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Book Riot Editorial is made up of passionate readers, writers, and book lovers dedicated to delivering insightful book recommendations, literary analysis, and the latest in book culture. With expertise spanning multiple genres and a deep understanding of the publishing industry, we offer thoughtful commentary, book deals, and news that matters to readers. Whether it’s uncovering hidden gems, analyzing literary trends, or championing diverse voices, Book Riot’s editorial team is here to keep you informed and inspired.
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Welcome to the 12th year of the Read Harder Challenge. Our reading challenge is a tween!
If this is your first time participating, here is what you need to know: every year, Book Riot puts out a list of 24 tasks—that’s two per month—to expand your reading life. It’s an invitation to diversify your TBR and pick up books you wouldn’t have discovered otherwise. As for the nitty-gritty of the rules, feel free to use one book for multiple tasks. And yes, as always, graphic novels and audiobooks count!
This year’s tasks are a mix of fun topics to spice up your reading life, like Task #20: Read a book set in space, as well as timely topics relevant to navigating our world in 2026, like Task #18: Read a nonfiction book about AI or social media. We also have tasks to encourage you to check out buzzy subgenres of the moment, like romantasy and gothic novels. And yes, gothic novels are buzzy right now!
We’ll provide guidance on the Read Harder Challenge throughout the year. Sign up for the Read Harder newsletter to get recommendation lists for each task, plus more Read Harder-relevant content! Free subscribers get two book recommendations for each task, and paid (All Access) subscribers get access to more recommendations as well as community features. Click here to learn more, and get ready to Read Harder with us in the new year.
We know some of you like to plan ahead, so we have a bonus for All Access subscribers this year: scroll down and you’ll find three titles the Book Riot editors recommend for each of these tasks.
Click here for a downloadable and editable PDF of the 2026 Read Harder Challenge tasks. Now, let’s get to the tasks!
Read Harder 2026
- Read a microhistory
- Read a book featured on a “best book covers” list
- Read a YA book by a Latine author
- Read a novel with a main character who uses they/them pronouns
- Read a nonfiction book about resistance
- Read a gothic novel published in the last ten years
- Read a sports book by a woman, trans, or nonbinary writer
- Read a classic from the Zero to Well-Read Podcast
- Read a romantasy book with a queer and/or BIPOC main character
- Read a book recently adapted for film, TV, or musical
- Read a book by a d/Deaf author
- Read/try a recipe from a cookbook about a culture whose food you’ve never eaten
- Read a nonfiction comic
- Read a work of magical realism or fabulism
- Read a book by a librarian
- Read a queer picture book
- Read a book about a cult or cults
- Read a nonfiction book about AI or social media
- Read a book by an intersex author
- Read a book set in space
- Read a genre (SFF, horror, mystery, romance) book in translation
- Read a nonviolent true crime book
- Read a book by an African author
- Pick a challenge from any of the previous years’ challenges to repeat!
Bonus recommendations for All Access members:
1. Read a microhistory
- Airplane Mode: An Irreverent History of Travel by Shahnaz Habib
- Dolls Of Our Lives by Mary Mahoney and Allison Horrocks
- Green Gold: The Avocado’s Remarkable Journey from Humble Superfood to Toast of a Nation by Sarah Allaback and Monique F. Parsons
2. Read a book featured on a “best book covers” list
- Minor Black Figures by Brandon Taylor; cover design by Grace Han (on Casual Optimist’s best covers for October 2025)
- Woodworking by Emily St. James (on Book Riot’s best covers of the first quarter of 2025)
- Portalmania by Debbie Urbanski, Cover design by Math Monahan (on Book Riot’s best covers for 2025 short story collections)
3. Read a YA book by a Latine author
- Burn Baby Burn by Meg Medina
- Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
- Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
4. Read a novel with a main character who uses they/them pronouns
- A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers
- Salt The Water by Candice Iloh
- The Pairing by Casey McQuiston
5. Read a nonfiction book about resistance
- Let the Record Show: A Political History of ACT UP New York, 1987-1993 by Sarah Schulman
- Rest Is Resistance by Tricia Hersey
- A Resistance History of the United States by Tad Stoermer (June 2, 2026)
6. Read a gothic novel published in the last ten years
- Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas
- Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito
- The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
7. Read a sports book by a woman, trans, or nonbinary writer
- Forward: A Memoir by Abby Wambach
- Make It Count: My Fight to Become the First Transgender Olympic Runner by CeCé Telfer
- Women in Sports by Rachel Ignotofsky
8. Read a classic from the Zero to Well-Read Podcast
- Hamlet by William Shakespeare
- Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
- The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
9. Read a romantasy book with a queer and/or BIPOC main character
- Faebound by Saara El-Arifi
- As Many Souls as Stars by Natasha Siegel
- Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma
10. Read a book recently adapted for film, TV, or musical
- Wicked by Gregory Maguire (2025 movie)
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (2025 musical)
- Witch Hat Atelier, Vol. 1 by Kamome Shirahama (2026 anime)
11. Read a book by a d/Deaf author
- True Biz by Sara Nović
- Give Me A Sign by Anna Sortino
- Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma
12. Read/try a recipe from a cookbook about a culture whose food you’ve never eaten
- Pakistan: Recipes and Stories from Home Kitchens, Restaurants, and Roadside Stands by Maryam Jillani
- The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman
- Falastin: A Cookbook by Sami Tamimi and Tara Wigley
13. Read a nonfiction comic
- My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness by Kabi Nagata, translated by Jocelyne Alleni
- Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts by Rebecca Hall and Hugo Martínez
- Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir by Tessa Hulls
14. Read a work of magical realism or fabulism
- Lakelore by Anna-Marie McLemore
- A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams
- The Volcano Daughters by Gina María Balibrera
15. Read a book by a librarian
- That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America by Amanda Jones
- Mostly Dead Things by Kristen Arnett
- Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier
16. Read a queer picture book
- Kapaemahu by Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson, and Daniel Sousa
- Jimmy’s Rhythm & Blues by Michelle Meadows and Jamiel Law
- They, She, He: Easy as ABC by Maya Gonzalez and Matthew SG
17. Read a book about a cult or cults
- Empire of Orgasm: Sex, Power, and the Downfall of a Wellness Cult by Ellen Huet
- The Community by N. Jamiyla Chisholm
- Sex Cult Nun by Faith Jones
18. Read a nonfiction book about AI or social media
- Unmasking AI by Joy Buolamwini
- Code Dependent: Living in the Shadow of AI by Madhumita Murgia
- Searches: Selfhood in the Digital Age by Vauhini Vara
19. Read a book by an intersex author
- Inverse Cowgirl by Alicia Roth Weigel
- Nobody Needs to Know by Pidgeon Pagonis
- Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon
20. Read a book set in space
- Murder by Memory by Olivia Waite
- The Red Scholar‘s Wake by Aliette de Bodard
- In the Quick by Kate Hope Day
21. Read a genre (SFF, horror, mystery, romance) book in translation
- The Man Who Died Seven Times by Yasuhiko Nishizawa, translated by Jesse Kirkwood (mystery)
- Witches by Brenda Lozano, translated by Heather Cleary (horror)
- Frankenstein in Baghdad by Ahmed Saadawi, translated by Jonathan Wright (SFF)
22. Read a nonviolent true crime book
- Never Saw Me Coming: How I Outsmarted the FBI and the Entire Banking System—and Pocketed $40 Million by Tanya Smith
- The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession by Michael Finkel
- Confident Women: Swindlers, Grifters, and Shapeshifters of the Feminine Persuasion by Tori Telfer
23. Read a book by an African author
- Aya: Life in Yop City by Marguerite Abouet, Clement Oubrerie, and Helge Dascher
- Seasons in Hippoland by Wanjikũ Wa Ngũgĩ
- Chronicles from the Land of the Happiest People on Earth by Wole Soyinka
24. Pick a challenge from any of the previous years’ challenges to repeat!
- Too many to recommend!
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We hope you enjoy completing this challenge as much as we do putting it together. Go forth and discover! And get ready to Read Harder.
English (US) · 