20 Books of Summer 2026

The 20 Books of Summer challenge runs from June 1 - August 31, so at this point it is nearly 1/3 over. However, even though I wasn't going to sign up this year I have decided to jump in with a modified approach. AnnaBookBel is once again hosting this lovely event and she says there aren't really rules, so I can't be breaking them. 

This is my plan -- I am making a list of 20 kinds of books I am going to read this summer and will fill in what I read for each type as I go. Every year I make a list of 20 specific books and almost never read any of them -- I am too busy reading 20 books I didn't put on my list. Perhaps this will be more successful. 

1- One book from my Classics Club list -- Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh (August)

2- Two books One book from my Readers' Advisory Reading List -- The Body in the Bellfry by Katherine Hall Page (June)

Two books published within the last 12 months
3- Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better by David Epstein (June)
4- Life: A Love Story by Elizabeth Berg (July)

Five works of non-fiction -- maybe from my Nonfiction November TBR list
5- Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better by David Epstein (June)
6- Good Prose: The Art of Nonfiction by Tracy Kidder & Richard Todd (June)
7- Every Day I Read by Hwang Bo-Reum (June)
8- Ordinary Time: Lessons Learned while Staying Put by Annie B. Jones
9- Artists in Residence: Seventeen Artists and Their Living Spaces, from Giverny to Casa Azul by Melissa Wyse and Kate Lewis

Six Seven books from the series I am trying to make progress on in 2026 
10- Breaking the Mould by Victoria Hamilton (June)
11- State Fair by Earlene Fowler (June)
12- Buried in Books by Kate Carlisle (June)
13- A Lesson in Secrets by Jacqueline Winspear (June)
14- Cast Iron Alibi by Victoria Hamilton (June)
15- Bloodroot by Susan Wittig Albert (June)

16- A Dilly of a Death by Susan Wittig Albert (August)

Four wildcards -- can be anything from my TBR lists --bonus points if it is a book I already own
17- The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict (June)
18- The Lamorna Wink by Martha Grimes (June)
19- Of Mutts and Men by Spencer Quinn (July)
20- Spider Web by Earlene Fowler (July -- completes the series!)

Classics Club Spin

It is time for another Classics Club Spin. The last two e resulted in DNFs for me, but I am trying again! 

On Sunday 8th February 2026 the spin number will be posted and the challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on my Spin List by the 29th March, 2026.

1. Howards End, E. M. Forster, 1910
2. A Tale of a Tub, Jonathan Swift, 1704
3. Song of the Lark, Willa Cather, 1915 
4. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh, 1945 
5. Complete Grimm's Fairy Tales
6. Dune, Frank Herbert, 1965
7. The Razor's Edge, W. Somerset Maugham, 1944
8. Profiles in Courage, John F. Kennedy, 1955
9. The Armies of the Night, Norman Mailer, 1968
10. Russia House, John le Carre, 1989
11. Steamboat Gothic, Francis Parkinson Keyes, 1952
12. True Grit, Charles Portis, 1968
13. The Years, Virginia Woolf, 1937
14. The Black Prince, Iris Murdoch, 1973
15. Delta Wedding, Eudora Welty, 1946
16. Aesop's Fables
17. One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, 1967
18. Come and Get It, Edna Ferber, 1935
19. The Beautiful and the Damned, F. Scott Fitzgerald, 1922
20. Vanity Fair, William Makepeace Thackeray, 1847

Doorstoppers in December

On the Elle Thinks blog I came across a new-to-me reading challenge: Doorstoppers in December hosted by writer and historian Laura Tisdall.  I love the concept of this: one big, chunky book to sink into in this cold month. 

Several months ago I started New York by Edward Rutherford which is an 862 page-long work of historical fiction. I was liking it, but it has languished next to my chair for a while now. I am going to jump back into it and see if I can finish it by the end of the month. 

Spinning the Classics

It is time for another Classics Club Spin. The last one resulted in a DNF for me, but I am going to try again! 

On Sunday 15th June 2025 the spin number will be posted and the challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on my Spin List by the 24th August, 2025.

1. Delta Wedding, Eudora Welty, 1946
2. Aesop's Fables
3. One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, 1967
4. Come and Get It, Edna Ferber, 1935
5. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy, 1867
6. The Beautiful and the Damned, F. Scott Fitzgerald, 1922
7. Vanity Fair, William Makepeace Thackeray, 1847
8. Howards End, E. M. Forster, 1910
9. A Tale of a Tub, Jonathan Swift, 1704
10. Song of the Lark, Willa Cather, 1915 [TCL has Cather at this # too]
11. 3 Lives, Gertrude Stein, 1909
12. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh, 1945 [Wordsworth and Watercolors picked this too]
13. Complete Grimm's Fairy Tales
14. Lonesome Dove, Larry McMurtry, 1985 
15. Dune, Frank Herbert, 1965
16. The Razor's Edge, W. Somerset Maugham, 1944
17. Profiles in Courage, John F. Kennedy, 1955
18. The Armies of the Night, Norman Mailer, 1968
19. Russia House, John le Carre, 1989
20. Steamboat Gothic, Francis Parkinson Keyes, 1952

November Book Report

Stillwater, OK, November 2024

I finished 4 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“A dog will wag and lick your face and just about knock the door down waiting for you to come in at the end of the day. But are they really thrilled? Or are they running the world’s longest con, a scheme developed over thousands of generations for better chow and a warm place to sleep?”
― Tommy Tomlinson, Dogland

I finished 1 book from my Classics Club list, which was on my owed-but-not-read shelf (currently at 135 books). 

 Here are the books I finished in November 2024: 

1. Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome (4-stars)
2. Dogland: Passion, Glory, and Lots of Slobber at the Westminster Dog Show by Tommy Tomlinson  (4-stars)
3. The Year of Less by Kate Flanders (audio, 3-stars)
4. Earthly Remains by Donna Leon (audio, 3-stars)

Not a big month for reading. I have some solid reading time planned in December which I am looking forward to.

October Book Report

Portland, ME, October 2024

I finished 7 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

““I once attempted to flirt with her our freshman year of college, complimenting her sandals before class. She didn't respond, just glared at me with a scowl that would've liquefied helium, for which I repaid her many years later by marrying into her family and sitting next to her every Thanksgiving.”" ― Harrison Scott Key, How to Stay Married

I made no progress on any of my various goals or challenges. 

 Here are the books I finished in October 2024: 

1. Lethal Treasure by Jane Cleland (3-stars)
2. How to Stay Married: The Most Insane Love Story Ever Told by Harrison Scott Key  (4-stars)
3. The Productivity Project by Chris Bailey (4-stars)
4. Murder on the Half Shelf by Lorna Barrett (3-stars)
5. The Five Years Before You Retire by Emily Guy Birkin (3-stars)
6. Georgia by Dawn Tripp (5-stars)
7. Not That Fancy by Reba McEntire (3-stars)

Classics Club Spin

The Classics Club is hosting another spin. A number will be selected on Sunday 10/20/24. I have until December 18th to read the book from my list at that number.

Here is my list:

1. Hard Times, Charles Dickens, 1854
2. Come and Get It, Edna Ferber, 1935
3. Three Men in a Boat, Jerome K. Jerome, 1889
4. Profiles in Courage, John F. Kennedy, 1955
5. Steamboat Gothic, Francis Parkinson Keyes, 1952
6. Russia House, John le Carre, 1989
7. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh, 1945
8. Howards End, E. M. Forster, 1910
9. One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, 1967
10. Riders of the Purple Sage, Zane Grey, 1912
11. Dune, Frank Herbert, 1965
12. The Razor's Edge, W. Somerset Maugham, 1944
13. Lonesome Dove, Larry McMurtry, 1985 
14. True Grit, Charles Portis, 1968
15. 3 Lives, Gertrude Stein, 1909
16. A Tale of a Tub, Jonathan Swift, 1704
17. Aesop's Fables
18. Song of the Lark, Willa Cather, 1915
19. A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens, 1859
20. Delta Wedding, Eudora Welty, 1946

Only 3 months left!

As we approach the end of the year it seems like a good idea to look at how far I have gotten with the 2024 goals I set for my reading life.

• I planned to read 10 books from my Classics Club list and I have read 6 so far. I may get through 4 more titles from this list before the year ends.
• I wanted to read at least 6 books from my Readers' Advisory Reading List and have not read a single one. This doesn't look promising, but it also doesn't seem impossible.
• I read 9 of the 35 books on my #nonficnov tbr list and my goal was to read at least 6 of them before November 2024 so this one is done.
• I wanted to complete the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge at the Victorian level of 5 books and I have read 4 so far, but have only blogged about 2 and writing about the books is part of this challenge so I have work to do here. 
• I committed to the 2024 What's in a Name Challenge which requires 6 books. So far I have read one. 
• The Canadian Reading Challenge ended on July 1, 2024 and I was nowhere near to completing it. I have taken a break from this challenge for the current year. 
• I am not doing very well getting my owned-but-not-read shelf down to fewer than 100 books. It has hovered around the 130 mark most of the year. I need to both read from this shelf and stop adding to it.
• I have read 72 books so far this year so I should make it to my usual GoodReads goal of 100 books.
• Figure out where I left off with my Century of Books project. I have 3 years left in this project: 1901, 1903, and 1909. The goal was to figure out where I was, not to finish so that is a crossed off item.
• Continue posting a Book Report the first week of each month. So far so good on this one. 

I definitely have some reading to do if I am going to complete these challenges. Other than getting my owned-but-not-read shelf to fewer than 100 books--which is not going to happen in 3 months-- I think I can complete these goals. 

September Book Report

Manchester, NH

I finished 5 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“For it was a truth universally acknowledged that a single vicar must be in want of a wife." ― G.M. Malliet, Wicked Autumn

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 0 were from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 135 remaining)  
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 

 Here are the books I finished in September 2024: 

1. Shot with Crimson by Nicola Upson (4-stars)
2. A Palm for Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman  (audiobook, 4-stars)
3. Wicked Autumn by G. M. Malliet (4-stars)
4. Dom Casmurro by Machado de Assis (4-stars)
5. A Fountain Filled with Blood by Julia Spencer-Fleming (4-stars)

Apparently this was a four-star month! I am not doing too well with reading for my various challenges and lists however. I will try to work on that in October.

August Book Report

Hampton, NH, August 2024

I finished 9 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“In her new, albeit fragile, mood, this letter does not unduly distress her. One lesson she has learned is that any opinion expressed by a person who does not understand how to use an apostrophe may be disregarded with impunity.”
― Jean Hanff Korelitz, The White Rose

I made absolutely no progress this month toward any of my various goals and challenges. There are currently 134 books on my owned-but-not-read shelf.

 Here are the books I finished in August 2024: 

1. Murder in Williamstown by Kerry Greenwood (4-stars)
2. The White Rose by Jean Hanff Korelitz  (4-stars)
3. Fatal Family Ties by S. C. Perkins (3-stars)
4. Scents and Sensibility by Spencer Quinn (3-stars)
5. Dolled Up for Murder by Jane K. Cleland (4-stars)
6. Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews (3-stars)
7. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride (audiobook, 3-stars)
8. The Historian's Toolbox by Robert C. Williams (3-stars)
9. Murder with Puffins by Donna Andrews (3-stars)

20 Books of Summer - Final Report

I finished reading my #20BooksOfSummer24 (hosted by Cathy at 746 Books) My final list bears very little resemblance to the list  I started with. 

Here is the final list:

1. All it Takes is a Goal by Jon Acuff  [June]
2. Rosemary Remembered by S.W. Albert  [July]
3. Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews [August]
4. 1000 Words by Jami Attenberg [June]
5. Tide and Punishment by Bree Baker [July]
6. Revenge of the Middle Aged Woman by Elizabeth Buchan [July]
7. The Jasmine Moon Murder by Laura Childs [June]
8. The Life List by Kate Christie [July]
9. The Glamour of Grammar by Roy Peter Clark [July]
10. Dolled Up for Murder by Jane Cleland [August]
11. James by Percival Everett [July]
12. Murder in Williamstown by Kerry Greenwood [August]
13. The White Rose by Jean Hanff Korelitz [August]
14. You Should Have Known by Jean Hanff Korelitz [June]
15. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon [July]
16. Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride [August]
17. Pastrami on Rye by Ted Merwin [June]
18. Dance, Dance, Dance by Haruki Murakami [July]
19. Blood at the Root by Peter Robinson [July]
20. We by Yevgeny Zamyatin [July]

July Book Report

A favorite reading spot
July 2024

I finished 10 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading: 

“The act of mothering is not limited to the bearing of children.”
― Ariel Lawhon, The Frozen River

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 135 still remaining because I added one)  
• 2 counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge (or they will once I write them up)
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 
• All 10 count towards #20booksofsummer24!

 Here are the books I finished in July 2024: 

1. The Glamour of Grammar by Roy Peter Clark (audiobook, 3-stars)
2. Blood at the Root by Peter Robinson (4-stars)
3. Rosemary Remembered by Susan Wittig Albert (4-stars)
4. Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami (4-stars)
5. The Life List by Kate Christie (audiobook, 4-stars)
6. Tide and Punishment by Bree Baker (4-stars)
7. We by Yevgeny Zamyatin (3-stars)
8. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon (5-stars)
9. Revenge of the Middle Aged Woman by Elizabeth Buchan (4-stars)
10. James by Percival Everett (4-stars)

The first of July marked the end of another Canadian Reading Challenge that I did not complete. I decided to take a break from that challenge, at least for a while. I plan to continue to keep an eye out for interesting-looking books by Canadians, but fitting 13 of them into my reading year has been a problem for me in recent years. 

June Book Report

Manchester, NH June 2024

I finished 5 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“There could be no picture making,” the film director Orson Welles flatly declared, “without pastrami.”
― Ted Merwin, Pastrami on Rye

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 0 were from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 135 remaining) 
• 1 was from my #NonFicNov TBR 
• All 5 count towards #20booksofsummer24!

 Here are the books I finished in June 2024: 

1. Jasmine Moon Murder by Laura Childs (3-stars)
2. Pastrami on Rye: An Overstuffed History of the Jewish Deli by Ted Merwin (3-stars)
3. All it Takes is a Goal by Jon Acuff (5-stars)
4. You Should Have Known by Jean Hanff Korelitz (4-stars)
5. 1000 Words by Jami Attenberg (3-stars)

I didn't get much finished this month, but I do have 7 books currently in progress so next month should have a higher finish number. I will be seeing Korelitz speak in October at the NH Book Festival so I have begun a deep dive into her backlist. 

May Book Report

May 2024, Manchester, NH

I finished 6 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“Below me and above me and in the woods stretching thick and endless, their leaves made sugar out of nothing but light.”
― Rebecca Makkai, I Have Some Questions For You

I made almost no progress this month on any goals or challenges. I did read 1 book from my owned-but-not-read shelf  which is at 135 titles. 

 Here are the books I finished in May 2024: 

1. A Cast of Vultures by Judith Flanders (4-stars)
2. Murder Past Due by Miranda James (3-stars)
3. I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai (4-stars)
4. The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James (4-stars)
5. Comeback by Dick Francis (4-stars)
6. Make Time by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky (3-stars)

I didn't realize during the month how little I was reading! I made a list of #20booksofSummer2024, including a few I finished since I made the list. As we come into summer hopefully I will find more time for reading my books!

20 Books of Summer 2024

For the 10th year Cathy at 746 Books is hosting #20BooksOfSummer24 I love this challenge because the rules are so forgiving! Make a list of 20 books, read them between 6/1 and 9/1. Change them if you want to as you go along; read fewer than 20 if you need to; have fun. 

Here is my list, beginning with books already in progress:

Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James [finished in May, not counting]
Comeback by Dick Francis [finished in May, not counting]

1. Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
   
   On my library book shelf but not yet started:
   
   
2. 100 Things We've Lost to the Internet by Pamela Paul [DNF]
   You Should Have Known by Jean Hanff Korelitz [DONE - June]
   
   
3. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
   1000 Words by Jami Attenberg [DONE - June]
   
   Scheduled to come up in my library hold queue this summer:
   
   
4. Misunderstood Vegetables by Becky Selengut [DNF]
   The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon [Done - July]
5. Indiana by George Sand
   Tide and Punishment by Bree Baker [Done-July]
6. Dolled Up for Murder by Jane Cleland
   James by Percival Everett [Done-July]
7. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
   We by Yevgeny Zamyatin [Done-July]
8. The Borrower by Rebecca Makkai
   Rosemary Remembered by S.W. Albert  [Done - July]
9. We by E. I. Zamiatin [Done - July]
10. All it Takes is a Goal by Jon Acuff  [Done - June]
11. Pastrami on Rye by Ted Merwin [Done - June]
12. The Jasmine Moon Murder by Laura Childs [Done- June]
13. Revenge of the Middle Aged Woman by Elizabeth Buchan [Done-July]
    
    Books I own but haven't yet read:
    
    
14. Dance, Dance, Dance by Haruki Murakami [Done-July]
15. The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather
16. Biography: A Very Short Introduction by Hermione Lee
17. Park Avenue Summer by Renee Rosen
18. The End of Summer by Rosamund Pilcher
    The Life List by Kate Christie [Done-July]
    
    Swap-ins for the May finishes:
19. The Glamour of Grammar by Roy Peter Clark [Done-July]
20. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus 
    Blood at the Root by Peter Robinson [Done-July]
    
    

April Book Report

Manchester, NH; April 3, 2024

I finished 7 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“We’re so old now,” I said, “that we can actually see the patterns. It’s a little terrifying.” 
― Michelle Huneven, Search

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 136 remaining;
• none counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 What's in a Name Challenge
• none were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 1 was from my #NonFicNov TBR (oddly, it was a novel)
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 

 Here are the books I finished in April 2024: 

1. Eleanor Roosevelt: The War Years by Blanche Weisen Cook (5-stars)
2. The Little Book of Dog Care by Ace Tilton Ratcliff  (4-stars)
3. The Divorce Colony by April White (4-stars)
4. The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain (5-stars)
5. The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd (3-stars)
6. Search by Michelle Huneven (5-stars)
7. Seven Sisters by Earlene Fowler (4-stars)

Three 5-star books in one month! 

March Book Report

Edmond, OK, March 2023

I finished 12 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

[Doing one thing at a time] "...attempts to reduce the cognitive toll of feeling like everyone needs you at all times. All things being equal, workflows that minimize this never-ending stream of urgent communication are superior to those that instead amplify it. When you're at home at night, or relaxing over the weekend, or on vacation, you shouldn't feel like each moment away from work is a moment in which you're accumulating deeper communication debt. in the age of the hyperactive hive mind, we've become used to this despondent state as a necessary consequence of our high-tech world, but this is nonsense."--Cal Newport, A World Without Email, p. 113

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 2 were from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 136 remaining)
• none counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• 1 counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 What's in a Name Challenge
• none were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• none were from my #NonFicNov TBR -- but 1 was a second book by and author I discovered through that project
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 

 Here are the books I finished in March 2024: 

1. What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast by Laura Vanderkam (audiobook, 3-stars)
2. A World Without Email by Cal Newport (5-stars)
3. Boom Town by Sam Anderson (4-stars)
4. Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear (5-stars)
5. Southern Lady Code: Essays by Helen Ellis (4-stars)
6. The Power of 2: How to Make the Most of Your Partnerships at Work and in Life by Rodd Wagner (3-stars)
7. The Lantern's Dance by Laurie R. King (4-stars)
8. A Beautiful Mess Happy Handmade Home by Elsie Larsen (3-stars)
9. The Quiet American by Graham Greene (4-stars)
10. The Week: A History of the Unnatural Rhythms that Made Us Who We Are by David M. Henkin (audiobook, 3-stars)
11. Slow Productivity by Cal Newport (4-stars)
12. The Tuesday Club Murders by Agatha Christie (5-stars)

I think I need a sabbatical from work because I am way behind on reading my library books. The pile just keeps growing! Reading sabbaticals should totally be a thing.

February Book Report

January 2024, NYC

I finished 7 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“A person was like a city. You couldn't let a few less desirable parts put you off the whole. There may be bits you don't like, a few dodgy side streets and suburbs, but the good stuff makes it worthwhile.”
― Matt Haig, The Midnight Library

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 136 remaining because I added some)
• none counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 What's in a Name Challenge
• none were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 2 were from my #NonFicNov TBR 
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 

 Here are the books I finished in February 2024: 

1. Things to Look Forward To by Sophie Blackall (3-stars)
2. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (4-stars)
3. I Think You're Wrong, But I'm Listening (4-stars)
4. An Overdose of Death by Agatha Christie (3-stars)
5. Be the Unicorn by William Vanderbloemen (3-stars)
6. Nightwood by Djuna Barnes (3-stars)
7. Fabulous Feathers and Fillers by Sue Nickles (4-stars)

I didn't have any good February pictures so I picked one from a trip I took last month to visit my sister. 

I ended up abandoning my Classics Club spin title (Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne) and am currently reading 5 different books. I expect to finish all but one of those (War and Peace, which I am reading slowly, but am liking) in March.