I invite you to participate in my 2021 Scandinavian Reading Challenge. Last year my reading focus was distracted. This year I want to leave room for distraction and unexpected reads. I’m also offering more opportunity to read books beyond the Scandinavian countries of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. You can explore Iceland and Finland as well.

With that, I’d like to introduce the 2021 Scandinavian Reading Challenge. I hope you’ll consider participating. You do not need to commit to completing all the prompts. You may use the two bonus prompts as substitutes for any of the given prompts if they don’t speak to you or as additions if you finish them all. My hope is just that you’ll consider Scandinavian/Nordic books for your reading and that we can share reading ideas and thoughts on what we’re reading throughout the year.

Prompts for Scandinavian Reading Challenge 2021

1. A Scandinavian book you’ve been meaning to read
2. An unplanned or impromptu Scandinavian read
3. A book by a new-to-you Scandinavian author
4. A Scandinavian book from a favorite genre
5. A prize-winning Scandinavian book
6. A book originally written in a language other than Norwegian, Swedish, or Danish that takes place in Scandinavia
7. A book set in a Nordic country you would like to visit or revisit
8. A Nordic book you chose for the cover
9. A Nordic book in a genre you don’t normally read
10. A buddy read or group read (in real life or virtually) of a Nordic book
    Bonus 1: A prompt from a previous year’s challenge (2018, 2019, 2020)
    Bonus 2: A book by a Nordic author you’ve enjoyed before

Here are some printable PDF forms you might find helpful:

• a form with the prompts to record your finished reads
• a worksheet to note reading ideas for each of the prompts

What prompts look most interesting to you?

I’m looking forward to the prompt encouraging me to read a Nordic book as a buddy read or a group read, either in real life or virtually. I’m already reading Jeg vet hvor du bor by Norwegian author Unni Lindell for my Norwegian language and literature class. My college Zoom group recently agreed to read Anxious People by Swedish author Fredrik Backman together. There’s always invitations on bookstagram to join a buddy or group read. Maybe this is the year for that.

I also look forward to exploring books written in a language other than Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish but that take place in Scandinavia. Many such books have come on my radar over the years, but I haven’t gotten around to reading them. The most recent addition to the list is The Mercies by British author Kiran Millwood Hargrave which takes place in a fishing village in Northern Norway in the early 1600s.

I look forward to hearing about any Scandinavian/Nordic books you read this year. Feel free to share your reads in the comments on my monthly “What I’ve Been Reading Lately” posts or over at Instagram with the hashtag #ScandiReadingChallenge.

Happy reading!