Reading the World Challenge
I’ve always believed that reading is its own kind of travel — cheaper, quieter, and far more interior, yet just as expansive. So, I’m packing my metaphorical bags and setting off on a journey with no jet lag, no lost luggage, and absolutely no need to wear shoes.
Inspired by Martha’s Map and her way of charting translated works across the globe, I’ve decided to create my own reading project. My goal? That’s 193 UN member states, plus the two observer states (Palestine and Vatican City) and Taiwan, because stories don’t care about borders, and neither do I.
Welcome to my take on Reading the World1.
THE RULES
The book must be written by someone born in the country, even if they’ve since moved across oceans or continents.
It must be available in a language I read—Portuguese or English. I’ll be relying heavily on translations, one of literature’s quiet miracles, to access voices I’d otherwise never hear.
There’s no set reading order. I’ll hop around continents depending on what I find, what I crave, what’s in translation or what the algorithm/bookstore/library offers up. It’s more serendipity than structure.
Only one book per country is required to complete the map, but I’ll track every book I read by authors from that country. Some places will draw me back again and again. Some I’ll visit briefly. Either way, it all counts.
THE MAP
Below, you’ll find a living archive — a bookshelf disguised as a passport. I’ll update it as I go.
Each entry will include:
the title
the author
the genre
a note or reflection
Some entries will also link to longer reviews—mine, when I’ve managed to write one, or someone else’s, when I haven’t, but their take echoes mine.
Want to recommend a book from your country? Please do. I’m crowdsourcing my itinerary — no algorithm can compete with real readers.
Country Count: 2/196
(A country is only counted once)
AFRICA
Algeria
Angola
Benin
Botswana
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cabo Verde
Cameroon
Central African Republic
Chad
Comoros
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Cote d’Ivoire
Djibouti
Egypt
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Eswatini
Ethiopia
Gabon
Gambia
Ghana
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Kenya
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Madagascar
Malawi
Mali
Mauritania
Mauritius
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Niger
Nigeria
Rwanda
São Tomé and Príncipe
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Somalia
South Africa
South Sudan
Sudan
Tanzania
Togo
Tunisia
Uganda
Zambia
Zimbabwe
ASIA
Afghanistan
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Bhutan
Brunei
Cambodia
China
Georgia
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Israel
Japan
Jordan
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Lebanon
Malaysia
Maldives
Mongolia
Myanmar
Nepal
North Korea
Oman
Pakistan
Palestine
Philippines
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Singapore
South Korea
Sri Lanka
Syria
Taiwan
Tajikistan
Thailand
Timor-Leste
Turkey
Turkmenistan
United Arab Emirates
Uzbekistan
Vietnam
Yemen
EUROPE
Albania
Andorra
Armenia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Belarus
Belgium
I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Kosovo
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Moldova
Monaco
Montenegro
Netherlands
North Macedonia
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Now and at the Hour of Our Death by Susana Moreira Marques
It’s a literary nonfiction work, and a highly experimental one at that. Since I’m Portuguese, I naturally read it in the original; my copy is the pocket edition from Tinta-da-China. A haunting and tender exploration of death, it lingers long after the last page. I recommend this review of it — it captures the book’s essence better than I ever could.
Romania
Russia
San Marino
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
Ukraine
United Kingdom
Vatican City
NORTH AMERICA
Antigua and Barbuda
Annie John by Jamaica Kinkaid
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Canada
The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton
Costa Rica
Cuba
Dominica
Dominican Republic
El Salvador
Grenada
Guatemala
Haiti
Honduras
Jamaica
Mexico
Nicaragua
Panama
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Trinidad and Tobago
United States of America
SOUTH AMERICA
Argentina
The Dangers of Smoking in Bed by Mariana Enríquez
Bolivia
Brazil
What is Mine by José Henrique Bortoluci
I read this literary nonfiction work it in the original language—my copy is the Portuguese edition from Companhia das Letras. A raw and intimate non-fiction work that weaves together identity, illness, and colonization, questioning the boundaries of what we call our own.
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
Guyana
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname
Uruguay
Venezuela
OCEANIA
Australia
Sabriel by Garth Nix
Fiji
Kiribati
Marshall Islands
Micronesia
Nauru
New Zealand
Palau
Papua New Guinea
Samoa
Solomon Islands
Tonga
Tuvalu
Vanuatu
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If you’d like to support my writing, here are a few lovely ways to do it (thank you so, so much):
Shout out to another wonderful project, which I discovered only after coming up with this challenge for myself.