It's something about the word "challenge"

I can't help myself. I love books and I love the world. I'm taking on one more challenge and then I'm done. Two challenges plus a book club is pushing the envelope of available reading time. My buddy, Bethany, over at B&B ex libris is hosting the Orbis Terrarum Challenge. Nine books by nine authors from nine different countries in nine months. It took me a little longer than I'm willing to admit to find my choices, but it was a ton of fun looking for them. This is what I found:

The Dubliners by James Joyce (Ireland)
The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom (Holland)
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Australia)
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (Russia)
A Personal Matter by Kenzaburo Oe (Japan)
The Secret Lives of People in Love by Simon Van Booy (UK)
Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood (Canada)
The Old Gringo by Carlos Fuentes (Mexico)
If on a winter's night a traveler by Italo Calvino (Italy)