Dreadlock Girl, who blogs at  Dreadlock Girl Reads is hosting a Reading Challenge for 2010 that I am all about! Beginning April 1st and ending November 30th, the goal is to read 1 book a month from a country other than your own.  That comes to a minimum of 8 books.  Country is determined by author, not by setting.

So I did a little research and discovered the following:  10 of the books I read and reviewed in a 9 month period of 2009 were by non-American authors… without even trying!  Which leads me to the optional portion of this challenge –

The 2010 Orbis Terrarum Challengers Raising Funds for Clean Water Worldwide (optional!)

I am a big believer in not just reading about what is going on in the world, but about doing something about it. For this reason I am going to be reading away for Living Water International during the challenge and donating an amount per book. I also ask that you consider doing the same. If every one of us just gave $1 per book we read during the challenge, that is only 8 dollars, but if we all did it  that would be a good amount (last year we had 74 challengers, reading 8 books= $592 !)

I’ve chosen to contribute to another charity that is responding to the global water crisis.  I will donate an amount to Water for People for every book I read that meets the requirements of this challenge.  Anyone who knows me personally knows it’s unlikely they’ll ever have the opportunity to sponsor me in a marathon… or even a walk-a-thon.  So this may be as close as we’re ever gon’na get, folks!  If you want in on the action, leave a comment below.  Or, for those who would rather remain anonymous, email me at booksexyblog@gmail.com.

And if you’re interested in taking part in the challenge yourself, please visit The Orbis Terrarum Reading Challenge.