For the past several years, I’ve enjoyed picking a reading challenge to participate in — it can be a great way to bring a little excitement into your reading life, and stay motivated and engaged with a community of readers.

But as was the case for so many others, 2020 pretty much broke my reading.

I hopped from one shiny new book to another, always looking for something (anything!) capable of pulling my attention away from the endless news cycle. I knew I wanted to be more intentional about my reading in 2021, so when Anne Bogel shared her choose-your-own-adventure reading challenge, I relished the opportunity to reflect on my reading life.

What I wound up creating (initially just for myself!) is a reading challenge designed to increase focus and depth, while still allowing plenty of space for serendipitous finds and mood reading.

The 2021 Deep Dive Reading Challenge

What Is It?

I came up with 10 categories that felt inspiring and/or necessary to me, with the intention being to dive deeply into several of them over the year ahead. If none of the categories appeal to you (although I’m guessing a few will!), I’ve also included five blank bookish badges that you can use to craft your own categories.

Earn Badges!

About those badges — to make it a bit more fun, I created bookish badges (inspired by Alex at Spells and Spaceships) to go along with the challenge. If you’d like to have your own copy of the bookish badges pictured above to add to your reading journal, along with a set of reading challenge worksheets, I made some fun printable PDFs for you. :-)

What Counts as a ‘Deep Dive’?

A deep dive is more than just one book on a particular subject - it’s about following a bookish rabbit hole relating to the same theme. How many books is up to you, but if pressed, I’d say a pairing (2 books) is the minimum, with 3-5 books being a solid goal. Your deep dive might be all fiction or nonfiction, but I find it’s often the most rewarding to mix up many formats and genres to get a really rich experience.

Now on with the categories!

1. A New Hope

After 2020, isn’t this what we all need? In terms of your reading life, A New Hope deep dive might include a book on personal growth or spirituality, a compelling memoir, the biography of an inspiring figure, and the sort of fiction that restores your faith in humanity or gives you a new lease on life.

2. Love Where You Live

Inspired by one of the most impactful books I’ve read in the past decade, This Is Where You Belong, by Melody Warnick, this category is all about place-making. After a year living in a very tight circle drawn around our homes, it feels right to focus on increasing the love we have for our homes and communities this coming year.

3. Strong Sense of Place

Whether you (finally) get to travel far from home in 2021 or not, reading your way into a place can be a richly rewarding experience. To earn the Strong Sense of Place badge, choose a specific place to focus on (I’m thinking of Iran) and select a range of books set in or written about that zone of the map. For inspiration, I recommend taking a listen to the Strong Sense of Place podcast.

4. The Bard

“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players,” feels like a particularly apt and comforting sentiment after the roller coaster year we’ve experienced. So what better time than the present to explore the world of Shakespeare? Far from being restricted to the Bard’s plays, consider looking to historical fiction, biography, and retellings to round out a satisfying Shakespearean book flight.

5. Classics

When under stress, I tend to reach for the latest shiny new book - when in fact, reading a delicious classic can be so much more satisfying. To get your Classics badge, choose your own book flight of classics: perhaps you’d like to focus on classics written by women? Or modern classics, or classics of a genre you love? For inspiration, I recommend the classics-focused Novel Pairings podcast.

6. Civics 101

Democracy, civics, politics, and the messy, complicated history of the United States are very much on my mind as we turn to a new calendar year. You, too? If so, consider going for the Civics 101 badge by reading your way through a stack of books related to any aspects of the subject that call to you. Remember, it’s always more fun to mix it up, so consider including at least one novel in your stack.

7. Through the Portal

Escapism for some may involve books with sandy beaches and flip flops on the cover, but my preferred escape hatch is way more likely to involve wizards, dragons, magic lands, spaceships, robots, aliens, time travel, or some combination thereof. If a deep-dive into the speculative fiction genre sounds delicious to you, consider tackling your Through the Portal badge this year!

8. Art School

Whether you are a former art major or just wish you were (raises hand) the Art School badge is here to give you permission to dive deep into your passion for the arts. This category can include artist monographs, biographies, art history books, art how-to books, nonfiction about the art scene, and art-related fiction.

9. Natural Wonder

One major gift of 2020 (in this household at least) was our increased connection with nature. My daily walks were a lifesaver, and our weekend hikes and camping trips became something we all looked forward to. For this category, think about fiction set in nature, compelling nonfiction about the natural world, and even local nature guides to the plants and creatures right outside your back door.

10. Just What I Needed

Part of growing as a reader is about knowing how to get yourself out of a reading slump - and knowing the types of books that hit that sweet spot for you is a great way to do that. So this challenge category is all about “milkshake books” - a genius phrase Meredith, a host of the Currently Reading podcast, came up with. To earn this badge, make it your mission to find your ultimate comfort reading.

Ready to get started? Download your Deep Dive Reading Challenge kit! And as you read, share your progress and favorite titles by tagging me @laura_gaskill on Instagram, and using the hashtag #deepdivechallenge. I can’t wait to see what you’re reading!