The 2023 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge marks the ninth consecutive challenge created by the lifestyle media company, which is dedicated to “expanding the horizons” of readers with a list of 50 specific prompts. The prompts range from standard suggestions like “a book about a family” to niche proposals like “a book with a rabbit on the cover.”
This is the first installment of Daily Arts undertaking the challenge, which will hopefully serve to strengthen morale and inspire other readers. Read more to find out how we have completed the prompts and what our thoughts are on the books that we have read so far.
A book by a first-time author
“There There” by Tommy Orange
I have owned “There There” for quite some time, thanks to a recommendation from a former Books beat writer; however, I don’t read books as fast as I buy them, which I’ve come to conclude is my hamartia. For two years, Tommy Orange’s debut work has sat on my shelf — a complete shame, for “There There” was one of the most well-written debut works I have ever read. “There There” follows numerous Native American protagonists who all have some connection to Oakland, Calif., and as we later discover, connections to each other. Our narrators differ in identities like age and gender, but also in their relationship to their Native American identity. Their individual journeys compose the book, demonstrating the distinct realities and challenges of the characters despite sharing similar social identities. I was moved particularly by the intertwining stories of Orvil, his great-aunt Opal and his grandmother Jacquie, who are all separate narrators throughout the book, and their stories come together beautifully at the end. “There There” can fulfill several prompts for this year’s POPSUGAR Reading Challenge (including “a book with a song lyric as its title”), and it’s one I would recommend for those who enjoy emotional reads.
— Daily Arts Writer Lillian Pearce
“The Fraud Squad” by Kyla Zhao
I had really, really high hopes for “The Fraud Squad.” I saw it all over Goodreads and Instagram and thought the algorithm understood me. The synopsis sounded great and heist-like (who doesn’t love a good heist story?) but sadly, the book did not deliver. The main character Samantha was impossible to like. Admittedly, that doesn’t inherently make a bad character; some villains make the most interesting characters to read about. But Samantha was superficial, which made it difficult to sympathize with her. The side characters, like her friends Anya and love interest Tim, were similarly unreadable — all anyone cared about was high society, name brands and reputation, making them unrelatable and at times, despicable. The romance had potential but Sam and Tim had too few pages together to forge a meaningful connection. “The Fraud Squad” was an unmitigated disaster. If social media tries to entice you to read it, don’t listen — it won’t be worth it.
— Daily Arts Writer Sabriya Imami
“The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World: A Novel” by Laura Imai Messina
From the moment I laid eyes on “The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World,” I knew it was a book that was going to make me cry. A couple hundred pages later, I was not disappointed. Laura Imai Messina’s English language debut is a masterpiece of contemporary fiction that paints a beautiful and touching story of family, grief and healing. The novel follows Yui, a young radio host trying in vain to heal after losing both her mother and daughter in Japan’s devastating 2011 tsunami. After a caller on Yui’s radio show tells her a tale of an old telephone booth by the sea where you can go to speak to your loved ones, she embarks on a journey to overcome her mindless grief and piece her life back together. With each venture to the mysterious telephone booth, Yui finds herself drawn into a small, peculiar community of those who are also stumbling through their grief, and with the power of their shared experience, she gradually begins to rebuild her life. This beautiful novel is a deep dive into the complexity of human emotion, and with each tear I shed on my reading journey, I felt a welcome wave of catharsis and release.
— Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran
A celebrity memoir
“Spare” by Prince Harry
Everyone knew that Prince Harry’s memoir was going to make an impact. The title alone evokes a sense of pity from prospective readers. That said, the book is … complicated. We get his side of the story, but he is undoubtedly an unreliable narrator. This is the norm with memoirs, to an extent, but things are different for “Spare,” primarily because of who Prince Harry is and his place in society. Many readers will probably take his word as gospel and allow his telling of certain events to color their perception of the entire, messy royal family. But there isn’t much to be gained from “Spare” as a book: It’s easy to read, but Harry’s tone is privileged most of the time, and he lacks self-awareness all of the time. The greatest thing you’ll get from reading “Spare” is understanding the gossip and buzz that has surrounded it.
— Daily Arts Writer Sabriya Imami
“The Opposite of Butterfly Hunting: The Tragedy and The Glory of Growing Up” by Evanna Lynch
Evanna Lynch is best known for her role as the eccentric outcast Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter franchise, and many have admired how she brought the loveable character to life on the screen. But “The Opposite of Butterfly Hunting” goes beyond Harry Potter. Lynch gives a raw, heartbreaking account of her struggles with anorexia that followed her throughout her life, shining a light on the often undiscussed aspects of eating disorders — the toll it takes on family, the seeming impossibility of recovery and the eating habits that continue to haunt her even when she has put her disorder behind her. But despite Lynch’s eating disorder playing a central role in her story, this memoir is far from a typical “eating disorder book,” void of any toxic descriptions of disordered habits or visceral imagery of self-harm. Although Lynch is sharp and unsparing in her storytelling, she does not weigh us down with these unnecessary details, fully aware of the harm they can cause. Instead, she dives beneath the surface, examining the role of the pressures of womanhood and identity in her struggles. Lynch’s story is unbelievably inspiring, and following her as she embraces her creativity and dives into womanhood is a true joy.
— Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran
“You’re That Bitch” by Bretman Rock
I’ll be honest: I decided Bretman Rock’s new memoir would fulfill this prompt before I began reading. Another moment of truth: It pains me to mark a book as “Did Not Finish,” so I pushed through the memoir, fighting tooth and nail against my desire to set it down and let it collect dust. I know, that’s harsh, but I was incredibly disappointed by Rock’s memoir. Rock is clearly a force to be reckoned with — a celebrity/influencer at only 24 years old, he has endless stories to tell and advice to give. However, the lack of structure and poor organization made this memoir difficult, if not painful, to read. Rock jumped from discussions of his mother’s cravings during pregnancy to commentary on race without so much as a transitional expression. One moment he gives advice on how to survive bullying, the next, he’s painting a clear picture of how to douche your asshole. The memoir, in short, is all over the place. Though my heart was warmed with familial memories Rock shares, my mind was, more often than not, frustrated and dissatisfied.
— Daily Arts Writer Lillian Pearce
A modern retelling of a classic
“By the Book” by Julia Sonneborn
I loved every word of Jane Austen’s “Persuasion.” If you felt the same, you’ll love the adorable modern retelling “By the Book” just as much — maybe even a little more. “By the Book” takes the bare bones of “Persuasion” and builds an entirely new, but just as charming, novel with just the right amount of nods to the original, no matter how obvious those nods may be. Anne Corey is a professor of women’s literature at a prestigious California university — a job she worked for all her life. But after thousands of dollars of graduate school tuition payments and endless hours of work, she’s left with no money, no job security and worse, no love life to speak of. When her ex-fiancé and first love, Alex, shows up as the new president of her university, she knows her life is about to get even worse. The tension between Anne and Alex is palpable, but the story builds excitement and anxiety for the reader through plot points beyond their relationship, ensuring that the audience isn’t just rooting for romance but for Anne. With an entertaining cast of characters and a writing style that puts the “modern” in modern retelling, “By the Book” is a charming novel that proves that Jane Austen never goes out of style.
— Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran
“Cinderella Is Dead” by Kalynn Bayron
I picked “Cinderella Is Dead” for my modern retelling because I liked the cover, which proved representative of the story at hand: fantastical, bewitching and very YA. Our protagonist Sophia grows up in Lille, a town ruled by Prince Charming (who takes on several names throughout the book), the familiar story of Cinderella its doctrine. Each year, the women of Lille are forced to attend the King’s Ball where they are either chosen by Lille’s bachelors or are considered “forfeit” and are left to meet a mysterious and lethal fate. Sophia rebels against this horrific patriarchy and joins another rebel, Constance, and the infamous Fairy Godmother in the fight to take down the king and free the people of Lille from his unforgiving, discriminatory reign. Bayron demonstrates the pliability of stories we know and love, and her own talent for turning them on their heads.
The story ends up being a little cheesy, a little gay and incredibly entertaining.
— Daily Arts Writer Lillian Pearce
“These Violent Delights” by Chloe Gong
I love retellings. Authors who can masterfully weave together a classic story with an original perspective deserve all the praise they receive and more. “These Violent Delights” is a perfect example of a classic retelling done right. Set in 1920s Shanghai, Gong introduces two rival gangs and their heirs: Roma Montagov and Juliette Cai. Sound familiar? It should. Past retellings of “Romeo and Juliet” (such as “West Side Story” and “Gnomeo and Juliet”) have one major flaw that originates from Shakespeare’s play itself — Romeo and Juliet always fall for each other too quickly. As a result, the romance is unbelievable and often annoying. Two kids that meet each other one day fall desperately in love the next, only to die right afterward? Yawn. But in “These Violent Delights,” Roma and Juliette have a history that makes discovering their intricacies as characters and romantic leads much more interesting. Gong’s book has all the markings of a perfect retelling — complex characters, witty callbacks to the original text and a story that follows the tale we know but can stand on its own as well. Combined with her beautiful, almost poetic writing, “These Violent Delights” stuns. Fulfilling your modern retelling prompt with this book is without a doubt the right decision.
— Daily Arts Writer Sabriya Imami
Daily Arts Writers Lillian Pearce and Sabriya Imami and Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran can be reached at pearcel@umich.edu, simami@umich.edu and currana@umich.edu.