timeless and will forever remain that way.
The Force Awakens is the beginning of a new era in Star Wars storytelling, whether it’s done by films, books, comics or TV.
So, in an around about way and by a stretch of the imagination, Star Wars Episode 4-6 (old) The Force Awakens (new) = Star Wars Spring Clean.

Cheers,
Frank

Frank wrote: "Hi,
I nominate the novelization of Star Wars: The Force Awakens by Alan Dean Foster.
Spring Clean, The Force Awakens, where’s the link????
Spring Clean, for me, is out with the old ..."

Even though I think it is a very neat connection to the theme and I love how in depth you describe it, I unfortunately cannot accept that as a nomination. People like to read series in the order it is meant, so we don't allow a book in the middle of a series. If it is the first book in a series however it is fine.

I loved your explanation though! I hope you want to nominate or second another book.

I'd like to nominate The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The link to the theme would be earth getting demolished as a kind of extreme galactic spring-cleaning.

I would like to nominate It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini because Spring Cleaning just brings back memories of the feather duster and my bookshelf. Because that book has been sat on my shelf for years, unread and collecting dust. I would like to nominate it for the aforementioned.

I am taking this quite literal and went to my physical bookshelf and found the book with the most dust on it.... So I would like to nominate middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

I'd like to nominate a play. I've never read it, but it's highly rated on Goodreads (3.98): The Clean House by Sarah Ruhl. Among the characters are a Brazilian housekeeper who's not that interested in cleaning, and someone who is not a housekeeper but is very interested in cleaning. It's supposed to be funny and it was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.

I know nobody is thinking about this book, but I think it fits perfect for spring cleaning, plus is in my list to read it this year :D the book is The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing By Kondo, Marie

How about A Manual for Cleaning Women: Selected Stories
by Lucia Berlin?

I'd like to nominate My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman because seven year old Elsa is called on to help clean up some of the misunderstandings her grandmother may have left behind when she dies. I loved it when I read it last year and would be happy to read it again.

Janine wrote: "I'd like to nominate Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig


I guess my reasoning for it fitting in with the theme is that it's..."

I second this nomination.

I will use my nomination to second Cinder !

I second the nomination for Reasons To Stay Alive by Matt Haig.

Thank you for all those suggestions! This theme has some fantastic explanations and interesting books!

I'll 3rd I Was Here by Gayle Forman. That one is already on my To Read list.

Rachael wrote: "OK, this might be a tenuous link to the theme but how about Cinder by Marissa Meyer? It's a take on the fairy tale Cinderella, who was known for cleaning up after h..."

I would like to second this nomination!

Clemencia wrote: "I know nobody is thinking about this book, but I think it fits perfect for spring cleaning, plus is in my list to read it this year :D the book is The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanes..."

Same with Clemencia! I second this nomination...
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo, it's a book about decluttering... kinda literally speaking "spring clean". She is a Japanese who developed her own method of decluttering which she now call as "Konmari Method", basically she proposes the idea of 'cleaning' as a 'festival' - something you do/have once in a while, not everyday. I had my copy with me already.

Clemencia wrote: "I know nobody is thinking about this book, but I think it fits perfect for spring cleaning, plus is in my list to read it this year :D the book is The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanes..."

I agree with this nomination! I have had SO many people recommend it to me, maybe they think I am obsessed with decluttering (I kind of am), but I have been wanting to read this!

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up is pretty cool! I did it and even though I've gotten WAY behind on cleaning and my bedroom is a mess, it's less of a mess than it used to be because everything still has a place (even though some clothes are currently on the floor, not in their place) and there is generally less stuff.

Even if the book doesn't get chosen for a group read, it would still be cool to do a group Konmari cleaning "event" where you could read the book and try out the method. Lots of possibilities for chatting, there! I think I even have some embarrassing before/after pictures to show. :)

Aurora wrote: "I'd like to nominate The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The link to the theme would be earth getting demolished as a kind of extreme galactic spring-cleaning."
I have already nominated a book but that's a good choice too.

Clemencia wrote: "I know nobody is thinking about this book, but I think it fits perfect for spring cleaning, plus is in my list to read it this year :D the book is The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanes..."

I'd love to second The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up! It's been high on my TBR for a while now, and it's been a while since I've read non-fiction. :)

I nominate Silent Spring. Here is Amazon's blurb:

"Rachel Carson's Silent Spring is now 35 years old. Written over the years 1958 to 1962, it took a hard look at the effects of insecticides and pesticides on songbird populations throughout the United States, whose declining numbers yielded the silence to which her title attests. "What happens in nature is not allowed to happen in the modern, chemical-drenched world," she writes, "where spraying destroys not only the insects but also their principal enemy, the birds. When later there is a resurgence of the insect population, as almost always happens, the birds are not there to keep their numbers in check." The publication of her impeccably reported text helped change that trend by setting off a wave of environmental legislation and galvanizing the nascent ecological movement. It is justly considered a classic, and it is well worth rereading today."

I'd like to nominate a non-fiction book: How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease. As we think about Spring Cleaning, I think "cleaning" our bodies and understanding more about the foods we eat could be an interesting take on the subject.

Winter wrote: "Frank wrote: "Hi,
I nominate the novelization of Star Wars: The Force Awakens by Alan Dean Foster.
Spring Clean, The Force Awakens, where’s the link????
Spring Clean, for me, is out..."

Yes of course. I wouldn't mind but I must have read your rules at least twice before nominating this book. Back to the drawing board.
Thanks,
Frank

Frank wrote: "Winter wrote: "Frank wrote: "Hi,
I nominate the novelization of Star Wars: The Force Awakens by Alan Dean Foster.
Spring Clean, The Force Awakens, where’s the link????
Spring Clean,..."

I am sorry :/ I hope you find another book to nominate or second!

I nominate A Spring Affair As it is about a women who gets inspired by a magazine in a dentists to spring clean out her house, the more she cleans out the more air can reach old wounds. It's women lit that can inspire a good clear out!

I'll second Jurassic Park because I already own it and my fiance has been telling me to read it!

Stephanie (R-A) wrote: "I think I would like to nominate Jurassic Park because I have been wanting to read it for a while, and what are paleontologists if they aren't people who clean the dirt and mystery o..."

Actually my sister study to be a paleontologist ^^ And yes they do lol. She has a fossil that she prepares as a task in her masters degree and it is fun to watch it change and become more easy to see :)

Great suggestions, thank you all!

I think the Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes would be a good read. It is very witty, down to earth, and gives courage to help you "clean/put" things in your life in its proper prospective.

I'd like to nominate Three Days Breathing by Mike Maguire.

I think this fits with the Spring Cleaning theme in that the book takes the reader through a very carefully constructed perfect society challenging the reader to question why things would need to change, or even if they should change? I think any book that pushes a reader to consider a revolutionary change is a good thing. Spring cleaning, then could be a look at how and why change is important as we embrace maturity.

I'd like to nominate The Happiness Project: Or Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun.

The tie to the theme is cleaning out the negativity to create a space of happiness.

I will second Me Before You by JoJo Moyes! It's perfect timing with the movie coming out soon too! :)