2025 Big Book Summer Challenge discussion

Tell the group a bit about yourself, share your socials if you like, and tell us your plans for Big Book Summer!

Hi, you guys! It is so much fun to be back for big buck summer 2025. Now that my dad is on the mend, after being sick, I can fully say that I am ready to tentatively kick off big book summer, 2025.

My name is Allen and I live in Ohio, and I am a substitute library and clerk for our county libraries. I love my job and sharing a book recommendation or two is my favorite part. I like Claire Lombardo, Jodi Picoult, John Grisham, John Hart, the occasional Wally, Lamb, and so many others.

When I am not reading, you can catch me in the gym, or on a walk/run. Or at my favorite place CycleBar.

I do not have any big bucks that mean clearing this year, but I do have a few big bucks in my library TBR that I just got so I’m going to read those, starting with maybe you should talk to someone by Lori Gottlieb.

I chose. Maybe you should talk to someone, because well, my dad is recovering from the blood clot that he had in his spine, I was unable to see my therapist. It made it kind of stressful and difficult. I have been a big advocate for mental health. Taking care of yourself is so important. I learned that while I was sitting by his bedside.

My hope in starting, maybe you should talk with someone, is that I learn to grow, and continue to thrive, and get that spark back that I had when I was running. My goal is to run again this summer, in addition to lifting weights and cycling.

Allen wrote: "Hi, you guys! It is so much fun to be back for big buck summer 2025. Now that my dad is on the mend, after being sick, I can fully say that I am ready to tentatively kick off big book summer, 2025...."

Welcome back to Big Book Summer, Allen! And it's so nice to learn more about you after all these years :) Very glad to hear your dad is on the mend. Caring for a parent is so stressful. We cared for my husband's dad with dementia and spinal stenosis for 8 years, so I understand. Sounds like a great book to kick off Big Book Summer! That one's been on my TBR for a while.

Hi, all! I'm Sue, the founder and co-cost of Big Book Summer, happy to be back for the 13th year of this fun reading challenge! I'm wearing my new Big Book Summer t-shirt and drinking from my BBS mug this morning. I have a whole stack of Big Books set aside for summer, which you can see in my video or on my blog (links in the group description). I'm looking forward to chatting with all of you!

Hi everyone, my name is Eric and I live in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota. I am an avid reader finishing between 30-40 books a year. My interest spans all genres, but I think if I had to pick a favorite it would be historical fiction! Besides reading, my wife and I love to travel, I am an avid cyclist and lastly I am a hamradio operator using morse code on the air. I really enjoyed this challenge last year and am looking forward to it again. I look forward to meeting you all! Find me on Instagram @k0eap

Hello! My name is Kathy and I am a retired teacher, so more time to read! I have loved reading all of my life. I am starting with 11/22/63 by Stephen King - 842 pages!

Hello from the San Francisco Bay Area! Happy to be back with Big Book Summer Challenge! My plan is to read Lonesome Dove sometime this summer; it will be in honor of my stepfather who passed away earlier this year (LD was one of his favorite books). I also plan to reread some of my favorite books by Maeve Binchy (The Glass Lake) and Rosamunde Pilcher (Coming Home). Happy BIG BOOK Reading! You can find me on IG: michaelmccarty62

Eric wrote: "Hi everyone, my name is Eric and I live in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota. I am an avid reader finishing between 30-40 books a year. My interest spans all genres, but I think if I had to pick a ..."

Welcome back, Eric! Nice to learn a bit more about you :) My husband and I also love to travel!

Kathy wrote: "Hello! My name is Kathy and I am a retired teacher, so more time to read! I have loved reading all of my life. I am starting with 11/22/63 by Stephen King - 842 pages!"

Welcome, Kathy! 11/22/63 is one of my favorite books - and my all-time favorite Stephen King. Enjoy!

Michael wrote: "Hello from the San Francisco Bay Area! Happy to be back with Big Book Summer Challenge! My plan is to read Lonesome Dove sometime this summer; it will be in honor of my stepfather who passed away e..."

Welcome back to the Big Book Summer Challenge, Michael! I'm so sorry to hear of your stepfather's death, but what a lovely way to honor his memory, by reading his favorite book. I lost my dad 10 years ago, and reading and sharing books was one of many things we enjoyed together. We inherited his collection of Stephen King and Dean Koontz books (his favorite authors), and reading one of them always makes me feel closer to him. Not sure if he ever read Lonesome Dove, but he would have loved it!

Hello Everyone! My name is Dawn. I have been a middle school librarian for 33 years. I saw this challenge at the end of the summer last year and could not wait to participate in it this year. At this time, I only have two big books picked out to read along with our 2026 middle school state nominated books. It’s exciting to browse my options! Happy reading everyone!

Dawn wrote: "Hello Everyone! My name is Dawn. I have been a middle school librarian for 33 years. I saw this challenge at the end of the summer last year and could not wait to participate in it this year. At th..."

Welcome to Big Book Summer, Dawn! In past years, I have read books from Deborah Wiles' middle-grade Sixties trilogy for Big Book Summer - they are all SO good! Enjoy!

Hi I'm Linda and I have a youtube channel called Lilybug's Library and this year I'm all in for Big Book Summer and plan on doing it the entire Summer. I'm just trying to decide whether I should leave the biggest book for August or whether I should read it early.

Linda "Lilybug's Library" wrote: "Hi I'm Linda and I have a youtube channel called Lilybug's Library and this year I'm all in for Big Book Summer and plan on doing it the entire Summer. I'm just trying to decide whether I should le..."

Welcome back, Linda! Ooh, tough decision! I always like to start with a shorter Big Book, so I can get one under my belt, then move onto the longer ones. Enjoy!

Hi everyone my name is Jill and I am a food inspector for the State of Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. I love to read and listen to audiobooks. My husband and I camp just about every weekend from April-October and you will find me with a book relaxing by a fire or a pool. I plan to start my big book challenge with Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros it is 528 pages. I am excited to be a part of the big book summer challenge.

Hi! I’m Kim, from Portland OR, back for my third (or possibly fourth) BBS. I have 6 new-to-me library books in my PoP right now; and yet I think I’m going to start off rereading an old favorite instead - that’s just the way the TBR pile tumbles sometimes:-)

I likely won’t get much reading done until after the NHL hockey season is over in early June. But once late June is here I’ll ramp up, as for the first time in almost 25 years of working for a school district I will have most of the summer off….and I intend to spend a good deal of that time reading!

Thank you Suzan and Melinda, for hosting BBS13!

Hi I’m Susan. I’m a federal govt attorney in San Diego. I unofficially joined the last couple of years. I found out about Big Books from the Book Cougars. In the summer I usually read for trips I’ll be taking - this year it’s Germany and Greece. I’m currently reading Angela Merkel’s autobiography and just finished a history of Germany through objects called Germany: Memories of a Nation -it is 650 pages. It was a great book- a unique and interesting way to understand the culture and history of Germany. Merkel’s book is 740 pages and I’m about 1/2 way through - it has a lot of details on her chancellorship and so far my favorite part is the section in her early years up until she got her Ph.D. I mostly read mysteries, thrillers, history, biographies and art books but i’m in a book club that reads through the book Riot read harder challenge so that expands my horizons. I read romances last year with the book cougars and i like that genre now. i haven’t done horror with them this year as work is a challenge at the moment and I can’t do horror in the off hours. Looking forward to the dialogue on Big Books. Oh and I’m reading Don Quixote with the Bookshelf - i won’t finish til October. not my fave book but i’ll finish it!

Woo-hoo! Big Book Summer is back!

I'm Kathy from Chicago and I read lots of classics, so I've got a LOT of big books (to read and re-read) to choose from.

My goal for this summer is 6 books. I've created a long, long list, and I have chosen 3 books that I plan to begin in June:

The Duke's Children by Anthony Trollope, the last of the Palliser series. which I'll be re-reading on audiobook.
A Wilder Shore: The Romantic Odyssey of Fanny and Robert Louis Stevenson by Camille Peri, a biography (library book)
The Female Quixote by Charlotte Lennox

Good luck to all and happy summer reading!

Hi everyone!
I'm Karen from Epping, New Hampshire. I've been participating in Big Book Summer for a few years. Some of you may know me from Booktopia, Vermont.
I read about 50 books a year. My favorite genres are Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction, Thrillers and Mystery. I will occasionally pick up nonfiction if it's True Crime or Memoir.
I'm excited for another summer challenge!

Jill wrote: "Hi everyone my name is Jill and I am a food inspector for the State of Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. I love to read and listen to audiobooks. My husband and I camp just about every weeken..."

Welcome to Big Book Summer, Jill! I'm your neighbor in northwestern Delaware :) And we love to camp, too! Usually, we take a bunch of shorter trips in the local region (mid-Atlantic and Northeast), but this year, we did a BIG month-long road trip with our camper in March, and we're doing another 6-week trip to MT and Canada in July/August. Enjoy your Big Books this summer!

Kim wrote: "Hi! I’m Kim, from Portland OR, back for my third (or possibly fourth) BBS. I have 6 new-to-me library books in my PoP right now; and yet I think I’m going to start off rereading an old favorite ins..."

Welcome back to Big Book Summer, Kim! Sounds like it will be a fun, relaxing summer for you :)

Susan wrote: "Hi I’m Susan. I’m a federal govt attorney in San Diego. I unofficially joined the last couple of years. I found out about Big Books from the Book Cougars. In the summer I usually read for trips I’l..."

Welcome back to Big Book Summer, Susan! Yay for the Book Cougars - Chris & Emily are great :) I'm slowly working my way through the Penguin Book of Ghost Stories with them, but I haven't had time for their readalongs yet this year. Wow, traveling to Germany and Greece - that sounds wonderful! I like to read about places I'm traveling to, also. Enjoy your travel & your Big Books!

Kathy wrote: "Woo-hoo! Big Book Summer is back!

I'm Kathy from Chicago and I read lots of classics, so I've got a LOT of big books (to read and re-read) to choose from.

My goal for this summer is 6 books. I'v..."

Welcome back to Big Book Summer, Kathy! I have not yet read any Trollope, but I know a lot of people love his books. Sounds like a great start - enjoy!

Karen wrote: "Hi everyone!
I'm Karen from Epping, New Hampshire. I've been participating in Big Book Summer for a few years. Some of you may know me from Booktopia, Vermont.
I read about 50 books a year. My fav..."

Happy to see you back for another Big Book Summer, Karen!

Hello! I am Kate and I live in New York. I retired 3 (!) years ago this July after 40 years as a nurse and nurse practitioner in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. I read 60ish books annually and I love being part of this group as it helps me weed some longer books off my overflowing TBR shelves. Thanks, Sue, for cohosting again!

Kate wrote: "Hello! I am Kate and I live in New York. I retired 3 (!) years ago this July after 40 years as a nurse and nurse practitioner in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. I read 60ish books annually and I lo..."

Welcome back, Kate! I didn't realize you'd retired! Congrats :)

My name is Janet and I live in hot, hot, hot Phoenix, Arizona. Usually I try to leave during. the summer but this year it looks unlikely for a couple of reasons. I heard about Big Book Summer through Booktopia where I met Suzan, her wonderful mom Sandra, Karen, Kate, Chris & Emily and a whole lot of other terrific readers. I like to say I am the Queen of DNF because if a book is not holding my attention I will just move on. I'm going to choose some classics to read this summer because I feel like I'm always chasing that new release and classics are classics for a reason. I plan to start with Mansfield Park by Jane Austen.

I live in Central Oregon in the High Desert. I'm a wife and homeschooling mom. I belong to 2 local book clubs which keeps me reading. I also quilt and sew and have a YouTube channel at Sew It Seams focusing on that. I spend a lot of time knitting and crocheting, writing, and dabbling in other crafts. Summers tend to be busy with running my kids to various activities but the hot days are perfect for reading.

I live in the Midwest. I am usually reluctant to pick up a big book but I have a few that I would like to get to this Summer. The House of Government by Yuri Slezkine is up first. I am a librarian during the week and a nurse on the weekends. Happy reading to all!

Hi!! Deb here from Chicago. I have been retired for 12 years. I worked at a university library for 32 years and after retirement I was able to really delve into the reading life!
Thank you Sue for co-hosting this challenge once again!

I'm Linda from Ohio. I met Suzan at Booktopia along with Karen, Kate, Janet and many, many more. I've joined this group for several years. I'm an eclectic reader and read whatever is either literally handy or figuratively shiny at the moment. Several years ago I started reading one tome over the course of a year. It turned out there were about 365 chapters in my copy of War and Peace so I read a chapter a day for the whole year (there were actually 367 or 368 chapters but I doubled up in order to finish with the end of the calendar year. With that in mind, I do manage to read more than 400 pages of my big book during the course of this challenge.
Thanks to Sue for heading this challenge. I look forward to seeing what others are reading and their opinions about said books.

Hello! I'm Holly from the mountains of Idaho. Last summer was the first time I discovered Big Book Summer. I really enjoyed getting a bunch of mammoths off my TBR, so much so that I've continued to try and read one a month since last summer. My latest Big Read for May was 'Anna Karenina' by Leo Tolstoy. It had been intimidating me for years and I am so happy to have read it. I'm excited to see what I can get through this summer!

Hi, I’m Abby from Morristown, NJ. This is my second summer doing the big book challenge. My goal is to read one big book in each of June, July and August. I’m starting with A Calamity of Souls by David Baldacci. Happy Reading!

Hi, I am Angelina, a Russian living in Slovenia, I am a booktube newbie (youtube handle: booksdothingstome) and will be joining both BBSC and June on the Range with "The Lonesome Dove", this is my first ever western, so pray for me!

Hi Big Book Lovers ! I had a wonderful time last summer diving deep into the pool of fantastic books . Lonesome Dove and 11/22/63 being my 2 favs.
Started Kingdom of Copper, book 2 in the Daevabad trilogy ,and would like to get to A Gathering of Shadows book 2 in VE Schuab trilogy, Have also downloaded Middlemarch to my Kobo. It's summer and my list will morph no doubt . Cheers to good reads, and good summer memories !
Thank you Sue for hosting this challenge !

Hi! My name is Fern. I'm not new to big books, but I am to this challenge. This is awesome!

I read a wide variety of books and I love talking about them.

Hello! My name is Christie. I am from Nova Scotia, Canada. This is the first time doing #bigboooksummer. My goals is 2 books per month. Let the reading begin!!

hello! i am Sabrina from Switzerland, this is my second year with the big book summer challenge and I've been looking forward to it all year long :)
i am currently on holiday in Wales, at the Hay Festival in Hay-on-Wye (has anyone been there before? it's so cool!)
my first big book for this year is a classic, North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

Hi All, I’ve been looking forward to this challenge all year! After 15+ years in Seattle, we recently relocated to Eastern North Carolina. I work remotely, mainly recruiting Engineers and Data folks for our small startup. I love to read physical and digital books, as well as listen to audiobooks. I made a commitment to myself to have a better reading year this year than last (reading only 19 books then and several of them very short, lol). By giving up social media at bedtime, I’ve read/listened to 47 books this year, beating my personal challenge of 25!

This is my 2nd year enjoying Summer Big Book Challenge, which I initially found mentioned on Mitzi’s YT channel, @mitzireadsandwrites.

My favorite genres are Poetry, Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Classics, Mystery, Memoirs/Biographies, Nonfiction, and works translated into English by Japanese and Korean authors. Maybe it would have been shorter to tell you what I don't generally read, haha.

Thanks, Sue & Melinda for hosting!

Happy Summer! I did the Big Book Challenge last year and it got some books off my TBR that have been on there forever. I am from Iowa and my two favorite genres are Romance and Horror. I have become obsessed with the Joe Ledger series but I always need a recovery period after I read a book because they are intense. I hope that I can take a few more books off my TBR because it keeps growing all year long.

Christie wrote: "Hello! My name is Christie. I am from Nova Scotia, Canada. This is the first time doing #bigboooksummer. My goals is 2 books per month. Let the reading begin!!"

Yay! I'm so glad you decided to join us, Christie.

Hello Big Book Readers, my name is Sandy, and I live in Pennsylvania. I have a few big books on my shelf I would like to get read this year so we will see how I do. I will be starting with The Women by Kristin Hannah (Large Print 641 pages). Looking forward to participating in the challenge! I read many genres of books but like clean/non spicey Christian Fiction the best.
Happy Reading Everyone!

Hi, I’m Linda….living in Michigan. This is my first time joining the Big Read challenge. I guess I’ve already started - by reading All The Colors of The Dark since the challenge starte.

Hi, big book lovers. My name is Julie Ann, I live in Yorkshire, not too far from Bronte and James Herriot country. I've been taking part in Big Book Summer for the last couple of years. I read pretty much anything if the premise interests me. My comfort reads are mystery and fantasy. I want to get to some of my longer novels on my Kindle and book shelves. From my physical bookcase, The Goldfinch, Doomsday Book and Fayne. From my Kindle Scaramouche, The Seven Sisters, and The Name of the Rose. I'm not great with tbrs as I'm a mood reader. Hopefully, I'll get to some of these. Whatever happens, big books will be read.

Janet wrote: "My name is Janet and I live in hot, hot, hot Phoenix, Arizona. Usually I try to leave during. the summer but this year it looks unlikely for a couple of reasons. I heard about Big Book Summer throu..."

Hi, Janet! Sorry you have to stay in Phoenix this summer (ugh - I hate high heat!), but I'm glad you joined the fun here - you can spend your summer in the A/C, reading!

Hello, Everyone! I am an elementary librarian who loves to read all sorts of genres. I have been in a slump recently, so I am hoping that summer allows me to break out of that. I have several books that I hope to get to this summer. I have been mood reading, so I don't want to commit to specific titles. I will tentatively say that I will start with The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies, by Alison Goodman, and see where that takes me!

Deb wrote: "Hi!! Deb here from Chicago. I have been retired for 12 years. I worked at a university library for 32 years and after retirement I was able to really delve into the reading life!
Thank you Sue for..."

How did I not know you worked in a university library, Deb?? So did I, but only during college - ha ha Sounds like a fascinating career!

Angelina wrote: "Hi, I am Angelina, a Russian living in Slovenia, I am a booktube newbie (youtube handle: booksdothingstome) and will be joining both BBSC and June on the Range with "The Lonesome Dove", this is my ..."

Welcome to Big Book Summer, Angelina, and welcome to Booktube! I've bookmarked your channel to check out tomorrow :) If you mention Big Book Summer on your channel, be sure to tag Melinda and I, and we'll add you to our playlists and hopefully help you grow your channel and reach more readers. I hope you love Lonesome Dove as much as I did!

Sandy wrote: "Hello Big Book Readers, my name is Sandy, and I live in Pennsylvania. I have a few big books on my shelf I would like to get read this year so we will see how I do. I will be starting with The Wome..."

Welcome to Big Book Summer, Sandy! I'm next door in Delaware :) I hope you enjoy The Women as much as I did last summer (I listened on audio) - really outstanding novel. I think it's Kristin Hannah's best yet.