Doing Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge in 2023? Books to Get You Started

By NYPL Staff
December 22, 2022

Many readers look forward to Book Riot's annual challenge to read outside their comfort zone. Now in its ninth year, their Read Harder Challenge is a set of tasks that invites you to "explore settings, characters, formats, genres, and perspectives that might be outside of your reading norms." If you’re taking on Book Riot’s challenge to venture outside your literary wheelhouse, we’ve put together a few suggested reads in each of their categories which are available to borrow from the Library. Of course, there are thousands more wonderful books to discover at the Library! 

Good luck and have a great year of reading!

Don't have a New York Public Library card yet? Anyone who lives, works, or attends school in New York can apply for one now.

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1. "Read a novel about a trans character written by a trans author"

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2. "Read one of your favorite author’s favorite books"

Our crystal ball isn't reliable enough to know who your favorite author is so you will likely have to do some internet searching to discover their favorite books. However, Literary Hub put together a great list a few years ago of books recommended by other authors. Here are a few: 

  • Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson (recommended by F. Scott Fitzgerald and Tom Perrotta)
  • Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri (recommended by Yaa Gyasi and Lily King)
  • The Assistant by Bernard Malamud (recommended by Donald Barthelme, Jonathan Franzen, Philip Roth, and Heidi Julavits)
  • Go Tell It On the Mountain by James Baldwin (recommended by Joan Didion, Yaa Gyasi, and Brit Bennett)
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3. "Read a book about activism"

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4. "Read a book that’s been challenged recently in your school district/library OR read one of the most-challenged/banned books of the year by a queer and/or BIPOC author"

The American Library Association compiles a yearly list of the most challenged books. Here are four titles from the 2021 list that were either written by authors of color or challenged or banned based on LGBTQ content:

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5. "Read a completed webcomic"

These long-running webcomics have reached their endings and are now collected in book form:

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6. "Finish a book you DNFed" (Did Not Finish)

What's on your "Did Not Finish" list? Dip into it and give it another try! Below are some commonly-reported DNF books.

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7. "Listen to an audiobook performed by a person of color of a book written by an author of color"

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8. "Read a graphic novel/comic/manga if you haven’t before; or read one that is a different genre than you normally read"

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9. "Read an independently published book by a BIPOC author"

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10. "Read a book you know nothing about based solely on the cover"

We can't predict which covers will catch your eye, but we perused some of the Best Book Covers of 2022 lists (from The New York Times, Literary Hub, BookRiot, and Fast Company) and chose a few that we found appealing.

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11. "Read a cookbook cover to cover"

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12. "Read a nonfiction book about BIPOC and/or queer history"

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13. "Read an author local to you"

Here are a few titles by writers based in New York City. Not in New York? Call your local library for help finding authors where you live.

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14. "Read a book with under 500 Goodreads ratings"

Here's a sampling of titles with fewer than 500 Goodreads ratings (as of 12/21/22):

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15. "Read a historical fiction book set in an Eastern country"

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16. "Read a romance with bisexual representation"

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17. "Read a YA book by an Indigenous author"

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18. "Read a comic or graphic novel that features disability representation"

  • Parenthesis by Élodie Durand; translated by Edward Gauvin
  • The Oracle Code by Marieke Nijkamp; illustrated by Manuel Preitano; colored by Jordie Bellaire with Manuel Preitano; lettered by Clayton Cowles
  • Mooncakes written by Suzanne Walker; illustrated by Wendy Xu; lettered by Joamette Gil
  • I Hear the Sunspot: Limit 1 written and illustrated by Yuki Fumino; translated by Stephen Kohler
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19. "Read a nonfiction book about intersectional feminism"

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20. "Read a book of poetry by a BIPOC or queer author"

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21. "Read a book of short stories"

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22. "Read any book from the Ignyte awards shortlist/longlist/winner list"

The Ignyte awards celebrate inclusivity in science fiction, fantasy, and horror writing. You can find a full list of recent winners and titles that made the shortlist and longlist here.

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23. "Read a social horror, mystery, or thriller novel"

24. "Pick a challenge from any of the previous years’ challenges to repeat"

Good luck completing Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge this year. If you want to track your progress, head over to their site for a downloadable PDF of their tasks.