Lists of Bests: bartzturkeymom's "2008 Olympics Reading Challenge" http://www.listsofbests.com/list/15585 The point is to read one author per each of the 205 nations participating in the 2008 Summer Olympic Games by the end of the games. This seems like a real fit for me as I like challenges, I love learning about the world—both past and present, and I love to read. My original goal for 2006 was only to read 50 books. I have to confess that I’m going to really have to step it up in order to make that goal much less this new one, but I think I can do it! (she says naively, having bitten off more than she can chew.) These are by no means the only books that can be chosen for the challenge. They are just mine and they only represent the countries for which I have found a book that fits the challenge and sounds interesting to me. I wish I could list the country and follow it with the book(s) I've chosen, but it looks like I can only list items on the list and not places. I'll list the books in order by country and then list the countries with the titles in the comments as I read them. Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:57:21 GMT en-us 0 50 83 50 0 Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Fight Terrorism and Build Nations . . . One School at a Time http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2064833 <div id="position">9</div><div class="place-image-placeholder"><span class="qm">*</span></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin</div> The Kite Runner http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1963411 <div id="position">10</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1963411"><img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0747588945.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V59123720_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Khaled Hosseini</div> Broken April http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/465622 <div id="position">11</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/465622"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/1561310654.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V1090608156_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Ismail Kadare</div> The Return of the Water Spirit (African Writers Series) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2378716 <div id="position">12</div><div class="place-image-placeholder"><span class="qm">*</span></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Pepetela</div> At the Bottom of the River http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/517343 <div id="position">13</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/517343"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0374527342.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Jamaica Kincaid</div> Seven Little Australians http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/442886 <div id="position">14</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/442886"><img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/142180333X.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V1141280356_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Ethel Turner</div> Middle Passages http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/324266 <div id="position">15</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/324266"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0811212327.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.gif" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Kamau Brathwaite</div> Summer in Baden-Baden http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/25158 <div id="position">16</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/25158"><img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0811215482.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V1114673257_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Leonid Tsypkin</div> The Book of Proper Names http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2476609 <div id="position">17</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2476609"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0571223443.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Amelie Nothomb</div> Beka Lamb (Caribbean Writers Series) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/937137 <div id="position">18</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/937137"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0435988441.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V1056442753_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Zee Edgell</div> Essential African Mythology: Stories That Change the World http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2764164 <div id="position">19</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2764164"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/1855384787.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Ngangur Mbitu</div> You Shall Know Our Velocity http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/47276 <div id="position">20</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/47276"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0141013451.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Dave Eggers</div> Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1964103 <div id="position">21</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1964103"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0143038419.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Elizabeth Gilbert</div> Blue Shoes and Happiness (No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1605603 <div id="position">22</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1605603"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/1400075718.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Alexander Mccall Smith</div> The Alchemist (Plus) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1014510 <div id="position">23</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1014510"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0061122416.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Paulo Coelho</div> The Wheaten Loaf http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2770548 <div id="position">24</div><div class="place-image-placeholder"><span class="qm">*</span></div> Dispatches from the Edge: A Memoir of War, Disasters, and Survival http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2322230 <div id="position">25</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2322230"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0061136689.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V43897292_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Anderson Cooper</div> A Cook's Tour: Global Adventures in Extreme Cuisines http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/299 <div id="position">26</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/299"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0060012781.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Anthony Bourdain</div> The Robber Bride http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/10318 <div id="position">27</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/10318"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0385491034.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Margaret Atwood</div> The Last Will and Testament of Senhor da Silva Araujo http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1348201 <div id="position">28</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1348201"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0811215652.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Germano Almeida</div> The Good Earth (Oprah's Book Club) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/21232 <div id="position">29</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/21232"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0743272935.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V66746511_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Pearl S. Buck</div> Memories of My Melancholy Whores http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/352363 <div id="position">30</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/352363"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/1400095948.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Gabriel Garcia Marquez</div> Heart of Darkness (Hesperus Classics) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/33081 <div id="position">31</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/33081"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/184391008X.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Joseph Conrad</div> Cook Islands Legends http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2378755 <div id="position">32</div><div class="place-image-placeholder"><span class="qm">*</span></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Jon Jonassen</div> The Shadow of Imana (Caribbean Writers SeriesRG) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2553068 <div id="position">33</div><div class="place-image-placeholder"><span class="qm">*</span></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Veronique Tadjo</div> Monkey Hunting http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/150851 <div id="position">34</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/150851"><img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000AXRTQ0.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V1125447153_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Cristina Garcia</div> The Land Without Shadows (Caraf Books) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/3842222 <div id="position">35</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/3842222"><img src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51SKQD0NDEL._SL75_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Abdourahman A. Waberi</div> Wide Sargasso Sea (Penguin Modern Classics) (Paperback) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2615939 <div id="position">36</div><div class="place-image-placeholder"><span class="qm">*</span></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Jean Rhys</div> Before We Were Free (Readers Circle) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/177212 <div id="position">37</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/177212"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/044023784X.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Julia Alvarez</div> Sweetness in the Belly: A Novel http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2650779 <div id="position">38</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2650779"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/B000N3T4H4.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V45449492_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Camilla Gibb</div> A House in the Sunflowers: Living the Dream in the SOuth of France http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/372387 <div id="position">39</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/372387"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/074900259X.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Ruth Silvestre</div> Mema (African Writers Series) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2553038 <div id="position">40</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2553038"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0435909231.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V51403039_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Daniel Mengara</div> Siddhartha: Siddhartha (Shambhala Classics) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/969058 <div id="position">41</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/969058"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/1570627215.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Hermann Hesse</div> Changes: A Love Story http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/327338 <div id="position">42</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/327338"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/1558610650.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Ama Ata Aidoo</div> Captain Corelli's Mandolin http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/16472 <div id="position">43</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/16472"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0582461359.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Louis de Bernieres</div> A Long Way Down http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/314490 <div id="position">44</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/314490"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/1594481938.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Nick Hornby</div> Enrique's Journey http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1402713 <div id="position">45</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1402713"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0812971787.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Sonia Nazario</div> White Ghost Girls http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/356332 <div id="position">46</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/356332"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0802170188.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V54279266_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Alice Greenway</div> Night (Oprah's Book Club) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/94284 <div id="position">47</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/94284"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0374500010.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Elie Wiesel</div> Between Two Worlds: Escape from Tyranny: Growing Up in the Shadow of Saddam http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1064440 <div id="position">48</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/1064440"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/1592402445.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Zainab Salbi</div> The Opal Deception (Artemis Fowl, Book 4) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/559740 <div id="position">49</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/559740"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0786852909.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V1137718743_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Eoin Colfer</div> Island Songs http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2365762 <div id="position">50</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2365762"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0749082437.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V40881642_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Alex Wheatle</div> Shipwrecks http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2550924 <div id="position">51</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2550924"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/1841952214.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Akira Yoshimura</div> The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/22760 <div id="position">52</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/22760"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0767915305.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by J. Maarten Troost</div> The Yankee Girl: A Korean Girl's Journey to Find Herself http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2764171 <div id="position">53</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/2764171"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0595412327.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Kyusun Chung</div> The Last Templar http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/595269 <div id="position">54</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/595269"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0451219953.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Raymond Khoury</div> Chaka (African Writers Series) http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/12228 <div id="position">55</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/12228"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0435902296.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V1120525150_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Thomas Mofolo</div> Swift as Desire http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/43294 <div id="position">56</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/43294"><img src="http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/038572151X.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_V1057190387_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Laura Esquivel</div> The Piano Tuner: A Novel http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/28856 <div id="position">57</div><div class="item-image" style="padding:3px;float:left;"><a href="http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/28856"><img src="http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/1400030382.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Daniel Mason</div> The Orphan Calf and the Magical Cheetah: Cheetah Poems, Essays, and Illustrations by Namibian People http://www.allconsuming.net/item/view/3835251 <div id="position">58</div><div class="place-image-placeholder"><span class="qm">*</span></div><div style="font-size: 12px;"> by Stephen De Vincent</div>