This morning I have something very exciting to share. I found a wonderful website called A Year of Reading the World. In 2012 Ann Morgan read her way through the countries of the world–196 independent countries and one extra territory–reading one novel from each country. She wrote a book about her experience that comes out in 2015.

Reading her website ignited my wanderlust. I love to travel but I haven’t traveled much in my reading lately. Oh, I’ve been traveling to England a lot, especially in my middle grade fiction reading, but not much else. To be a well-rounded reader and an author with a unique voice, it makes sense to me that I should study novels by authors with very different perspectives from my own.

I was so inspired by Ann’s reading adventure, I already ordered two books from her list to get me started. I’m looking forward to reading The Return of the Water Spirit by Pepetela set in Angola (I  admit I chose this one for the title because I’ve been writing stories about a lake spirit) and Hurramabad by Andrei Volos.

Here’s to broadening our horizons!

Have you found any great book lists like Ann’s?

Have you read any great books by authors from a country in Asia, South America, or Africa (or a country you had never heard of before) that expanded your mind?