The 52 Book Club's 2024 Reading Challenge

Each year, I take on different reading challenges as a way to get outside of my reading comfort zone. For 2024, I plan to read a total of 104 books by completing the 52 Book Club's 2024 reading challenge (consisting of 52 books) and the Booklist Queen's 2024 Reading Challenge (also consisting of 52 books.) 

If you'd like to participate in this 2024 reading challenge, visit www.the52bookclub.com/2024-reading-challenge.

Below is the list of reading prompts for the 2024 reading challenge which I'll start on January 1, 2024. After I finish each reading prompt, I'll update this list. If you want to see more of the books I've read this year and previous years, check out my Goodreads profile at: https://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/15431036.

The 52 Book Club's 2024 Reading Challenge:

1. Locked-room mystery:
2. Bibliosmia: A smelly book:
3. More than 40 chapters:
4. Lowercase letters on the spine: It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time by Kylie Scott
5. Magical Realism:
6. Women in STEM:Wonder Women: 25 Innovators, Inventors, and Trailblazers Who Changed History by Sam Maggs
7. At least four different POV: 
8. Features the ocean:
9. A character-driven novel:
10. Told in non-chronological order:
11. Title starting with the letter "K:"
12. Title starting with the letter "L:" Last Dance by Hanna Schroy
13. An acdemic thriller:
14. A grieving character:
15. Part of a duology: Ravaged by Naima Simone
16. An omniscient narrator:
17.Nominated for The Booker Prize:
18. An apostrophe in the title: Your Heart's Desire by Melody Carlson
19. A buddy read:
20. A revenge story: 
21. Written by a ghostwriter:
22.A plot similar to another book:
23. The other book with the similar plot:
24. A cover without people on it: Recitatif by Toni Morrison
25. An author "everyone" had read except you:
26. Hybrid genre: The Book of Denial by Ricardo Chavez Castaneda
27. By a neurodivergent author: Against Technoableism: Rethinking Who Needs Improvement by Ashley Shew
28. A yellow spine: Rizzio by Denise Mina
29. Published in a Year of the Dragon:
30. Picked without reading the blurb: Black People Breathe: A Mindfulness Guide to Racial Healing by Zee Clarke
31. Includes a personal phobia: The Miracle Worker by William Gibson
32. Timeframe spans a week or less:
33. An abrupt ending:
34. Set in a landlocked country:
35. Title matches lyrics from a song:
36. Has futuristic technology:
37. Palindrome on the cover:
38. Published by Hachette:
39. Non-fiction recommended by a friend: Sign My Name to Freedom: A Memoir of a Pioneering Life by Betty Reid Soskin
40. Set during a holiday you don't celebrate:
41. A sticker on the cover:
42. Author debut in second half of 2024:
43. About finding identity:
44.Includes a wedding:
45. Chapter headings have dates:
46. Featuring indigenous culture: Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America by Matika Wilbur
47. Self-insert by an author:
48. The word "secret" in the title: The Secret to Superhuman Strength by Alison Bechdel 
49. Set in a city starting with "M:"
50. Musical instrument of the cover:”
51. Related to the word "Wild:"
52. Published in 2024:  

Booklist Queen's 2024 Reading Challenge

Each year, I take on different reading challenges as a way to get outside of my reading comfort zone. For 2024, I plan to read a total of 104 books by completing the 52 Book Club's 2024 reading challenge (consisting of 52 books) and the Booklist Queen's 2024 Reading Challenge (also consisting of 52 books.) 

Although I am usually able to accomplish my reading goald for the year, for this year's challenge Booklist Queen has added the following details to those particpating in the 2024 reading challenge:

If you feel overwhelmed by 52 categories, don’t worry. It’s okay if you don’t finish the challenge. I want this Reading Challenge for 2024 to be aspirational. I want to push you to read more – whether that’s 12 books a year or 52. I want you to get out of your reading rut and try new genres. 

Don’t like one of the categories in the 2024 Reading Challenge? Change it or skip it. Double count a book for multiple prompts. Interpret the prompts any way you like. 

If you'd like to participate in this 2024 reading challenge, visit www.booklistqueen.com/reading-challenge-2024.

Below is the list of reading prompts for the 2024 reading challenge which I'll start on January 1, 2024. After I finish each reading prompt, I'll update this list. If you want to see more of the books I've read this year and previous years, check out my Goodreads profile at: https://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/15431036.

The Booklist Queen's 2024 Reading Challenge:

1. You Meant to Read Last Year: The Guncle by Steven Rowley
2. Goodreads Winner in 2023: Happy Place by Emily Henry
3. About Mental Health:
4. Five-Star Read:
5. An Audiobook: Into the Thinnest of Air by Simon R. Green
6. Set in the 1950s
7. Unreliable Narrator:
8. Book Becoming a Movie in 2024:
9. With an Epilogue:
10. About Starting Over:
11. Author You Love:
12. Flowers on the Cover: The Sun and Her Flowers by Rupi Kaur
13. Title Starts withb "B:" But Have You Read the Book: 52 Literary Gems That Inspired Our Favorite Movies by Kristen Lopez 
14. Published in 2014: What If: Serious Scientific Questions to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe
15. Purple Cover: Bloom by Helen Hardt
16. Historical Mystery:
17. With Multiple Points of View:
18. A Book You Couldn' Put Down:
19. One Word Title: Blossom by Helen Hardt
20. Debut Author:
21. 2023 Bestseller:
22. Intriguing Premise: Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica
23. A Friend's Favorite Book:
24. Author from Southern Hemisphere:
25. About Secrets:
26. Bottom of Your To-Read List:
27. Your Favorite Genre:
28. Character Who is an Actor:
29. Recommended on a Podcast: 60 Songs That Explain the 90s by Rob Harvilla
30. Set in Paris:
31. Ugly Cover:
32. Set in a Small Town: Apex Hides the Hurt by Colson Whitehead
33. Three Books by the Same Author (1:) Heart and Hand by Rebel Carter 
34. Three Books by the Same Author (2:) Hearth and Home by Rebel Carter
35. Three Books by the Same Author (3:) Honor and Desire by Rebel Carter
36. A Quick Read: So Now You Know: A Compendium onf Completely Useless Information by Harry Bright and Harlan Briscoe
37. Set During Autumn:
38. Classic by a Female Author:
39. Memoir by a Person You Admire: Haben: The Deathblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma
40. About a Historical Event:
41. Written Under a Pseudonym:
42. Legal Thriller:
43. Fantasy Book:
44. Popular Book You've Never Read:
45. Inspiring Nonfiction:
46. 2024 New Release:
47. Genre You Don't Normally Read:
48. You Own But Haven't Read:
49. Book about Books: The Book: A Cover-to-Cover Exploration of the Most Powerful Object of Our Time by Keith Houston
50. Book Everyone is Talking About:
51. With a Place in the Title:
52. Reread a Favorite:

Selected as July 2023 Slow AF Run Club Runner of the Month!

 I am so exited to have been recently selected at the Slow AF Run Club "Runner of the Month!" As a member of the run club since it first began in 2019 and have been proud to see it grow from a few members to thousands of members around the world.See the photos below for my profile and if you want to learn more about the virtual running club, visit https://slowafrunclub.com.

Celebrating Hubby's Birthday & Vegan Offerings at 2023 Disney's California Adventure Food & Wine Festival

Hubby recently celebrated his 46th birthday over the weekend and requested that we spend a day at the Disney's California Adventure Food & Wine Festival which occured from March 3rd-April 25th. In addition to me and hubby, my mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and nephew also hung out with us at the theme park.

 Prior to going to the Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival, I went online to the website of one of my favorite vegan Dinsey social media accounts "The Happiest Vegan on Earth" to find our what vegan items were available at the festival. 

Welcome to Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival sign

Upon arriving at Disney California Adventure, I got a tasting passport which is a booklet containing a lsit of all the food offerings available during the festival. In the tasting passort book, vegan options are referred to as plant-based and eating optiions were either a small tasting sie portion of a meal or for extra, one could pay for a full entree/ size.

The first place we stopped at was Avocado Time who had a Al Pastor Taco with Impossible Pork, grilled pineapple, and avocado-tomatillo sauce.

The restaurant at the Food & Wine Festival with the most vegan options (a full vegan menu!) was Paradise Garden Grill. The first item we sampled at Paradise Grill was Gyro Fries with Impossible ground beef, cauliflower cheese sauce, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, tzatzki, and pita bread.

The second item we sampled at Paradise Grill was Bulgogi Fried Rice with Impossible beef, kimchi,vegan egg, pickled cucumber, green onions, and seasame seeds.

The third item we sampled at Paradise Grill was vegan mac and cheese.

The last item we sampled at Paradise Grill was a peach-blueberry cobbler with a oatmeal crust.

 After enjoing all of the vegan food options at the Food & Wine Festival, I was a little sad that these dishes would are only available until April 25th. Hopefully, some of the dishes I highlighted above will become permanent additions at Calfornia Adventure restaurants in which case I'd definitely return again to get a bigger entree' size of my favorite items which were the Bulgogi Fried Rice and the Impossible Gyro Fries.

Highlighted on The NoBibsBurpsBottles podcast!

In August of last year, I recorded a podcast interview for The NoBibsBurpsBottles podcast! The podcast is free to listen through the Apple Podcasts, Spotify or on her website https://nobibsburpsbottles.com. 

If you want to watch the video version of the podcast interview you can find it on YouTube at: https://youtube.com/watch?v=AJw0u3uybRs&si=EnSIkaIECMiOmarE

As a longtime listener of this podcast, I was excited to be interviewed since the podcast is a childfree black woman who is highlighting the stories of childfree African American women. 

The podcast is now live so check it out if you'd like to hear about my experience being a married, childfree black woman as well as navigating being childfree with friends and family.

Highlighted on The Average Vegans podcast!

In October of last year, I recorded a podcast interview for the Average Vegans podcast! The podcast is free to listen through the Apple Podcasts, Spotify, as well their website www.theaveragevegans.com. 

If you want to watch the video version of the podcast interview you can find it on YouTube at: https://youtube.com/watch?v=UM_R81YlOh0&si=EnSIkaIECMiOmarE

As a longtime listener of this podcast, I was excited to be interviewed since the podcast is about two vegan friends living in the south (Georgia) and I'm a vegan that was born and raised in the south (Alabama.) 

The podcast is now live so check it out if you'd like to hear about my journey to becoming vegan as well my work as a librarian, navigating being vegan while at work and ways I share veganism with others.

First Race of 2023 Completed: Citrus Heritage Run 1/2 Marathon

On Saturday, January 7th, I completed my first race of the year which was the Citrus Heritage Run 1/2 Marthon which was held in Riverside, California.

Prior to the start of the race, I met up with two members of the Black Girls Run Inland Empire (aka BGR-IE) running club that I'm a part of and we took a selfie before the race began.

During running the 1/2 marathon, I ran past the local Citrus Hertiage Run Musuem as well as ran past local orange groves. 

After finishing the 1/2 marathon, I met back up with members from BGR-IE and took some photos to celebrate completing the 5K, 10K, and 1/2 marathon distances. 

In addition to this race being my first 1/2 marathon for 2023, I also ran this race in memory of my Uncle Willie who recently passed away and was also buried on the day of the race.

 Having completed this 1/2 marathon a little longer than I initally planned, I am working towards revising my training plan for my next 1/2 marathon which will be the Anchorage Mayor's 1/2 Marathon on Saturday, June 17, 2023.