CBR13 Book Bingo Reading Challenge Begins

(Note: This reading challenge has ended. Please see the wrap-up post for final totals, and watch the main Bingo Reading Challenge page for details about future challenges.)

Welcome to the 2021 Book Bingo Reading Challenge! Select five squares across, down, diagonally, or 5-up (four corners + center square), and get an entry into a drawing for some cool prizes. This year we have a special Ring Bingo – complete the ring of 8 blue-green squares for an additional entry. Complete the entire card – a blackout! – and get 16 entries into our drawing. Download your game card below, and post your reviews tagged with cbr13bingo for chances in our prize raffle. You can ask questions, ask for suggestions in the comments below and in the monthly check-in posts. You can also ask for suggested books and clarifications in the comments here, the check-in posts, and in the Facebook group Cannonball Read Book Chat.

Official CBR13 Book Bingo Reading Challenge Card

Download Game Card, Descriptions, and Rules

• Full Color Printable PDF
• Black and White Printable PDF

The Squares

Row 1

• The Wilds – A book about or set in the outdoors.
• Home – A book about finding home, houses, your hometown.
• Flora – A plant(s) on the cover. photo required
• Cityscape – A cityscape on the cover. photo required
• Book Club – Any book club selection, Cannon Book Club, your library’s book club, your family book club, any book club. Let us know which club selected it!

Row 2

• Old Series – A book from an old series that started prior to 2011 (ongoing or complete) that you meant to read but haven’t gotten around to; or you’ve been meaning to get back to; or you’ve been reading all along.
• Libations – Food and/or drink on the cover. photo required
• UnCannon – The books you think should be taught: the ones centering something other than the Eurocentric white perspective. Challenge yourself as much as you are able.
• Mythic – A book about myths, a retelling, or explicitly based on mythology.
• Shelfie – From your own shelf, previously read or not. Show us a picture of the book on your shelf (if possible), either in the review or on social media (don’t forget to tag @cannonballread). Ereader and audiobook shelves count.

Row 3

• Pandemic – Forget categories, read whatever you want!
• They/She/He – The author openly identifies as nonbinary or trans, or a major character (or topic) is nonbinary, trans, or exploring gender identity.
• Self Care – A book that helps you take care of yourself; can be a non-fiction book, or a fiction book that you reread when you need comfort.
• Gateway – The book by a favorite author or in a favorite genre that you recommend to interest a new-to-the-author/genre reader.
• Rep – A book with or about a less common representation, such as mental health, neuroatypical, disability, immigration status, etc.

Row 4

• Rec’d – Review a book you chose because you enjoyed another Cannonballer’s review, or it was recommended by a Cannonballer. (Don’t forget to say who!)
• People – Person/People on the cover. photo required
• White Whale – That book you’ve been meaning to read for years.
• Sportsball – A book about sports or sports people.
• New Series – A book from a series in which the first book was published in 2019 or later.

Row 5

• Free! – This book was free. You paid no money for it. Maybe you borrowed it, found it, or stole it (we don’t encourage stealing). Up to you.
• Landscape – A landscape on the cover. photo required
• Fauna – Animal(s) on the cover. photo required
• Travel – The places you want to go, or people going places.
• Machinery – A book about or heavily involving machinery of some kind.

The Rules

1. 

   The CBR13 Book Bingo Reading Challenge begins on Thursday, July 1, 2021 and ends at 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, October 31, 2021. Only books that have reviews posted during this time period count towards completing a bingo. You can begin the reading challenge at any time during this period.

2. Books must have been read during 2021.
3. You must tag the review on cannonballread.com with cbr13bingo and not any other variation. When using the autofill, make sure you are selecting cbr13bingo. Please do not add the ‘#’ in your tag, just the text cbr13bingo, all one word.
4. All squares can be fiction or non-fiction, graphic novel, audiobook, and any genre. Fanfiction is fine for any square except for the squares that specify the image on the book cover.
5. If a square requires an image on the book cover, include an image of the cover in the review. These are marked with this symbol: photo required. For example, Station Eleven has one cover with tents under a night sky, which would not fit any square, but it also has a version with a cover that is a deer in front of a cityscape, which would fit Fauna or Cityscape. If adding images is difficult for you, please let us know via the Contact Form.
6. Follow the bingo card graphic above to make your book choices.
7. Once a square is crossed off, it’s crossed off for good! (Feel free to print the bingo card to keep track.)
8. Bingo: Complete a horizontal, vertical or diagonal line and receive one entry into our prize drawing raffle. Four corners plus center square counts as a bingo too.
9. Ring Bingo: Complete the 8 blue/green squares for a bingo.
10. Blackout Card: Complete all 25 squares and receive 2 additional entries into our prize drawing raffle.
11. In your review, state which square the book fulfilled, either at the top or the bottom of the review. Please make it easy to find!
12. Please state in the review how the book fulfills the category. Some categories are subjective, and some are more specific. Some books will be self-explanatory, but some, like Free!… need a sentence such as, “I found this book in a Free Little Library” or “I borrowed this book from a friend.”
13. Select your first square carefully. You can only start a new board if you have completed a full bingo board, a blackout (See #10). If you realize you have labeled a review in error after publication, please email rochelle at cannonballread dot com and let her know.
14. Reader’s Choice: This is a “floating” square that you can use to skip one category and review the book of your choice instead. Only one floating square may be used per player per card. You must review a book for this square, but you don’t have to follow the category/topic. Please state which square you are replacing with “Reader’s Choice” at the top or the bottom of the review.
15. One book fulfills one square. If a book can fit multiple squares, pick the one that works best for you.
16. All Cannonball Read rules apply to the CBR13 Book Bingo Reading Challenge.

Prizes

By completing each bingo, you’ll receive one entry into our prize drawing to be held after October 31. Complete all 25 squares and receive 2 additional entries into our prize drawing raffle (for a total of 16 entries).

In this year’s raffle prize, we are offering one lucky winner two prizes: their choice of CBR gear (select from any color classic Red Bubble t-shirt, any size tote bag, or the water bottle) AND a choice of $25 gift certificate to the bookstore** of their choice or an Amazon gift card.

**Bookstore must sell online gift cards.

Ready to Bingo?

Comments, questions, or looking for recommendations? Let us know in the comments below. If you are interested in playing Bingo but are not registered for Cannonball Read, you can still register here.