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575 ratings | 472 reviews | avg rating:3.94

Richard’s Year In Books

Richard’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at Richard’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

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2026 Reading Challenge

2026

READING

CHALLENGE

Richard Becker has read 56 books of his goal of 50!

112%

Richard R. Becker

Goodreads Author

Born

in Milwaukee, The United States

Website

http://www.richardrbecker.com

Twitter

RichBecker

Genre

Fiction, Thriller, Suspense

Influences

Ernest Hemingway, John Updike, Russel Banks

Member Since

August 2014

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/richardrbecker

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Richard R. Becker is an award-winning American author whose gripping stories blend resilience and moral complexity. His upcoming novel, Born on Monday (2025), promises a thrilling tale of small-town sins that will leave readers breathless.

His debut novel, Third Wheel (August 2023), soared into Amazon’s top 100 thriller and suspense literary fiction novels, earned a Kirkus Reviews feature, and won seven awards, including Literary Thriller of the Year by the Artisan International Book Excellence Awards. His debut collection, 50 States (2021), born from a challenge to write one story a week for 50 weeks, topped Amazon’s literary short story charts for three months and secured multiple honors, including first place in the Spring 2022 BookFest A ...more

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Popular Answered Questions

What books are on your summer reading list this year?

Richard R. Becker I love this question, and don't have a traditional answer that includes 5 or 10 or even 20 books that will feel dated in a few months. What I have ins…moreI love this question, and don't have a traditional answer that includes 5 or 10 or even 20 books that will feel dated in a few months. What I have instead is a list of 195+ diverse titles and a method to read a fair amount of them every year. Feel free to check out my shelf. They are all here on Goodreads.

Generally, I'm reading four books at any given time. One with my daughter, one on my phone, one in print (often nonfiction), and one as an audiobook (yes, I think audiobooks count as long as they aren't abridged). To pick them: My daughter and I alternative between young adult and classic literature; my nonfiction picks generally alternate between enrichment and history; my other two picks alternate wildly different genres and authors mainly based on what I just read. I tend to look for something that contrasts preceding title.

For example, in 2021 on my phone, Normal People by Sally Rooney was preceded by Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clark, preceded by Eden Mine by S.M. Hulse, preceded by Go Tell It To The Mountain by James Baldwin, preceded by Rabbit is Rich by John Updike, preceded by Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank, preceded by Imaginary Friend by Stephen Chbosky, preceded by Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby, and so on. The same eclectic meandering happens with audiobooks (though narrators can play a factor in my picks).

How I chose books changed after joining Goodreads. This site gave me a tool to add dozens of "to read" (or read again) books. I look over all of them anytime I'm close to the end of a book, generally picking the next title because there is some contrast to what I just read or am reading — from contemporary to classic or horror fiction to literary fiction or science fiction to historical fiction — because I'm a great believer in diversity, especially for anyone who wants to be a writer. Diversity keeps it all interesting, which is why my own body of work spills over into everything.(less)

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Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

Richard R. Becker Two years ago, I committed to writing short short stories and sharing them on my Facebook author page. It was the first time in my life I treated writ…moreTwo years ago, I committed to writing short short stories and sharing them on my Facebook author page. It was the first time in my life I treated writing short stories like an assignment, with equal weight to any advertising/marketing deadlines I might have.

My immersion in the process of writing fiction opened up an entirely new world. After sharing the first few stories, I fell into a creative rhythm, and an overarching idea began to crystalize.

I was inspired to write about life-defining moments (or coping with life-defining moments) as experienced by different people in different places (50 States) — stories that could stand on their own but were also left open to be continued in unexpected ways or intersect with one another.

Individually, the spark for each story was unique. Some ideas seem to find me — something I happened to see while driving my daughter to practice. Other ideas had to be hunted down, especially as fewer states remained. In those situations, I made it a practice to follow the research until it led me somewhere or something else would find me along the way.(less)

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Combine Editions
Richard R. Becker’s books

Average rating: 4.23 · 258 ratings · 143 reviews · 4 distinct works • Similar authors

	50 States: A collection of short short stories really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 101 ratings — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Third Wheel 4.49 avg rating — 71 ratings — published 2023 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Born on Monday 4.39 avg rating — 54 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Ten Threads 4.13 avg rating — 32 ratings — published 2022 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

38 posts
Richard R. Becker's Blog

Book of the Day

My small town thriller Born on Monday is the Onlinebookclub.org Book of the Day!

A historic nor’easter. A relentless stalker.
Four estranged friends relive their darkest betrayals…

Visit Born on Monday by Richard R. Becker on Amazon and you'll find the e-book listed at special book of the day offer. If the book does well on June 15, the special offer will be extended for a week! Read more of this blog post »

1 like · Like • 0 comments • flag

Published on June 15, 2026 11:24 • Tags: book-of-the-day

View all 38 posts »

Richard is Currently Reading

Richard Becker is currently reading

Doom Town and the Atomic Blonde from Sector 9 (The Frisco Detective Mysteries Book 4)

by Richard Toronto (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Sep 05, 2026 05:30PM

Richard Becker is currently reading

East of Eden

by John Steinbeck

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Sep 05, 2026 05:27PM

Richard Becker is currently reading

The Gone World

by Tom Sweterlitsch

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Aug 27, 2026 06:03PM

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Richard’s Recent Updates

Richard Becker rated a book really liked it The Palm House by Gwendoline Riley	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
The Palm House is my introduction to the work of Gwendoline Riley. It’s a slim vignette-driven book that feels almost plotless in the conventional sense. I found this to be both troublesome and extraordinary to read something that feels so lived in, ...more
9 hours, 10 min ago · like · see review
Richard Becker is currently reading Doom Town and the Atomic Blonde from Sector 9 (The Frisco Detective Mysteries Book 4) by Richard Toronto (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 05, 2026 05:30PM · like
Richard Becker started reading East of Eden by John Steinbeck	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 05, 2026 05:27PM · like
Richard Becker wants to read Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 03, 2026 10:35AM · like
Richard Becker finished reading The Dog Stars by Peter Heller	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 02, 2026 08:51AM · like
Richard Becker entered a giveaway Dr. Drakon and the Om: An Out of Body Horror Story by Peter Topside (Goodreads Author) 100 copies available, ends on October 01, 2026 Enter to win »
Sep 01, 2026 11:20AM · like · see giveaway
Richard Becker and 33 other people liked Peter Topside's review of And God Created: A horror novella to make you question your faith.: "3.5 stars. I really enjoy seeing various interpretations of religion. I do not subscribe to organized religion and am more of a spiritual person, so various ideas and concepts really appeal to me. Now there were some interesting concepts introduced h" Read more of this review »
Aug 31, 2026 09:45AM · see review
Richard Becker rated a book really liked it Didn't You Use to Be Queenie B? by Terri-Lynne DeFino (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Didn’t You Use to Be Queenie B? is a novel about two chefs at different points in their career, struggling with the aftermath of addiction, finding each other and themselves in a soup kitchen. While not nearly as complex as the television series The ...more
Aug 30, 2026 12:31PM · like · see review
Richard Becker rated a book really liked it Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Please Ignore Vera Dietz is a Printz Honor novel that looks, at first glance, like a coming-of-age grief story until it turns into something more interesting — surviving a dysfunctional families and choosing a different path than the one modeled for ...more
Aug 30, 2026 12:06PM · like · see review
Richard Becker wants to read Celine by Peter Heller	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 29, 2026 05:23PM · like

More of Richard's books…

Richard’s Quotes

“I like living. I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, racked with sorrow; but through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing.”
― Agatha Christie

tags: inspirational

6101 likes

“Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand; instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on your thumb nail.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden

163 likes

“I had three chairs in my house; one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden or, Life in the Woods

292 likes