CBR15 Book Bingo Reading Challenge Begins

As with last year, you interpret the categories. How easy or challenging you make your reading is up to you. Below are suggested interpretations and some suggestions are stronger than others. But it’s your time so pick books that appeal to you.

Our theme this year has been travel your bookshelf. Like traveling, reading can expand our world. While a bad vacation may be a lifetime of stories, a bad book is just miserable. You don’t have to finish a book to review it.

There are 5 continental categories. You can read any book, any kind of book, written by an author from a country on that continent, set anywhere on that continent, or about any or all of that continent.

There are 4 Banned Books categories divided into 4 of the common kinds of content cited when a book is banned or challenged. You can read any book that deals with, or contains that content. While I encourage you to support the authors whose books are being impacted, you don’t have to read a book that has actually been banned. Given the inoffensiveness of some of the books that have been pulled from shelves, the bar for “could be banned in Florida or Texas” is very low. Eleven people (11!) are responsible for more than 60% of the book bans, but it will take all of us to push back.

There will be a check-in post every Saturday morning around Noon Eastern Time.

Official CBR15 Book Bingo Reading Challenge Card

Download Game Card, Descriptions, and Rules

The Circles

Row 1

South America: A book by a South American author, set in South America, with a South American character, or about South America.
Politics: Put two or more people together and you’ve got politics. Politics is how decisions are made in a group-family, workplace, nation-and the power relations among people.
Take Flight: An airplane ride, a spaceship, fast travel, going far.
In the Wild: Shifters*, National Parks, and long hikes, oh my!
Sex: (Banned Books): Sexual content can be as mild as holding hands, as factual as reproductive health, or as radical as bodily autonomy. You don’t have to read a book that has been banned, just one that contains some content relating to sex.

Row 2

Dwelling: A book in which a house or a hotel plays a part (or even one with a house on the cover). It could also be about an non-human home or that of a fictional species.
Africa: A book by an African author, set in Africa, with an African character, or about Africa.
Relation”ship”: Could be about boats, could be about relationships.
Violence: (Banned Books) Many books that are about oppression and injustice have some amount of violence by the state or the majority in them and the violence is used as an excuse to ban the book. You don’t have to read a book that has been banned, just one that contains some violence.
On Air: Music, podcasts, the news, sending a signal out into the world or the internet.

Row 3

Hold Steady: Maybe it’s an old favorite, or about an idea that keeps you steady, or about a character who is stuck in a rut.
On the Road: Roadtrips, immigration, searching.
North America: A book by a North American author, set in North America, with a North American character, or about North America.
Guide: This might be an adventure book where someone has to find their way, or it could be a book that tells you how to do something.
Nostalgia: When I look at dolphins I get nostalgic for school gear with the hyper colorful art of Lisa Frank, but like dolphins, nostalgia can also be a bully, so the negative aspects of nostalgia also apply.

Row 4

Strange Worlds: The lives of plants, fantastical imaginary worlds, and new to us cultures are a few of the ways authors can bring us to strange worlds.
Queer Lives: (Banned Books) Yes, a lot of books have been challenged in an attempt to erase queerness. There’s so much great work in every genre by queer authors. Hit me up if you need suggestions in the comments, or on a weekly check-in post. You don’t have to read a book that has been banned, just one related to queer lives or by a queer author.
You are Here: Maybe you got a book from a local bookstore or library, or it might be about the place where you are.
Asia/Oceania: Asia/Oceania is the continent of Asia and the islands in the Pacific between continental Asia and continental North America. (Hawaii would count here.) A book by an Asian/Oceanic author, set in Asia/Oceania, with an Asian/Oceanic character, or about Asia/Oceania.
Picture This: While graphic novels or illustrated books are eligible for any category, they particularly apply here, or it might be a book about a character who creates images in any medium. It could also be a book that has been adapted for the screen.

Row 5

History: (Banned Books) Those trying to pull books from shelves are also trying to erase history, especially the history of oppression. You don’t have to read a book that has been banned, just one that contains history.
Bodies, Bodies: Bodies come in all shapes, sizes, and abilities. The one thing they all have in common – bodies are weird. The “bodies” don’t have to be human.
Adulthood: Adult characters or people dealing with adult things, or how to be a better adult.
Edibles: This could be anything related to cooking, drugs, or involve the culture around either of them.
Europe: A book by a European author, set in Europe, with a European character, or about Europe.

Getaway: Replaces one square that you don’t want to think about.

*Shifters are characters who can change form, such as werewolves.

The Rules

The CBR15 Book Bingo Reading Challenge begins on Saturday, July 1, 2023 and ends at 11:59 p.m. EST on Tuesday, October 31, 2023. 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.
Books must have been read during 2023.
You must tag the review on cannonballread.com with cbr15bingo and not any other variation. When using the autofill, make sure you are selecting cbr15bingo. Please do not add the ‘#’ in your tag, just the text cbr15bingo, all one word. Do not add any level-related tags; cbr15bingo is the only bingo-related tag necessary.
All squares can be fiction or non-fiction, graphic novel, audiobook, or any other genre. Fanfiction is allowable for any square.
Follow the bingo card graphic above to make your book choices.
Once a square is crossed off, it’s crossed off for good! (Feel free to print the bingo card in color, or black and white, to keep track.)
Bingo: Complete a horizontal, vertical or diagonal line. Four corners plus center square counts as a bingo too.
Blackout Card: Complete all 25 squares.
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! Please state in the review how the book fulfills the category.
Select your first square carefully. You can only start a new board if you have completed a full bingo board, or blackout (See #8). If you realize you have labeled a review in error after publication, please use the contact form to let us know.
One book fulfills one square. If a book can fit multiple squares, pick the one that works best for you.
All Cannonball Read rules apply to the CBR15 Book Bingo Reading Challenge.