Are you looking for new books to read in 2018? Or looking for a reading challenge? Well in case you missed it, join the The Nerd Daily’s 2018 Reading Challenge! It has 52 prompts to guide you to read one book per week, or to just read outside your comfort zone. To help you decide, we decided to put up some book recommendations for you. This recommendations consist of mixed audiences, from middle grade to adult and to different genres!

Read on to discover a few books to help you with some of our challenges!

1. Under 200 Pages: Novellas are great pick for this category or Tor short stories. I highly recommend The Night Cyclist and The Pauper Prince and the Eucalyptus Djinn!
2. New York Times Bestseller: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas has generated a lot of buzz last year and it debuted on New York Times Bestseller list! Plus it’s being adapted into a film!
3. Author Starting With T: The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkien is a classic or if you’ve read that, try the other fantastic books by Tolkien.
4. 2018 Film Adaptation: The adaptation of Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli is scheduled to be released in March 2018, so go read it before (or after) the movie comes out!
5. Older Than 20 Years: If you haven’t started the Harry Potter series, this year is the right time! This year will mark 20 years since the release of Chamber of Secrets, the second book in the series, and the 21st of Sorcerer’s Stone, the first book. Two birds with one stone right?

6. Villain/Anti-hero: Vicious by V.E Schwab is one of my favourite books and with the main character an anti-hero, it creates a fascinating narrative around the term heroes and villains.
7. Reread a favourite: Self-explanatory prompts here, this year I want to re-read Harry Potter so any books could fit this prompt.
8. Goodreads Choice Winner: You can look for inspiration here, but I highly recommend The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. This nonfiction chronicles the origin of HeLa cells that helps founding a lot of medicine and the aftermath. The writing is very easy to read and fits everyone, so go give this book a try!
9. Written By Two Authors: Illuminae by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman is one of the most hyped up books in the YA community. This book chronicles the space survival of Kady and her planet’s people from invasion and evil AI, told through journals and other things.
10. Time Travel: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon may be intimidating due to its size, but it’s pretty easy to read and the story is a page-turner!
11. Male Author: Any of Neil Gaiman’s books because he is such a fantastic writer so if you haven’t read any of his books, he’s perfect for this category. Plus I highly recommend The Graveyard Book.

12. Young Adult Novel: Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins is such a fun series, filled with witty banter, cotillion, and a lot of ass-kicking.
13. A Number In The Title: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo follows a band of anti-heroes consisting of 6 thieves and convicts trying to pull off an impossible heist.
14. Start A New Series: Any series you want to start but never do? This prompt is the perfect motivation for you! I personally want to start Poison Study series by Maria V. Snyder.
15. An Autobiography: The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher is perfect for anyone whether they love Star Wars or not.
16. Short Stories: Anthologies have been gaining traction recently with a lot of authors releasing some sort of anthologies. One of the most well-known is My True Love Gave to Me, which is a Christmas anthology, or its summer counterpart, Summer Days and Summer Nights.

17. Recommended By Family: My family is not a huge reader, so it’s hard to get a recommendation from them. But my sister highly recommended The School of Good and Evil series by Soman Chainani, which is a middle grade book sets in a school that trains its pupil to become either heroes or villains.
18. A Red Cover: Scythe by Neil Shusterman is another series I want to start this year and it has gained a lot of hype. This book tells the story of a modern-day grim reaper working for the government to keep the population under control.
19. Set In The Past: Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco follows the Jack the Ripper murder with our heroine Audrey as she breaks social constraints and try to solve the mystery of Jack the Ripper.
20. A Book You Never Finished: I picked up Heidi by Johanna Spyri, but after a few pages never continue reading it. Another self-explanatory prompt, all you need to do is try to find a book you put on hold or DNF before!
21. Sci-Fi: Sci-fi is not a genre I reach for often, but a lot of people like The Martian by Andy Weir and it also has been adapted to movie, so it seems like an appropriate read.

22. Three Word Title: Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng is unusual and captivating, and the title definitely makes sense after you finish the book and find yourself blown away by it!
23. Recommended By Us: Take a look at literature of the world articles, including Jamaica which highlights authors and characters from Jamaica.
24. About Family: Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan is filled with crazy antics of the Singapore richest, but at the heart of the book, it’s about family relationships between Rachel and her mother, as well as the Young clan.
25. Female Author: The Secret History by Donna Tartt has been praised at how atmospheric and fascinating the characters are.
26. Bought During A Holiday: I don’t know about you, but I always bought a lot of books during the holiday season due to the abundance of book sales happening. One of the books I bought was A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi.

Any recommendations you like the sound of? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Recommendations For Your 2018 Reading Challenge appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Written by Jasmine Shaheen

Welcome back, Nerds!

A new week means a new literary adventure, and this week we are heading to the homeland of the iconic Bob Marley: Jamaica. A culture so diverse and lively on its own; with its people, language and most definitely its books.

Here are five books by Jamaican authors that you don’t want to miss!

Read on to discover some great books and tell us in the comments below if you will be reading any of them!

August Town by Kei Miller | Goodreads

This novel is a miniature of Jamaica; its history, culture, people, and folklore. It has a set of unique characters; no one has too small of a role or too big. They are different in many things, they are not related directly to each other, but they all make a thread that connects them all together. With his poetic lyricism, Miller excels in immersing the reader in the Jamaican culture and its history.

The Book of Night Women by Marlon James | Goodreads

Dayton Literary Peace Prize for Fiction is a vivid, violent, difficult, gripping, disturbing and most of all; real story. This book will rile your emotions, will make you angry but it will make you understand. A not to be missed and a must read on 18^th century slavery.  Rape

Cannibal by Safiya Sinclair | Goodreads

Mixed with some Shakespearean allusions, the Jamaican-American poet uses her black female persona as she uncovers the reality of colonialism, racism, and patriarchy. It’s poetic, lyrical, and provocative; you won’t be able to put it down.

The Sun is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon | Goodreads

Nicola Yoon established herself as a powerful figure in the YA world with her debut Everything, Everything. And in The Sun is Also a Star, she begs the question; do opposites attract in real life as in physics?! Yoon brings a story of young love tangled with philosophical endeavors and existentialism. It sheds light on family, immigration, love, hope, and fate.

Waiting in Vain by Colin Channer | Goodreads

Feeling a little romantic?! Want some easy read and a little bit of romance? Then this book is for you! Channer’s Waiting in Vain is vivid, wild, and alive with love, relationships and the things we desire. Fun fact: The book is actually named after Bob Marley’s song from his album Exodus.

Do you have any others you would add? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Literature of The World: Jamaica appeared first on The Nerd Daily.