books

WELCOME TO THE 2nd ANNUAL !BOOKS@LEMMY.WORLD BINGO 2025! - Lemmy.World Want to read more, but need motivation or direction? Want to gamify or expand your reading? Try book bingo! Our hope with this challenge is to provide a fun way for you to keep up with your recreational reading goals throughout the next 12 months. #### How Does It Work? The goal is to read something that fits the theme for each bingo square in any single row, column, or corner diagonal of your choice (one work per square). You’re welcome to complete the entire card (or multiple cards) for an additional challenge goal, but you only need to check off a single line of 5 squares to complete the challenge. So what can you read? Well, anything you enjoy, really. There’s no requirement to consume any particular kind of work, so any length, format, subject, or genre is totally fine. Want to read graphic novels, audiobooks, poetry, 10-page memoirs, or works in other languages? No problem. There’s no bingo police, either! If you think you can make a well-reasoned argument for why something fits the spirit of a square, go for it. There’s even a process for substituting a square if it doesn’t quite fit your preferences. We hope you’ll participate in the community throughout the year by posting what you’re reading in the weekly “What are you reading?” thread, and by helping others with recommendations. In mid-April, 2026, we’ll put up a turn-in post to collect everyone’s cards. After the thread closes at the end of April, we’ll use the submissions to put together a summary of the results, and to determine eligibility for community flair (currently not possible, but maybe in the future!) or some other recognition. If you want to be included, please make sure to contribute to that post, even if you’ve made other bingo posts or comments during the year. #### Rules - You must read a different work for every square you complete, even across multiple cards. There’s no problem, however, with overlapping other reading challenges that aren’t associated with c/Books. - Repeating authors on the same card isn’t forbidden, but we encourage you to read different authors for every square on a card. - Likewise, we encourage you to primarily read things you haven’t read before. - If you’re having trouble filling a certain square, you are welcome to substitute any non-duplicate square from last year’s card [https://lemmy.world/post/14905693]. The center square (C3) is the one exception, and is not eligible for substitution. Please limit your substitutions to one per card. - The 2025 challenge runs May 1st, 2025 – April 30th, 2026. Anything you finish during that time period is eligible, as long as you were no more than halfway through on May 1st, 2025. #### Upping the Difficulty Want an additional challenge? Try one of these, or come up with a variation of your own (and share them!). - Hard Mode: This is just a stretch goal for those interested – it does not convey any greater achievement. Most square descriptions include an optional extra restriction, which you can do or ignore on a square-by-square basis. It’s up to you! - Genre Mode: Read only one genre. - Review Mode: Write a review (ratings alone don’t count) for the books you read for bingo, either here on c/Books, a personal blog, Bookwyrm, The Storygraph, Hardcover.app, or elsewhere. ### The Card 2025 Bingo Card [https://literature.cafe/pictrs/image/ea4bea0b-e2d9-43de-b3db-63848d5f1a39.png] Full Size Card [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Fc2sWiaEvXutTcD90TGX-_l9oysTo-hj/view?usp=drivesdk] ### Squares in List Form ### The Squares #### Row 1 - 1A Number in the Title: The work must have a number in the title that’s not a just a volume/version number. Example: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid. HARD MODE: Only numbers in the title. - 1B Author from a Different Continent: The author(s) resides on a different continent than you do. HARD MODE: The work required translation to be published in your native language. - 1C Featured Creature: A sentient non-humanoid is the primary PoV, or a non-humanoid creature holds such a prominent role that the work would be completely different without them. Examples: Call of the Wild by Jack London or Old Yeller by Fred Gipson. HARD MODE: Not a sci-fi/fantasy creature. - 1D Minority Author: The author is a member of a generally underrepresented or marginalized demographic where you live, such as LGBTQIA+ or BIPOC. HARD MODE: Belongs to more than one minority group. - 1E Now a Major Motion Picture: The work has been adapted into a show or single episode, movie, play, audio drama, or other format. HARD MODE: Watch or listen to the adaptation as well (rewatches are ok!). #### Row 2 - 2A Independent Author: Read a work self-published by the author. Any work later published though a conventional publishing house doesn’t count unless you are reading it before the switch, and its rerelease date is after April 30th, 2026. HARD MODE: Not published via Amazon Kindle Direct. - 2B Set in War: The work takes place with an active war in the foreground or background. The characters do not need to be directly involved in combat, but the war’s presence must be a primary driver of the narrative. HARD MODE: There are more than 2 factions in the war. - 2C Orange Crush: The title, a prominent element of the cover, or the narrative involves some form of orange (color, word, or fruit). HARD MODE: The work you chose uses multiple types of orange features. - 2D Short and Sweet: Read a individual piece of work under 170 pages or 40,000 words. HARD MODE: Read a collection of this type of short work. - 2E Banned Book: Read a work from the ALA’s (American Library Association’s) list of the top 100 banned books in the US 2010-2019 [https://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/decade2019]. If you are a non-American and there is a similar list for your region, that is also a valid source for comparable information. Additionally, you can use the content from the Wikipedia post on banned books [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_banned_books]. HARD MODE: One of the top 50 (or equivalent). #### Row 3 - 3A Based on Folklore: The narrative must be based on a real world piece of folklore. Folklore encompasses fairy tales, fables, myths, and legends. HARD MODE: Non-European folklore. - 3B Title: [X] of [Y] - The title of the book must feature the format described, such as A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin. HARD MODE: [X] of [Y] and [Z] (the conjunctions can be flexible). - 3C FREE SPACE - Off Your TBR Pile: A book that’s been on your TBR list for a long time. HARD MODE: Overlaps with at least one other bingo square theme. - 3D LGBTQIA+ Lead: A main character identifies as LGBTQIA+. HARD MODE: Includes a significant romantic relationship between characters that identify as LGBTQIA+. - 3E Saddle Up: The narrative revolves around someone whose identity is tied to being a rider of something, such as a horse, dragon, or motorcycle. HARD MODE: The ridden creature/object is treated as a character in its own right. #### Row 4 - 4A New Release: New for 2025/2026 (no reprints or new editions). First translations into your language of choice are allowed. HARD MODE: This is the first work you’ve read by this author. - 4B Alliterative Title: Many books boldly boast alliteration to attract audience attention. HARD MODE: More than 2 alliterative words in the title, excluding definite articles or conjunctions. - 4C Judge a Book by Its Cover: Chosen because you like its cover (or cover analogue). HARD MODE: Picked using only the information available on the front cover. - 4D Award Winner: Has won a notable and widely regarded literature award. HARD MODE: More than one award. - 4E Gamble, Game, or Contest: Features an organized gamble, game, or contest (life-and-death or otherwise). HARD MODE: Take a gamble on a style or genre of work you don’t typically read, as well. #### Row 5 - 5A Steppin’ Up!: Challenges can come at you quickly, especially for those least prepared. Whether it’s a major leadership position or suddenly being gifted a baby dragon, life is about to get a whole lot harder and more complicated. HARD MODE: The primary PoV does not assume the throne of a monarchy/empire. - 5B Political: Political movements are a major driver of the work. HARD MODE: From the perspective of machinations in the background, outside the typical positions of power or major government. - 5C Late to the Party: Apparently this is a really popular work, you just haven’t gotten around to it yet. Read a book that you have seen recommended over and over. HARD MODE: Not Harry Potter. - 5D Cozy Read: Cozies generally feature a smaller cast of characters in a smaller location, emphasize community, highlight successes and inspirational moments, and have a more optimistic and upbeat tone. Above all, they have to have a satisfyingly happy ending. They offer comfort to their readers and a safe escape from the realities of daily life. HARD MODE: There is no hard mode, hard mode defeats the purpose of the cozy task. - 5E Jerk with a Heart of Gold: A significant figure may be rude, gruff, or even insufferable; however, beneath all that, a surprising kindness shows in the right moments. Maybe they are bad at the whole feelings thing, are doing it to hide a deep pain or maintain a position of responsibility, or maybe it’s just all a façade, but their actions ultimately reveal a core of genuine caring. HARD MODE: Not A Man Called Ove/Otto. ### Resources If you make or find any bingo-related resources, ping or DM me so I can add them here. Thanks! - 2025 Bingo Recommendations List [https://threadiverse.link/lemmy.world/post/28953205] - The Storygraph Reading Challenge [https://app.thestorygraph.com/reading_challenges/ece752f3-9139-4eb3-89ee-8c5401674d8f] ### Appreciation - This challenge is inspired by, but totally separate from, the one run by r/Fantasy on Reddit. We deeply appreciate the past organizers and the work they did that we are now benefitting from. - 2025 bingo card font credits: Parchment [https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/typography/font-list/parchment], by Photo-Lettering, Inc.; Noto Sans [https://fonts.google.com/noto/specimen/Noto+Sans], by the Noto Project authors [https://github.com/notofonts/latin-greek-cyrillic]. ::: spoiler MarkDown Card (click to expand) --------------------------------- | | A | B | C | D | E | |:—:|:—:|:—:|:—:|:—:|:—:| | 1 | Number in the Title | Author from a Different Continent | Featured Creature | Minority Author | Now a Major Motion Picture | | 2 | Independent Author | Set in War | Orange Crush | Short and Sweet | Banned Book | | 3 | Based on Folklore | Title: X of Y | FREE SPACE - Off Your TBR Pile | LGBTQIA+ Lead | Saddle Up | | 4 | New Release | Alliterative Title | Judge a Book by Its Cover | Award Winner | Gamble, Game, or Contest | | 5 | Steppin’ Up! | Political | Late to the Party | Cozy Read | Jerk with a Heart of Gold | ::: Page · lemmy.world <p>Congratulations, and thank you for participating in the 2^nd^ Annual Book Bingo for c/Books@Lemmy.World!</p><p>If the existence of this bingo is a surprise to you, or you want to revisit the guide, <a href="https://lemmy.world/post/28953205" rel="nofollow">see this link</a>.</p><p>If you would like to join us for 2026 bingo, we’ll be posting information on the morning of May 1^st^, US Central Time (UTC -5)!</p><p>There are 2 official ways to submit your card and be recognized:</p><p>Fill out <a href="https://tally.so/r/vGBzDl" rel="nofollow">the web form we made using Tally</a>, which will organize the data for us. Completing the form will also give you a Markdown-friendly list to copy and post in this thread if you would like.<br>Or, if you would prefer, comment in this thread with your list of completed squares, including the titles/authors you read. Here is a list of squares for reference/copypaste:<br>Please provide information ao all squares you completed a work for, even if it didn;t result in a completed bingo for that line.</p>2025 Bingo Squares (click to expand)<p>* 1A: Number in the Title - * 1B: Author from a Different Continent - * 1C: Featured Creature - * 1D: Minority Author - * 1E: Now a Major Motion Picture - * 2A: Independent Author - * 2B: Set in War - * 2C: Orange Crush - * 2D: Short and Sweet - * 2E: Banned Book - * 3A: Mythology or Legend as Important to Plot - * 3B: Title: [X] of [Y] - * 3C: FREE SPACE - Off Your TBR Pile - * 3D: LGBTQIA+ Lead - * 3E: Saddle Up - * 4A: New Release - * 4B: Alliterative Title - * 4C: Judge a Book by Its Cover - * 4D: Award Winner - * 4E: Gamble, Game, or Contest - * 5A: Steppin’ Up! - * 5B: Political - * 5C: Late to the Party - * 5D: Cozy Read - * 5E: Jerk with a Heart of Gold - </p><p>ADDITIONAL POINTS TO READ BEFORE TURNING IN YOUR CARDS!</p><p>Questions? Please ask!</p><p>Turn-in Guidance</p><p>Please make an effort to spell titles and author names correctly! For titles with more than one author, please separate author names with a comma. This will help with data compilation for a bingo stats thread coming later!<br>If you didn’t do a square, don’t list it. Please leave incomplete squares completely blank on <a href="https://tally.so/r/vGBzDl" rel="nofollow">the Tally form</a>.<br>If you did complete a square, even if that one didn;t directly result in a completed bingo, please fill it in. This will help with the bingo statistics page coming soon.<br>You can substitute any square, but please remember: only one substitution per card. On <a href="https://tally.so/r/vGBzDl" rel="nofollow">the form</a>, there’s a substitution checklist for each square that will trigger a place to fill in the substitution information. If you accidentally choose a substitution for the wrong square, please de-select the substitution to clear it.<br>Please make a note if you did a square on hard mode. On <a href="https://tally.so/r/vGBzDl" rel="nofollow">the form</a>, there is a hard mode checkbox for each square.<br>Only turn in your card(s) once you have finished with bingo; do not submit a card still in progress. If you’re using <a href="https://tally.so/r/vGBzDl" rel="nofollow">the Tally form</a>, there is a review page before submission; please make sure that you click submit after double-checking your entries! You cannot edit your card once submitted, so if you realize you’ve made a mistake, please post in this thread to notify us. You can also copy and pase the submission review page to place it in the thread to share with other participants.<br>The feedback questions at the end aren’t required, but will help us with improving Bingo for all of you in the future.</p><p>More than one card?</p><p>If you did more than one card, and are submitting <a href="https://tally.so/r/vGBzDl" rel="nofollow">via Tally</a>, please differentiate your username for each additional card. For example, I would list my first card under “JaymesRS@literature.cafe” and my second under “JaymesRS@literature.cafe - 2”.</p><p>Timeline</p><p>Submit your finished card(s) by May 1st, 2025! This thread and <a href="https://tally.so/r/vGBzDl" rel="nofollow">the Tally submission form</a> will remain open until 12 noon, US Central Time (UTC -5) on May 1^st^ as a courtesy, so please make sure your cards are turned in by then, so they can be counted.</p><p>Reward</p><p>Any five in a row is considered a win! Your only reward this year (as of the time of posting) is the warm glow of satisfaction and bragging rights. However, our ultimate plan is to recognize bingo participation with a flair-like system in the future, so we plan to calculate completion retroactively whenever that’s available.</p><p>In Closing</p><p>Again… <a href="https://tally.so/r/vGBzDl" rel="nofollow">HERE IS THE LINK TO THE TALLY FORM TO TURN IN YOUR CARD</a> (or you can comment in this thread). The form goes live on April 17^th^, 2025, and both it and this thread close around noon on May 1^st^, US Central Time (UTC -5). Be sure to get your card(s) in before then!</p><p>Thanks to everyone that participated this year! This was a fun challenge to put together for us. If you are interested in helping to coordinate the bingo challenge or related resources, please reach out to the moderators of !books@lemmy.world and let us know!</p>

<p>The English Republic is a military organization from the novel** Metro 2033: Britain.**</p><p>It is a quasi-democratic state that practices slavery. It controls parts of the London Underground stations, including the main city terminals, and about thirty surface outposts across various corners of Britain. It possesses a large army, powerful weaponry, and armored vehicles.</p><p>The idea of creating a new state from the ruins of a once-great empire belonged to a former British Army general named Handel. In the very first years following the Third World War, he formed a new parliament from the residents of nearby metro stations, promising them resources from declassified military depots—of which the capital of the former United Kingdom had enough to create a semblance of civilization in a short time.</p><p>The Republic expanded so rapidly that no one, not even the parliament, knew exactly where their territory ended. Furthermore, due to the complicated post-war situation, an accurate census could not be conducted. According to Colonel Mayers, the Republic includes all stations north of St Pancras, several stations in the south, and about thirty outposts across the country.</p><p>Starting in 2030, the strengthened Republic began dispatching well-equipped scout detachments to various parts of England, sometimes venturing as far as the Scottish border. By raiding unprepared settlements, slavers captured men, women, and children, subsequently transporting them via trucks to a transfer base in Sheffield, where they were later loaded onto trains and taken to London via the restored railway.</p><p>The official emblem of the Republic is the image of the red Cross of Saint George on a black background, framed in white. This suggests that the English Republic sees itself as the successor to pre-war England, which used the same cross as its national flag.</p><p>POLITICSThe Republic owes its prosperity mainly to prisoners from other cities, specifically captured by slavers across the entire territory of post-nuclear Britain. The government of the English Republic considers slavery a necessary and temporary measure.</p><p>Despite the English attempt to make their state more democratic, in terms of governance, the Republic more closely resembles the regime of Benito Mussolini. Moreover, the state itself exists only as an idea, and all that remains of the former English Republic is just the name.</p>