Friday, October 18, 2013

USA Fiction Challenge - State by State


About a year ago, my husband and I joined a Goodreads challenge to read one mystery for every state in the USA. It seemed challenging (in a fun way) and our goal was long range. Just get there when we get there.

Now, Kerrie from Mysteries in Paradise has started a similar challenge, but really 51 "states," since she is including the District of Columbia, which I think is a great idea. Kerrie's challenge is not limited to any one genre, but I am still sticking with crime fiction. Although her challenge is described as State by State in 2014, the challenge can be done in your own time frame, and you don't have to wait until 2014 to start.

Another interesting twist to Kerrie's challenge is that you can complete mini challenges of various sections of the country (see here). That may make it more accessible to some people. 

If you are interested you can read about the challenge and sign up at the USA Fiction Challenge site

Below is the list of states. I have already read 9 or 10 mysteries for different states in the USA for the Goodreads challenge, but I am starting fresh with this one. Most of the states that I have already completed for that challenge are ones I have more books for anyway.
  1. ALABAMA
  2. ALASKA
  3. ARIZONA
  4. ARKANSAS
  5. CALIFORNIA
  6. COLORADO
  7. CONNECTICUT
  8. DISTRICT of COLUMBIA
  9. DELAWARE
  10. FLORIDA
  11. GEORGIA
  12. HAWAII
  13. IDAHO
  14. ILLINOIS
  15. INDIANA
  16. IOWA
  17. KANSAS
  18. KENTUCKY
  19. LOUISIANA
  20. MAINE
  21. MARYLAND
  22. MASSACHUSETTS
  23. MICHIGAN
  24. MINNESOTA
  25. MISSISSIPPI: The Last Clinic by Gary Cusick (11/24/2013)
  26. MISSOURI
  27. MONTANA
  28. NEBRASKA
  29. NEVADA
  30. NEW HAMPSHIRE
  31. NEW JERSEY
  32. NEW MEXICO
  33. NEW YORK
  34. NORTH CAROLINA
  35. NORTH DAKOTA
  36. OHIO
  37. OKLAHOMA
  38. OREGON
  39. PENNSYLVANIA
  40. RHODE ISLAND
  41. SOUTH CAROLINA
  42. SOUTH DAKOTA
  43. TENNESSEE
  44. TEXAS
  45. UTAH
  46. VERMONT
  47. VIRGINIA
  48. WASHINGTON
  49. WEST VIRGINIA
  50. WISCONSIN
  51. WYOMING

22 comments:

Prashant C. Trikannad said...

I always thought America had 52 states. Well, 51 states and the federal district of Washington, D.C. is close to the mark. Scrolling down the list of states, I think you and the other participants should have no problem finding authors and books pertaining to each of them. Good luck with the challenge, Tracy.

If I were to do something like this for India's 28 states and seven union territories, I'd have to read books in each of the regional languages and I know only three of them.

Prashant C. Trikannad said...

Tracy, I have erred. I didn't notice you'd mentioned District of Columbia which, I believe, is the federal district of Washington, D.C. So 51 it is.

Anonymous said...

Tracy - Thanks for reminding me of this challenge. What a great way to get to know crime fiction set in the US. I'll be looking forward to your posts.

Katrina said...

I think this is a great idea, sadly I doubt I would be able to get a hold of so many US books. It would be good to try a British counties version though.

TracyK said...

Yes, Prashant, I am glad Washington, D.C. is included because George Pelecanos set in and around that area. Wow, doing all of India's states would be a huge challenge.

TracyK said...

Margot, I am looking forward to more crime fiction set in the U.S. I guess my 2014 reading will be split between US, Canada, and the rest of the world because I plan to do the Global Challenge again too.

TracyK said...

Katrina, I agree, a British counties one would be good. I am sure there are some US states that it will be hard for me to get too, but I am not fanatical about finishing by any specific time...

w said...

Like I told Col, I will have fun reading all the reviews and looking to discover a few hidden gems along the way.

Anonymous said...

Good luck. I'll check in and read your reviews.
I am in my third year of the Global Reading Challenge and have a few left to go, and two more countries to reach 21.
I think I'll skip the U.S. challenge. I've read so many mysteries set here that I've tried for the last three years, aided by great blogs, to read globally and cross these borders.

Mary R. said...

For your NH crime novel there are several good options: Sbathaday River is excellent, if you like something more cozy and less dark the Jane Cleland antiques series is good, and Primary Storm by Brendan DuBois is a great slice of life in NH and part of a good mystery series.

Anonymous said...

For Mississippi, I recommend Tom Franklin's Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter. It could be literary fiction, in addition to being a mystery. It tells of Southern poverty, racism, friendship lost and found; it's a slice of the human condition.

TracyK said...

Kathy, I want to do both (Global and US), and that will be a problem, since I can't read that fast.

TracyK said...

Keishon, I hope that Col steers me toward some authors I am not familiar with.

TracyK said...

Mary, Thanks for the suggestions. I haven't heard of any of those. I will definitely look into them.

TracyK said...

Kathy, even though I (sort of) avoid Southern fiction, I will have to read some for this challenge. I have Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter on my Kindle and that would be a great choice to read soon. My husband did not know where the phrase Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter came from, and I was amazed.

col2910 said...

Tracy, I will look forward to your reviews - but hopefully you have the same authors as me - and I don't get too many more recommendations!

Re Katrina above, I did print off a UK map on Friday, with all the counties, but thought hang on a minute....don't go there - at least not just yet!

TracyK said...

Col, I expect you will move through that challenge much faster than I and I will be getting tons of recommendations from you.

Marika from Mysterysequels said...

I've also started this challenge and was going through the list of blogs on the challenge to see what other bloggers are doing. It's funny how most of us are doing the challenge based on mystery novels :)

TracyK said...

Marika, it is nice to have another person join in. I will continue checking your list out for ideas for mysteries set in various states.

Sarah said...

Sounds like a great challenge, Tracy and I'll look forward to the reviews.

Scott said...

Prashant
Here is where you can read more. We have 50 states, 6 territories and the District of Columbia. :]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_area

TracyK said...

Thanks, Sarah. I will be lucky if I can do one a month but it will all be fun.