I'm 50 years old and I can read and kick and stretch!

I turned 50 in November, so I want to read 50 books! Last year I read 42. Let's do this!

Previous threads in case you're interested:
2025 (42 books)
2024 (42 books)
2023 (40 books)
2022 (39 books)
2021 (43 books)
2020 (50 books)
-------------------------
2019 (43 books)
2018 (44 books)
2017 (41 books)
2016 (43 books)
2015 (35 books)
2014 (33 books)
2013 (50 books)
2012 (43 books)
2011 (43 books)
2010 (42 books)
417 books in 10 years

Happy Reading in 2026!

January-March
1. A Girl Is A Body of Water by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi - finished 1/17
2. The Lost Spells by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris - finished 1/31
3. Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan - finished 2/16
4. Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology edited by Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr. - finished 3/22

April-June
5. Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao - finished 4/3
6. When Trees Testify: Science, Wisdom, History, and America’s Black Botanical Legacy
by Beronda L. Montgomery - finished 4/22
7. Hexes Go Well with Tequila by Leanna Ehrsam - finished 5/17
8. The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub - finished 6/3
9. Falling from Horses by Molly Gloss - finished 6/12
10. Brave the Wild River: The Untold Story of Two Women Who Mapped the Botany of the Grand Canyon by Melissa L. Sevigny - finished 6/22

July-September

October-November
50.

Oh, the places I'll go reading books this year!

USA
Arizona: Brave the Wild River by Melissa L. Sevigny
California: Falling from Horses by Molly Gloss
Colorado: Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan
Massachusetts: Hexes Go Well with Tequila by Leanna Ehrsam

Countries
Japan: Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao
Uganda: A Girl Is A Body of Water by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi

Key Word Reading Challenge
Read a book each month with one (or more) of the key words in the title.

JAN- Door, Midnight, Glitter, Highway: Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan

FEB- Blind, Chance, Flower:

MAR- Favorite, Orange, Picture, Broken, Sister:

APR- Party, Light, People, Spell:

MAY- Bright, Creek, Letter, Forever, Eye:

JUN- Box, Apple, Castle, Fool, Cold, Flight:

JUL- Fall, Sun, Thousand, Country, Confession, Society: Falling from Horses by Molly Gloss

AUG- Matter, Spy, Roof, Missed, Zero, Enchant, Water, Point

SEP- Orbit, Hot, Daydream, Endure, Curse, Ice, Decay, Smile

OCT- Prey, Crypt, Hollow, Dreadful, Killer, Hex, Wolf, Lore

NOV- Whistle, Quiet, Bitter, Rising, Strings, Lands, Seven, Song

DEC- Lemon, Welcome, Bake, Crush, Cafe, Taste, Cat, Kind

What's In A Name reading challenge
Choose 6 books that have titles that contain:

Six/6:

Cold weather:

Peace:

Pathways:

Terrain: Brave the Wild River by Melissa L. Sevigny

Flower:

I would usually pick my 5 favorite books from the first quarter of the year, but I only read 4 books this quarter. 1 5 stars, 1 4.5 stars, and 2 4 stars. So instead in order of favorite to least favorite (but still enjoyed):

Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan
A Girl Is A Body of Water by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi (probably would have been 5 stars if I realized there was a cast of characters and their relationship on the LAST page)
The Lost Spells by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris
Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology edited by Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr.