Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2025 Weekly Check-Ins
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Week 45: 10/30 - 11/6
It was Bonfire Night yesterday aka Dog Panic Attack Night. She'd just calmed down and we were getting ready for bed when some inconsiderate sod started setting them off again. I'm not against people having their fun but there should be designated slots when fireworks are allowed. Then we can at least be prepared.After a bit of time with the list I'm feeling like it's one that's hard to plan for but a lot of the prompts are things that will crop up in the course of a reading year. Of course there will be curly haired characters, and people dealing with debt or infertility. I just don't tend to have books on my radar where that is enough of a focus that it's mentioned in the blurb.
Finished:
Accomplice to the Villain by Nicole Nicole Maehrer. This dragged on a lot. The font size was tiny in the paperback, hiding the fact it's so bloated. Maybe half of it was valid plot, and that half of it was fun. It ended on a note that means I will probably still read the next one but she better hurry up and wrap up the story.
QOTW:
Most Unexpected: Birding - I mean I like nature writing, but this feels so far from what PS is about.
Most Unappealing: Pop or Sugar in title. I hated it last time we had it and I don't feel the selection of books that fit has increased enough.
Most Appealing: Women astronauts. No idea what I'm reading for it but I enjoy space travel books and enough of them have women in that it shouldn't be too hard.
Most difficult to find a book: Zodiac sign. I'm a Scorpio who has already read The Scorpio Races, so I guess I'm looking for scorpions. My Chinese sign is Rooster, so I am well annoyed that I read A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping already as that has a reanimated rooster in it.
Most confusing: Type C - I thought I understood it after googling but half the group is saying it's a parenting thing and referencing the official PS post which I can't even find. I think I'll just read the new Murderbot and ignore everyone else. There are apparently children in it, which is close enough.
Happy Thursday all!I discovered a new bookstore in the town where I work... and they had a special going where you got your purchase for half price if you showed up in costume. Heck yeah, for half-price books I'll dress up as Weird Al in public...
Otherwise, life continues to be school, work, writing, and gaming for me. I'm a predictable creature...
Books read this week:
Mockingbird Court -- a nice conclusion to the Shady Hollow series. I’ll miss these animals and their cozy mysteries.
The Best of Catherynne M. Valente, Volume One -- finally finished this after half a year! A collection of some of the author’s stories, poetry, and novellas. Beautiful writing style, but can be exhausting in large doses. And I worry that I’m starting to fall out of love with her writing style…
Ex-Heroes -- think Walking Dead but with superheroes. An okay read, but one of those that you can tell was written by a man. Do we really need every female character to have their bra exposed or be wearing a super-skintight outfit?
The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald -- the heartbreaking true story of one of the most famous shipwrecks on the Great Lakes. Given that the anniversary of the ship’s sinking is this month, it feels appropriate to read about now.
Assassination Classroom, Vol. 4
Assassination Classroom, Vol. 5
ワンパンマン 1 一撃 One Punch Man 1: Ichigeki
ワンパンマン 2 強さの秘訣 One Punch Man 2: Tsuyosa no Hiketsu
ワンパンマン 3 噂 One Punch Man 3: Uwasa
ワンパンマン 4 巨大隕石 One Punch Man 4: Kyodai Inseki
ワンパンマン 5 ズタボロに輝く One Punch Man 5: Zutaboro ni Kagayaku
ワンパンマン 6 大予言 One Punch Man 6: Daiyogen
One-Punch Man, Vol. 7: The Fight
One-Punch Man, Vol. 8
One-Punch Man, Vol. 9
One-Punch Man, Vol. 10
Currently reading:
How To Be A Good Creature: A Memoir in Thirteen Animals
Traitorous Toys
New Dragon City
The Keeper of Magical Things
QOTW:
Boy howdy, this year's list was tricky! I usually try to draw from my TBR as much as I can when planning my list, but this year almost half of my list is coming from outside my TBR. Which isn't all bad -- the point of the challenge is to expand your reading horizons, right?
Weirdly, I'm excited for the "influencer" prompt. Because the book I have slotted for that prompt is one I'm looking forward to -- How Bad Things Can Get, a fictionalized retelling of the Fyre Festival debacle. (Watch the Netflix documentary on that if you can, it's wild...)
Ellie wrote: "Most difficult to find a book: Zodiac sign. I'm a Scorpio who has already read The Scorpio Races, so I guess I'm looking for scorpions."If you haven't read it,
has a character known as El Alacran (the scorpion).
Good morning, everyone! Happy Thursday!This past week was a little more exciting than I would have preferred. On Halloween my Jeep took a rock to the windshield while I was on my way home from the grocery store. The rock came off the back of a truck with enough speed (and at just the right angle) to shatter a sizable portion of the windshield on the driver's side. The impact was so loud, it actually sounded like a gunshot. Fortunately, the rock did not make it through the windshield, because if it had, it would've hit me right in the face. I'm fine, but I was really shaky for the rest of the drive home.
I managed to get the windshield replaced on Monday, so at least I don't have to worry about the damage spreading further now that it's gotten so much colder.
The headaches have also returned with a vengeance this week, and have made it difficult to get very much accomplished. I've spent a pretty good portion of the week napping, and the rest of my time reading. I'm really grateful that reading doesn't seem to make the headaches worse, because I've managed to make a lot of progress on my TBR list this week.
The FrightFall readathon officially ended on Halloween. I did manage to finish another horror book this week, but since I did not finish it prior to the end of the readathon, my total number of FrightFall reads remained at 23. I'm really pleased with the amount of spooky reading that I was able to complete last month, but I am a little disappointed that I didn't manage to get to all of the horror books that I'd hoped to read. I don't know at this point if I will save those titles for next year's readathon, or if I will go ahead and read them. We'll just have to wait and see what happens.
I did start my reading for Nonfiction November on Saturday, and I've had a chance to read an interesting mix of books so far. I think this is going to be a really good reading month, especially since I'm going to have the chance to learn a lot of new things.
Here are my current challenge and TBR totals…
Goodreads Challenge: 359/250 (143% — Challenge Complete!)
Mount TBR Challenge: 183/150 (122% — Challenge Complete!)
📚Physical TBR: 136/731
📱Ebook TBR: 36/218
🎧Audiobook TBR: 11/12
TBR Checklist Total: 183/961 (19% complete)
TBR Books DNFed in 2025: 5
This week I got a copy of the new full-cast audiobook of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Full-Cast Edition), by J.K. Rowling.
“New” Books Bought in 2025: 166
“New” Books Read in 2025: 164
“New” Books DNFed in 2025: 1
“New” Books Checklist Total: 99% complete
Here are the books I finished this week…
Finished Reading (Fiction):
~The Shining — This book was actually a re-read for me, but it had been a very long time since I last read it, and I wanted to re-familiarize myself with the original story before reading the sequel (which I now hope to read in December, since I didn't have enough time during FrightFall). I thought this was a very well-written book, and really liked the characters of Danny and Mr. Hallorann. I also thought that King did a great job of creating the atmosphere of the Overlook. That being said, I have somewhat mixed feelings about the book when compared to its movie adaptation. There are quite a few differences between the two, which I know really bothers some of King's fans. But there were several movie-specific moments that I really wish had been part of the original story. Ultimately, I can't decide if I like the book or the movie better. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐⭐⭐
Finished Reading (Nonfiction):
~Yours Cruelly, Elvira: Memoirs of the Mistress of the Dark — I thought this book would be the perfect bridge between FrightFall and Nonfiction November, and it was. I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Cassandra Peterson is an extremely funny person, and her life has been absolutely fascinating. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This week I also had a chance to read several books from the See Through History series. This series was created for children, so the information is very much tailored for a younger audience. They're pretty short books (only 48 pages each), and include a lot of pictures and artwork. Even though I was not the intended audience, I found all of the books I read from this series very interesting. I especially like the see-through scenes. Each one shows the interior of a different building, with a transparency overlay showing the exterior. It's a very cool concept, and one that I've only seen in this particular series of books. Unfortunately, this series is no longer in print, so the books can be somewhat difficult to find outside of sites like Ebay. The books I read from this series include…
~Ancient Egypt — 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~The Aztecs — I actually remember reading this book as a kid, and it was very cool to have a chance to read it again as an adult. 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~The Celts — 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Forts and Castles — 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~See Through History: The Middle Ages (Cased) by Sarah Howarth — 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Finished Reading (Manga, Comic Books, & Graphic Novels):
None
Finished Reading (Poetry and Drama):
None
DNFed:
None
Currently Reading:
~NIV Audio Bible — This audiobook edition of The Bible is read by David Suchet. I currently have around 62 hours remaining. 🎧
~The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1001 Nights, Volume 2 — I have returned to reading this book, and I'm reading an average of 25 pages per day. The stories I'm reading now aren't quite as entertaining as some of the previous ones, so this section of the book is feeling like a bit of a slog to get through. Hopefully that will change soon. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚
~The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning— This book is actually a re-read for me, but since I've been attempting to declutter my house (and hopefully simplify my life in the process), I thought it would be a good idea to give it another read. I did borrow this one from the library (courtesy of Libby), and I'm currently about 10% of the way through it. 📱
~Lady Sapiens: Breaking Stereotypes About Prehistoric Women — I've had a bit of a slow start with this book, but I think it will turn out to be an interesting read. 📚
~Seeking Spirits: The Lost Cases of The Atlantic Paranormal Society — This book has been on my shelves for quite a while, and I'm really excited to finally dive into it. 📚
QOTW:
The new list is definitely full of interesting prompts. Unfortunately, most of them (See what I did there?) just won't work for me, given my plans to try and read another 20-25% of my TBR next year. Even though I won't be participating in the challenge, there were some prompts that really stood out.
Most Unexpected: "a book that features birding" — Apart from being featured in The Residence on Netflix (which is an amazing mystery series), I don't think I've ever seen this in fiction, whether it's a book, television show, or film.
Most Appealing: "a book you meant to read in 2025" and "a book you were hoping would fit into a prompt but doesn't" — These two prompts could be filled by almost every book on my TBR list.
Most Annoying: "a book about teen angst" — I wasn't interested in reading about teen angst when I was a teen. I'm certainly not interested in doing so now.
Finished:Beware the Nameless (3/5)
Churo the Hutt earned a lot of goodwill from me. Otherwise, the lessons and adventure here are decent but predictable.
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (4/5, 2026 prompt a book less than 260 pages)
Technically, the Kindle version has exactly 260 pages, but some of those are listings of other Trek titles available, so I say it counts. I love the movie, and this novelization retains the propulsive pace while still providing expansions and explanations that are original to the book (or possibly script leftovers).
The Joiner King (2/5, reread)
It's been almost 20 years since this came out, so I decided to give this one another try, knowing the basic shape of where the Legends continuity went. I stopped at about page 345 with about 100 pages to go and just read the Wookieepedia summary. I was not having a good time with this, and even the Jacen/Tenel Ka scenes were better in my memory than they were on this reading.
Dave Barry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need (DNF, 2 stars for what I read)
The comedy was not making me smile more than once or twice a chapter, so back to the library it goes.
Currently reading:
The Red Pyramid
This is similar enough to Percy Jackson to appeal to that fanbase while still doing some different things like the dual protagonists. It also can fit quite a few prompts for 2026 here and in the 52 Book Club.
Into the Light
The Secret Adversary
Question of the Week:
I answered last week, but I will say that there are still some prompts that I am struggling to find anything decent for (Pilates and infertility among them). The recommendation of Vizzini's Teen Angst? Naaah... may be palatable enough for that prompt.
For a book outside my comfort zone, I am interpreting that as something that I probably would not have found if left to my own devices. I asked my local librarians for general recommendations, and one of them brought up Assata: An Autobiography. Looking at it, I think I will get something out of it, and it would never have occurred to me to search for this book if not for this challenge.
LeahS wrote: "If you haven't read it, The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo has a character known as El Alacran (the scorpion)..."Alas I have read it already, but I'll add it to the Scorpio listopia as it's a good shout.
Hi all! It's been cold and windy and rainy around here lately. The other night we had a pretty serious thunderstorm. No damage or anything, but when I woke up, my yard was coated in what I thought was snow, only to go outside and find it covered in pea-sized hail! Halloween was also miserable, temps in the 40s, crazy wind and a little bit of rain. Would have made a perfect set up for a scary movie or something, but less thrilling if you were trying to be out trick-or-treating. Otherwise, I've been feeling drained this week. We had a busy weekend, and then I worked a half day on Monday and haven't quite recovered. I see my doctor tomorrow, I'm hoping I can look outwardly like the slug I feel like inwardly...
Haven't had a ton of energy for reading. Read a chapter here or there in Jailbird, The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina, Promise Boys and The Storm We Made.
QOTW: The one I was most impressed with/surprised by was father as main caregiver. I really appreciate it as a prompt, as I was raised by my dad. Pilates was the most dumb, but I do have a couple of options for it. I think Zodiac will be the most difficult (Sagittarius here, if anyone has ideas). Hidden past is the one I'm looking forward to the most.
It's still crazy busy here. I used to do nanowrimo in this space but since that's gone...writing friends of mine have decided to do it up like we still had the challenge (but maybe kinder on the word count since Nov is always so busy)I read Lackadaisy vol. 2 vol 1 & 2 by Tracy J. Butler for PS 28. A book that features an unlikely friendship. Plenty of them in this graphic novel/webtoon (soon to be animated series, yay) It's anthropomorphic cats in prohibition era St Louis. I very much enjoy it (does obviously have typical violence one would expect from boot legging)
Also read Spell-Bound by Mike Ghere for PS
37. Two books with the same title (1) Started out as a decent rural fantasy/magic thing but rather dissolved into male sexual fantasy that had me rolling my eyes
OQTW
I think I'll borrow your breakdown, Nandine as I like it
Most unexpected: A book that makes you want to travel to Italy. I'm looking forward to it too but I'm not sure I have a book on my shelf for this (I just finished one but it wasn't all that good)
Most unappealing: ALL the relationship ones. I think both post partum and a character who navigates infertility, not to mention sexless marriage are ill thought out. That can be terribly triggering for people and seems insensitive to have them as prompts.
Most appealing: A book you were hoping would fit into a prompt but doesn't and A book you meant to read in 2025 because they can be anything and are a nice palate cleanse from all the bizarre hyperspecific prompts this time out
Most difficult to find a book: Pilates. Really? Just Really? Why?
Most confusing: A book in a different format than your usual: physical, audio, eBook Why? A huge fuss was put out the last time they did this sort of prompt because it's so ableist
Most exciting? A book about women astronauts, nice to see something to offset the Matilda Effect
I have had so much fun the last few days! One of my favorite parts of the challenge is the "scavenger hunt" aspect, where I pore through listopias and swap suggestions with y'all. I love the dopamine hit when I find the perfect book for a prompt that looked impossible.Then one of you sadists mentioned the 52 Book Club Challenge, and I saw how I could overlap a lot of the books with ones for the Popsugar, and I'm spreadsheeting (is that a word?) all over the place, and I haven't even seen the prompts for the Booklist Queen yet.
I made the rounds of Little Free Libraries yesterday, and I know only y'all will understand the thrill when I saw the EXACT book I wanted.
Kitten update: they are now a month old and Mama Cat has moved them out of the bathtub. We had a little battle of wills over where they would go, and compromised on the den, with an improvised barrier so she can get in & out but they can't. They are busily exploring the room, getting into absolutely everything.
I'm at 103 books, 49/50 for the Popsugar, 51/52 for the Booklist Queen.
Finished:
No Straight Road Takes You There: Essays for Uneven Terrain by Rebecca Solnit. It hits a lot of her favorite themes: the future is uncertain, both despair and unwarranted optimism impede action, and short-term failure can plant the seeds of long-term success. A lot about climate change, feminism, and of course the 2024 election.
An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good was a last-minute substitution for the book I'd planned for the "linked short stories" prompt. Ironically, it was also about a serial killer, but this one was a dark comedy about an octogenarian who kills people who annoy her. I think someone suggested it for "granny hobby" this year.
Currently reading:
Space Oddity, Catherynne Valente's sequel to Space Opera, about an intergalactic Eurovision-type music contest with the fate of the world at stake. This is for my final Popsugar prompt, "book where music is central to the plot." It's hilarious, but requires focused attention because every freaking sentence is a journey with a weird twist.
DNF:
Jimtown Road. I knew nothing about it except that it was a novel-in-short-stories, something I've actually tried to write. The first story was so violent and horrifying that I could not continue.
Next on deck:
Midnight’s Children, for my book club.
QOTW: I always enjoy the paired prompts, and totally love this one. Marge Piercy's poetry has included poems about her husband Ira Wood. He has a memoir, so now I get to see their relationship from his point of view.
As always, there were some groaner categories: pilates, marathon, and WTF is a "shadow daddy"? But thanks to you awesome folks, I 've solved some of the thornier ones- had no idea that Alison Bechdel of Dykes to Watch Out For fame had written The Secret to Superhuman Strength, a graphic novel that includes pilates!
Ellie wrote: "It was Bonfire Night yesterday aka Dog Panic Attack Night. She'd just calmed down and we were getting ready for bed when some inconsiderate sod started setting them off again. I'm not against peopl..."type c character is a parenting thing? I only know it as a stock kind of character, like a side kick I'd like to see where the parenting thing came from too. I think I'll go with the sidekick type of story
Ellie wrote: "It was Bonfire Night yesterday aka Dog Panic Attack Night. She'd just calmed down and we were getting ready for bed when some inconsiderate sod started setting them off again. I'm not against peopl..."Ugh, I HATE that!
I'm back in NYC from my time in Santa Fe. I flew back on Election Day which meant I arrived back home just in time to hear the results of the mayoral election, which were no surprise, but did not have to see, hear or read any predictions etc. The BEST! Now we will see how it all pans out. The only thing I will say is that my concern is the mayor of one of the largest and most powerful cities in the world, with a budget larger than most countries, is now being run by a totally inexperienced in every way individual.
My time in Santa Fe was quite well spent - with significant progress made on clearing out the condo and other items needed to settle the estate that has me travelling out there regularly.
ATY - finished
PS - only 1 left!
Finished:
Towards Zero by Agatha Christie - prompt neurodivergent author - I only learned a day or two ago that Christie was dyslexic! I could have used another of her mysteries read earlier in the year, but as I just finished this and had no other prompt for it, I slotted it in.
Currently Reading:
Poison Oracle
QOTW: I have not had time yet to review the new list thoroughly.
Happy Thursday! It’s been rainy for days. Damp, gray, dull. I really need to see some sunshine.Reading Challenges:
🏆 52 Book Club: 52/52 (Connections Challenge: 17/21/November Mini-Challenge: 0/4)
ATY: 50/52 (ATY Anniversary Challenge: 8/10, ATY Fall Challenge: 36/36)
The Book Girls’ Guide: 62/74
Booklist Queen: 51/52
🏆Popsugar: 50/50
Goodreads Fall Challenge (Bookmarks): 10/12
My Ever-Growing TBR: 133/324 – 41.0% (My goal was 33.3%.)
Recently Completed:
🐿️ You're Never Weird on the Internet (Goodreads “Memorable Memoirs” Bookmark) ★★★★
🐿️ The Secret Garden: A Graphic Novel ★★★
🐿️ White Horse: BOTM Selection. (ATY Fall #8 – author’s initials in SWEATER/Booklist Queen #26 – from the bottom of my TBR) ★★★★
🐿️ My Contrary Mary, Mary #1 (52 Books #25 – breaks the fourth wall) ★★★★
🐿️ Deep Cuts: BOTM Selection. (ATY #37 – featuring adult friendships) ★★★★
🐿️ Hold Still: A Memoir with Photographs ★★★
🐿️ Five Broken Blades, The Broken Blades #1 (ATY #13 – a group that’s not a family) ★★★★
🐿️ The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King's The Stand (52 Books #28 – a crossover/shared universe novel) ★★★★
🐿️ Wandering Stars (ATY Fall #15 – author’s initials in BONFIRE NIGHT/Goodreads “Native Voices” Bookmark) ★★★
🐿️ Autoboyography (ATY Connections #17 – inspired by previous author’s bio) ★★★★
🐿️ Don’t Forget to Write (BGG ICYMI Backlist #11 – published in 2023/Booklist Queen #39 – set in the 1960s) ★★★★
🐿️ Thornhedge (Goodreads “Bite-Size Books” Bookmark) ★★★★
QOTW: I find many of the prompts confusing. They keep using the word “about”… about a granny hobby, about teen angst, about college, about Afrofuturism. I know I’m making this too difficult, that I’m being pedantic, but my brain interprets all of these as nonfiction prompts about the topic, not as novels.
I REALLY WISH THEY’D PUBLISH A CHALLENGE GUIDE!!!
Most unexpected: A book about a mob.
Most unappealing: Zodiac sign… Looking for books that mention Virgo that aren't fantasy.
Most appealing: Women astronauts.
Most difficult to find a book: Pilates.
Most confusing: Type C.
Most exciting: Two books by real-life partners/spouses.
My issue is that I now have too many challenges I want to participate in and I wasn't planning to have access to the PS 2026 list so soon! I've still got one more prompt to fulfill from the Vancouver Public Library challenge, recently started Storygraph's Anti-Capitalist inspiration, like the 52 book club list that Brandon mentioned, and they have a fun linear connection one as well. Guess I have my work cut out for me!Purchased TBR: 39/71
Library TBR: 28/38
VPL: 23/24
ACI: 6/30
52 BC: 2/52
CC: 1/52
Finished: Identity in Democracy
The Decline and Rise of Democracy: A Global History from Antiquity to Today
Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual for Keeping a Democracy (re-read for book club) mentions dog in bio for 52 book club chalenge
QotW: Most convenient: book about a horse because I'm currently reading a book that fulfills that prompt anyway.
Most stretchy: I love someone's idea of using "diaries" or "libraries" for mention of zodiac sign since I am an Aries
Most repetitive: one about losing weight, marathon one,
Most flexibile: hoping would fit a prompt but didn't
I have to agree with Ron that these are leaning too much toward fiction for my taste!
Jennifer W wrote: "Hi all! It's been cold and windy and rainy around here lately. The other night we had a pretty serious thunderstorm. No damage or anything, but when I woke up, my yard was coated in what I thought ..."I haven't found anything for Sagittarius either 🙁. Hopefully someone can hep us
I didn't finish any books this week because (A) I've been sick for a month and slowed down a lot because of it and (B) what little spare time i have has been spent trying to find prompts for next year's books for PS. ATY and 52, preferably books that overlap.Currently (STILL) reading:
March (will finish today)
The Portrait of a Lady-- I like it, but boy the paragraph lengths make it challenging...
QOTW:
Most unexpected: Birding
Most unappealing: shadow daddy, debt, women astronauts, not the usual former (I guess I'll go with the lesser used of my two formats, ebook, because I'm not doing audio. There is a reason i don't LISTEN to books)
Most appealing: two books by spouses, dad is caregiver (my cousin was raised by her dad, I like the recognition of this)
Most difficult to find a book: Pilates, zodiac, travel ghost (wtf is that even?)
Most confusing: travel ghost
Most exciting? book club, spouses, epistolary
Denise wrote: "Jennifer W wrote: "Hi all! It's been cold and windy and rainy around here lately. The other night we had a pretty serious thunderstorm. No damage or anything, but when I woke up, my yard was coated..."Someone mentioned 2 books in the help thread that mention the constellation in them. One of which was a free kindle book a while ago that I have and never read!
Otherwise, I'm totally willing to find a book that has an archer in it and call it good!
Mod
This has been on my TBR forever now (well, ever since it published). Do you recommend it?
Nadine in NY wrote: "Laura Z wrote: "... Hold Still: A Memoir with Photographs ★★★ ..."This has been on my TBR forever now (well, ever since it published). Do you recommend it?"
It's not badly written, but I didn't really like it. Some parts were really interesting - like her work with decomposing bodies - but mostly it felt pretentious. I didn't come away liking her or appreciating her work.
Nothing finished since the last check-in, so no movement on my challenge totals. I started an audiobook, so my in-progress list continues to grow. I'm still at 17/40 and 2/10 for this challenge, and 71/85 for my overall Goodreads Reading Challenge. Finished:
* nada
Currently Reading:
* The Penguin Book of Murder Mysteries edited by Michael Sims;
* All Fours by Miranda July;
* Joyride: A Memoir by Susan Orlean;
* The Body in the Garden by Katharine Schellman; and,
* More Than a Woman written and narrated by Caitlin Moran.
QotW:
On the 2026 list, what category jumped out at you as The Most? (Interpret how you will: most surprising or most exciting or most fun or just your favorite?)
Here's what I posted over the weekend on the other thread: Since I remembered to 1)look at the list and 2)update my post, the prompt that stood out The Most to me is "A book you were hoping would fit into a prompt but doesn't." Because I feel like that happens every year for every reading challenge I try, so it's fun to see a prompt that speaks to it.
And here are some of my more specific The Most thoughts for today...
* Most Excited About: a book with a mention of your Zodiac sign, a book about new beginnings, and a book told entirely through letters.
* Most Unlikely to Complete Unless a Book I Own (or is a Book Club Pick) Happens to Fit This Prompt: the postpartum, infertility, sexless marriage, dad as primary caregiver, and type-C character prompts - I wouldn't mind if just one or two of these were a prompt but this seemed like an awful lot of similar baby/kid/parenting/married couple options. Who knows? Maybe I'll stumble across something good for these next year and they'll be surprise hits.
* Most Likely to Own a Book that I Can Use for This Prompt: a book featuring a character with a hidden past, a book that makes you want to travel to Italy, a book I meant to read in 2025, and a book you were hoping would fit into a prompt but doesn't.
Happy Thursday! I've also been happily working on my 2026 list!Finished 44/50
Elantris for "book featuring a married couple who don't live together". I actually really liked this. It's not your typical Sanderson, but it's good!
Currently Reading
The Spiritual Life and How to be Attuned to it for "book about something on your bucket list". This has been so good. Literally life changing.
The Year of Yes for "book starting with Y". I'm....not sure how I feel about this one yet!
QotW
The prompt about a character who does pilates/lagree is the most frustrating. That's so dang specific!!
Happy Thursday!I had a week off from work this week, which is good because I think I would have been distracted by the 2026 list and other stuff this week.
Finished:
The Keeper of Magical Things by Julie Leong - 4.5 stars - not for a prompt. I loved this so much. This was cozy and hopeful, with fun characters and a sweet romantic relationship.
Slayers of Old by Jim C. Hines - 4 stars - not for a prompt. Three former Chosen Ones come out of retirement to save the world one more time. A lot of fun, with good humor, starring older protagonists including a grandma.
Comics & manga:
Pink Candy Kiss, Vol. 3
Magilumiere Magical Girls Inc., Vol. 9
Oshi No Ko , Vol. 11
How Do We Relationship?, Vol. 13
The King's Beast, Vol. 16
A Star Brighter than the Sun, Vol. 2
A Star Brighter than the Sun, Vol. 3
I am currently at 46/50 for Popsugar (38/40 and 8/10).
Currently reading:
The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia - not for a prompt.
Upcoming/Planned:
Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine - for two books with the same title.
Emma by Jane Austen - for a book by the oldest author in your TBR pile.
Boneshaker by Cherie Priest - for a book you have always avoided reading (aka the book that's been on my TBR the longest).
The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley - for a book that reminds you of your childhood.
QOTW:
Most Unexpected: Birding, I agree with others that it just seems so... unrelated to anything else this year.
Most Unappealing: Shadow Daddy.... ugh, my least enjoyed romantic trope. Plus all the parenting related ones. I'm not a parent, I don't mind it but I don't especially enjoy reading about it.
Most Appealing: A book you were hoping would fit into a prompt but doesn't and A book you meant to read in 2025 are basically free spaces to add anything you like, and will help me weave in unexpected library holds (one of the reasons I'm taking so long to finish this year's challenge)
Most difficult to find a book: Pilates, I think I'll just have to see if I come across it in a book.
Most confusing: Type C - I'm just going to go with the personality interpretation, because I know nothing about the whole parenting thing that's confusing everyone.
Count me among those who are doing Nanowrimo even though it's technically not a thing any more, though it has been slow going, since the Hazbin Hotel brainrot is still strong (i.e. I spent more time making posts than working on my novel). But this weekend is One Hundred Hours of Writing, and I always get a good chunk of words in during that. (Also, the character I'm most interested in wasn't in this week's episodes, so hopefully the brainrot won't be as strong.)Finished:
Dear Demon King - I got an eArc from Tokyopop, and while there were some bits that weren't really my thing, the overall story was really sweet, and I loved the art!
Hit Me with Your Best Charm - The synopsis completely undersold this book, as it gets totally creepy in the last third. But none of the characters were particularly compelling, and there was so much repetition of information. The ending was super rushed, too.
Maelstrom: A Prince of Evil - A fun read, and I really liked the character designs.
DNF: Explainers: The Complete Village Voice Strips, 1956-1966
Currently reading:
Lost Souls Meet Under a Full Moon
Awakened
Cursed Bunny
Raising Hare: A Memoir
QOTW: I'm not particularly impressed with this year's prompts, but the one that made me maddest is "a book about a granny hobby." As someone who does so-called granny hobbies (knit and crochet), I take umbrage with that description.
Happy Thursday!I finished a book. It should have been 2, but I just couldn't finish my series book. At least I have a 3 day weekend, plus next Tuesday off. I'm hoping for more reading opportunities. Last weekend was busy; this one isn't.
Finished:
Find You In The Dark
Popsugar prompt: can't find one
ATY prompt: A book that involves digging up the past
Series - 8/10
Reading Across Canada - 9/10
Nobel laureates - 4/5
PS - 36/40
Regular ATY - 40/40 - Completed!
Anniversary ATY - 8/10
Summer Challenge - 5100/5000 - Completed!
Currently reading:
Interior Castle - 45%
Kingdom of the Wicked - 95%
The Pit and the Pendulum -50% done
The Jane Austen Book Club -65% done
The Blue Hour-10% done
Buddy Reads:
Library of Souls - 20%
QOTW: As per usual, some are so narrow that there are sometimes only 8 books on our listopias.
I think I'm only going to sign up for 30 prompts next year. I stretched myself to 40 this year. My main goal next year is to only read off my TBR. There are about 9 prompts that I don't think I have a book for it.
The oddest to me: Pilates, birding, women astronauts. (Someone wanted an astronaut prompt in ATY and everyone got mad that it was too narrow.) Technically "women" means that there should be at least two female astronauts, which means that even the book I put on the listopia is wrong since it has one.
There are a few related prompts like postpartum and infertility, or popstar and inspired by a song, band, album, or even Italy and the mob. Did they think this was fun?
I feel like the married couple will be hard to get as there are no couple for which I want to read both of their books. Or authors where their books are hard to get. Neither my library nor Libby has Tabitha King. It's not that I don't believe she should have a career outside of being Stephen's wife - it's libraries who don't carry her.
I still haven't found time (work is pressing) to review the list, but in catching up on all your posts, there are 2 mentioned that I have to think about:Zodiac sign - My first thought was to just read a book with a MC who is an astrologer - there are cozy mystery series and some romances - where my sign is likely to be mentioned at some point. I'm a Leo -- so my thoughts then shifted to: any book with a lion in it or on the cover works. Or a character or author with the first named Leo. What's also surfaced is to look at the characteristics of Leo -- pride for example - then read a book where those characteristics are treated. Or go to the constellations as the zodiac signs are linked to constellations - and use that imagery to help. I think I very broad interpretation can be used. Gemini= twins, taurus = bull.
The other one being discussed - outside my comfort zone. I struggled with it this year because there really is very little, basically nothing, I won't read - though not every book of course. I am a very eclectic reader. There's something in every genre that I will read. What I might do is read another book by an author or in a series that I gave only 1 or 2 stars to and declared I'd never read another -- usually it's because they are so poorly written.
Jen and Ron:Sagitarius is an archer. Did you both read all the Hunger Games books?
A lot of books set in the middle ages (or fantasy that feels medieval) has people with bows and arrows. Lord of the Rings, the Hobbit, Narnia, etc. or Robin Hood, or Cupid or Artemis (from mythology).
The upside to the 2026 list being released is the excitement. The downside is not wanting to read any book in case it fits a prompt, and I read it too soon. For now, I'm just listening to audiobooks at the gym.Finished
Something in the Walls. I liked this one a lot and put the author's next book on my TBR. I liked the suspense about whether this was supernatural horror or psychological horror.
Reading
The Midnight Feast
Crime and Punishment
QOTW
I’m really happy with the prompts overall. There are a few I’m not crazy about, but that happens every year.
Most surprising -- I never would have guessed we'd have a prompt about Michigan.
Most excited -- I’m really excited for the granny hobby prompt. I’ve loved granny hobbies since my early twenties. I didn’t think we would be recognized by Popsugar with a prompt. And I’m always happy about an astrology prompt. I think I’ve only come across a mention of Cancer the astrological sign in one book before. It’ll be fun to hunt for one.
Mod
It's an upside, because now you know and you can take action!! Last year in December I found myself reading a few books that fit 2025 categories, and I paused my reading and returned them to the library, and borrowed them again in 2025. I'll do that again if I stumble upon a book in the next two months that would work in 2026.
Happy Thursday! Looking forward to the weekend, seeing some friends and have the chance to see a show or twoI think I'm down to 8 prompts for this year's popsugar list, but I'm focusing on my netgalley downloads for a week or so, cause I've let it get away from me for a bit...
Finished:
Revenge- I really liked this collection of unsettling interconnected short stories
-left hand character
Palaver- I loved this new book from Bryan Washington. Deals with guilt and loss, found family, and building new connections. Did it make me cry? Yes, yes it did.
-no prompt, netgalley book
My Life as an Internet Novel, Volume 2- a really fun edition of this series
-no prompt, netgalley book
Currently reading:
A Different Kind of Power- listening to thismemoir from the former New Zealand PM. I'm only a few chapters in but it's good so far
The Amberglow Candy Store- this is a very sweet healing fiction about a magical candy shop
QotW:
For the most part I'm liking the new prompts!
Most unexpected, but should be fun:
Two books written by real partners/spouses- will read Rushdie's latest and then his wife's memoir about the time following his near death expereince after being attacked
Birding- a lot of interesting choices
Michigan- my friend is reading a romcom series set here, so now I have double motivation to read it too
Most annoying since I just read the perfect books for them this year:
Bachlorette Trip- The Bachelorette Party
Astrology- Best Wishes From the Full Moon Coffee Shop
Most dreaded until someone listed the perfect book:
Pilates- will be reading The Thursday Murder Club
Happy Thursday everyone! I read 3 books this week and completed another reading challenge (the Barnes & Nobel one)! For November, I'll be prioritizing books by Indigenous authors. I'm challenging myself to fulfill these last remaining prompts with these books whenever I can.2025 Reading Challenges
Booklist Queen- 50/52
Buzzword- 10/12; Cover- 11/12
GR Bookmarks- 7/12
Finished
Not in My Book- this was a quick read and I liked it for the most part until the two leads had sex because the dirty talk was cringy and out of character and it took me out of the story, lol. ☆☆☆
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter- I've seen this book being praised everywhere and I thought this month would be a perfect time to finally read it. This was superb! Horror with substance! I only wish I had read it in Print because it was a little difficult to follow all the Native American talk throughout the audiobook. I will say that Etsy's recordings sound great through the audiobook, and it really adds to the creepy factor! I'll have to pick up the Print version to get clarification on that ending though, lol. ☆☆☆☆
B&N #42- Vampire
52BC November Mini #1- Related to the word "perspicacious"
GR Bookmark- Native Voices
The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World- Was browsing through the skip-the-line loans available on Libby and saw this and figured it was a perfect read for fulfilling a lot of my remaining reading challenge prompts. I enjoyed hearing how the author uses the serviceberry to model a "gift" economic system, but as she points out, I don't see it working out in the real world as there are selfish people out there. ☆☆☆
Buzzword Cover #11- FOOD and/or DRINK
52BC November Mini #2- In the 500s of the Dewey Decimal System
GR Bookmark- Bite-sized books
Currently Reading
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Betty
QOTW
The most challenging is definitely the Pilates prompt.
The most exciting for me are the ones that play against type (Ex. caregiver dad, platonic M/F friendship) and also the spousal authors prompt
The most unexpected is Shadow Daddy.
I think this time around I won't plan in advance. I already read about 150+ books a year, so I'm sure I can cross off most of these prompts as a read them. I might be less lucky with the hyper specific prompts, but I'm hoping others will share books that fit these prompts as they read them. I feel like Pilates has a better chance of showing up in Contemporary novels about suburban women? Or we'll have to do a search in every ebook we read in 2026 for the word "Pilates", lol.
Nadine in NY wrote: "Heather wrote: "The upside to the 2026 list being released is the excitement. The downside is not wanting to read any book in case it fits a prompt, and I read it too soon. For now, I'm just listen..."I cannot imagine the self control it must take to not start right away! :)
Dubhease wrote: "Summer Challenge - 5100/5000 - Completed!.."I hope that's number of pages and not books!
@Doni the aty challenge had various prompts with assigned points so you needed to read books to achieve prompts adding up to 5000 points to enter the draw for a prize.
Hello and happy Thursday! I’m loving the fall weather but this time change is always brutal on me. One of my coworkers just posted a meme that said “one single extra hour of sleep but the sun sets an hour earlier every day for months feels like a trade you'd make with Rumpelstiltskin” and I couldn’t agree more. I’m so tired and genuinely distressed by how dark it gets so early lol. Finished:
Night Film not for a prompt, I just always reread this around Halloween. Gun to my head, I have to pick a favorite book, I’d probably panic and say Night Film. I think this book is such a wild journey and at this point it’s a major comfort read for me.
The Silent Stranger: A Kaya Mystery also not for a prompt but I’m still reading my way through American girl books. I finished Kaya’s main series and this was one of the mystery books they came out with later. These had a little more substance to them and were obviously written for a slightly older audience.
Kaya's Paper Dolls: Kaya and Her Friends With Outfits to Cut Out and Scenes to Play With not really a book book but it was peppered with facts about the accessories and clothing, plus blurbs about the characters. Did I impulse purchase a lot of American girl paper dolls books off a used book store site? Yes, yes I did.
Lights! Camera! Felicity! the Making of the Felicity Movie another AG read.
The Ex Hex for a read harder prompt. Cute little witchy romance. Tbh this one didn’t get my full attention but the plot was straightforward enough that it didn’t require it. I don’t think I enjoyed this one enough to read any further but I’d seen this one mentioned around enough that I was glad to get around to.
Shuna's Journey another read harder prompt. This is by Hayao Miyazaki, of Studio Ghibli fame. This was a comic (manga?) he made in the 80s but it was recently published in English. I wish he did more projects like this, but I’m also glad he didn’t because I’d spend way too much money buying them all. This is a pretty short story, filled with beautiful images, and I felt he drew a lot of imagery for Princess Mononoke from this story.
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls for a non traditional education. I’d been eager to get to this since the summer, and was very sad I missed an event Grady Hendrix hosted at my local library while I was on vacation. I think I’ve read all his books, and I usually 10/10 love them but this one just didn’t hit the spot for me. I liked it fine, can’t really complain about anything other than I just wasn’t super sucked into the story. He usually makes me feel very real anxiety and a lot of other emotions but I think the strongest thing I felt while reading this was “wow these birth scenes are all incredibly dramatic” accompanied by mild annoyance. But otherwise, this was fine.
Currently Reading:
The Roar of the Falls: My Journey With Kaya
The Complete Fiction of H.P. Lovecraft
Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Great Adventure Catholic Bible
Recently Watched:
K-pop demon hunters with my son lol
Challenges:
Popsugar - 29/40; 3/4; 2/3; 3/3
Read Harder - 19/24
Classics - 8/12
European Tour - 8/10
12 Friends - 7/12
Yearly Goal - 134/180
Life update: I am sooo busy with work and starting to clear out the house for our projected move, and consequently I am also soooo tired. I kept falling back asleep during my morning spiritual reading today.Reading update: I've been having a lot of fun planning my challenge reading for next year. I said I wouldn't sign up for any new challenges until my current ones were done, but I was disappointed not to see flowers on the cover as a prompt, so I gave in and signed up for Flowers For Your Shelves, which is a Storygraph challenge where each prompt is a specific flower and you read a book that has it on the cover, in the title or as a character name.
I also managed to finish four books:
A Gentleman in Moscow - GR Fall bookmarks: Heart-Warmers and Fiction Faves
Hondo - audiobook, not for a prompt. I remember watching the film with my grandparents.
How to Actually Practise Vedanta: A Guide For Dissolving The Illusion of "I" - spiritual reading
The Valmiki Ramayana Vol. 3 - spiritual reading
Stats:
Disability Pride Challenge: 0 this week, 4/5 total
Readers of the Wild Moor: 0 this week, 26/30 total
GR Fall Bookmarks: 1 this week, 3/9 total
Queer Reads Bracket Challenge: 0 this week, 4/6 total
Horror Subgenre Challenge: 0 this week, 9/11 total
The German Challenge: 0 this week, 3/10 total
Spanish Titles ABC: 0 this week, 1/26 total
The Great Big Jewish Literature Challenge: 0 this week, 4/21 total
Politics & Philosophy: 0 this week, 5/15 total
Anti-Capitalist Inspiration: 0 this week, 8/30 total
Reading About Writing: 0 this week, 2/40 total
All books finished this year: 4 this week, 147 total
DNF or paused: 0 this week, 22 total
Challenges completed this year:
PopSugar, Pride Season, Star Trek Series, GR Community Favorites, GR Seasonal, GR Summer
I had really hoped to complete the Disability Pride Challenge this week, but it turned out the book I wanted wasn't available on Kindle here, so I had to order a hard copy and am waiting for it to arrive.
Currently reading:
Orbital - GR Fall Challenge: Bite-size Books
Eerie Basin - Horror Subgenre Challenge: short stories
Dinghai Fusheng Records (The Comic / Manhua) Vol. 2 - next in series, plus I just needed to look at some beautiful art
The Complete Mahabharata - spiritual reading
Journey to the West (Chinese Lore podcast) - Discord book club
QOTW:
Most unexpected: Michigan. As a non-USian, it seemed oddly specific until someone explained the 26th state thing.
Most unappealing: Shadow daddy. It's a trope that can so easily be done badly, in a genre I rarely read. Fortunately, I did have two on my TBR for other reasons that look like they'll qualify, so I should be okay, but ugh.
Most appealing: A sexless marriage. I've been itching to read something about lavender marriages since we watched Bookish, whose central characters are in one.
Most difficult to find a book: Definitely Pilates. I thought I was going to have to read an actual exercise book, but now that Laura Ruth has alerted us to The Secret to Superhuman Strength, it actually looks perfect for me. But it really does feel like a ridiculously narrow prompt. Why are the most difficult ones never in the Advanced category?
Most confusing: Type C. Even after reading both the possible definitions, I have trouble figuring out which characters count. If you mean laidback parenting, say so, and if you mean autistic people, say so. All these "types" are made up anyway, usually to sell someone's lecture tour.
Most exciting: Probably FOMO. I think it's a really clever idea for a prompt, and I'm excited by the choice I found for it, Madame Sosostris and the Festival for the Brokenhearted. It's one of a relatively small number of prompts where my choice won't be coming from my existing TBR, so it has that exciting frisson of discovery, too.
Sasha wrote: " I gave in and signed up for Flowers For Your Shelves, which is a Storygraph challenge where each prompt is a specific flower and you read a book that has it on the cover, in the title or as a character name." Do you have a link to the actual challenge, Sasha? I keep coming up with other people' s book lists when I google. Thanks.
I finished Home Front as my book with a married couple living apart. I for the most part really liked it.I started Broken as my book with a neurodivergent author.
And I also started Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone as my book w/a lefthanded character. Thank goodness for listopia, I would have never remembered that Jamie was left-handed.
QOTW: I don't mean to ahve a bad attitude, but I don't think I'm excited about any of them. I don't understand what some of them even are: type C character, shadow daddy. Some are just kind of annoying, we just had a book under 250 pages this year and now under 260 pages next year. Will we have under 270 pages in '27? Curly haired character is probably just as fun to find as a left handed character. I hate the different format category. the reading challenge should be about content, not how you're taking it in, IMO. I don't even really have a way to do an ebook or audio and I don't have the attention span for audio anyway. I'm thinking maybe trying to see if I can find a children's book in French or Spanish. A foreign language could count as a different format, right? And, I'm not exactly fluent, but I think with a dictionary I can handle a children's book in either of those languages.
So, rant over, and I guess inspiring me to go to Italy (even though I've already been) is the one I'm most excited for. Traveling through literature is one of my favorite activities.
Mod
LOL I love the anticipation of knowing what's coming for me in January, getting my plan all in order, etc. Also, I have so many other books borrowed from the library right now, it's not really that difficult to put off the 2026 challenge for two months, it's almost a relief to give myself a breather and catch up.
Mod
Ugh that is SO TRUE!! the time change messes me up in spring and fall, I am just a mess for weeks afterward.
Shuna's Journey another read harder prompt. This is by Hayao Miyazaki, of Studio Ghibli fame. This was a comic (manga?) he made in the 80s but it was recently published in English. I wish he did more projects like this, but I’m also glad he didn’t because I’d spend way too much money buying them all. This is a pretty short story, filled with beautiful images, and I felt he drew a lot of imagery for Princess Mononoke from this story.
I NEED to read this!!! I bought it when it was first released in English, and it's been sitting in a pile next to my bed, JUDGING ME as I read library books instead of books I own.
Sasha wrote: "All these "types" are made up anyway, usually to sell someone's lecture tour."LOL 100% true.
And credit where it's due: Karen and Jennifer were the heroes who found The Secret to Superhuman Strength, or I'd have been completely stumped on this category.
Doni wrote: "Dubhease wrote: "Summer Challenge - 5100/5000 - Completed!.."I hope that's number of pages and not books!"
It was a point system.
It's been a hell of a work week and I'm so ready for the weekend. I've been reading several things in rotation and making very little progress. QOTW:
I'm in planning prison until I finish the current year's challenge but I absolutely perused the list. My poor husband resigned himself to hearing me read it out loud to him with commentary to the tune of "what even is that?" and "how many books would that even apply to?" Overall it's not a bad list, it's just also a list that I think is geared toward someone who reads very differently than I do. The Most "whyyyy" is the marathon book. Like pilates is obviously going to be hard, but we just had the running club prompt, why are we making it even harder.
Dubhease wrote: "Jen and Ron:Sagitarius is an archer. Did you both read all the Hunger Games books?
A lot of books set in the middle ages (or fantasy that feels medieval) has people with bows and arrows. Lord of..."
But it says MENTION of your sign, not related to
Which has me wondering: could it be that whoever wrote the prompts just isn't very good at writing them? Maybe it IS supposed to be "related to your Zodiac sign" and "contains pilates" and so forth?
Denise wrote: "Which has me wondering: could it be that whoever wrote the prompts just isn't very good at writing them? "I absolutely agree with this. I keep mentally rewriting the prompts. That word "about" keeps tripping me up.
I assume, and allow, for a good deal of latitude in interpreting prompts. To me, "mention" my zodiac sign does mean that the word "Sagittarius" has to actually show up in the text. But if I get stuck, I'm gonna allow myself enough flexibility to go with "archer" instead. The Pilates prompt says it is a character who does Pilates. It doesn't say a main character, and it doesn't say the character has to do Pilates repeatedly throughout the book. That allows for the MC's sister-in-law's second cousin from a second marriage to be the one who says she's off to her Pilates' class, annnnnd we're done!
Whereas, to me, "about" means that the subject has to be a key feature of the book. About a Granny hobby means that the character (Granny or not) has to knit more than just once. About a pop star means that the book has to have the main character trying to meet Brittany Spears, not just mentioning one of her songs while they're on a road trip.
But again, if the hunt gets tough, I'll allow for the musical picks on the road trip to suffice! :)
LeahS wrote: "Sasha wrote: " I gave in and signed up for Flowers For Your Shelves, which is a Storygraph challenge where each prompt is a specific flower and you read a book that has it on the cover, in the titl..."Hm, last time I tried to post a SG link on Goodreads, it wouldn't let me, but let's see: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reading...
ETA: Huh, it worked this time! Go figure...
Nadine in NY wrote: "It's an upside, because now you know and you can take action!! Last year in December I found myself reading a few books that fit 2025 categories, and I paused my reading and returned them to the library, and borrowed them again in 2025. I'll do that again if I stumble upon a book in the next two months that would work in 2026."But what if I love the book!? How would I pause reading it!? LOL
But, seriously, I appreciate the suggestion. I have a bunch of short story collections on my TBR. If I find a story that fits a prompt, I can just wait to read the other stories and finish the book in 2026 with no angst on my part.
While we're looking on the bright side -- any book we don't read this year for fear it fits a 2026 prompt is book that makes us feel FOMO, right?
Kenya wrote: "Mockingbird Court -- a nice conclusion to the Shady Hollow series. I’ll miss these animals and their cozy mysteries."Conclusion as in this is the final book!? That makes me so sad to think about. I love this series so much!
I haven't read it yet. If it's the end, I'll save it for a time when I need a cozy story.
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I've spent the week baking things in my new oven and researching books for all the new prompts.
***** Admin stuff *****
The November group read (which could fill "book about a food truck") is A Psalm for the Wild-Built. You can join the discussion here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
The December group read, which could fill Prompt #25, A book where the main character is an immigrant or refugee, will be: Everything I Never Told You. Let us know if you'd like to lead this discussion.
And just in case you missed it, the 2026 Popsugar list has been released!
This week I finished 2 books:
I Did Something Bad by Pyae Moe Thet War - this romance/mystery set in Myanmar was fine, but not as much fun as I thought it would be. I'll read more by her, though.
Amanda by H. S. Cross - I got this audiobook from NetGalley and it was dreadful. Not my thing AT ALL. I'm so glad to be done!!
Popsugar 100% 50 /50
Must Reads 70% 7 /10
AtY 92% 48 /52
AtY bonus 100% 10 /10
2025 pub 110% 55 /50
NetGalley ratio 95%
Question of the Week
(I'm recycling last week's question because I never bothered to answer it last week)
On the 2026 list, what category jumped out at you as The Most? (Interpret how you will: most surprising or most exciting or most fun or just your favorite?)
Most unexpected: Michigan. But I like it, because even though there's a "26" related reason, it still feels so random. And it was easy enough to find books to read for this one.
Most unappealing: teen angst. (Yes, even up against unappealing categories like Olympics event and marathon and the oddly phrased "postpartum," this one just made me think "UGH" more than any other. THAT SAID I've come up with a solid list of books that will work that I might like.)
Most appealing: less than 260 pages. I LOVE short books!
Most difficult to find a book: Pilates. Are they kidding? SOooooo specific.
Most confusing: outside my comfort zone. What exactly does that mean to me? Is it like a book I've always avoided? We did that already, this year. Is it a type of book I don't usually read? a book that might confuse me? a book that seems gross? a book I'm afraid to read? a book I'm reluctant to read? A book about a subject I've never read about before? I just don't know what to make of this.
Most exciting? I can't decide yet.