20 Books of Summer
- thecontentreader
- May 3
- 2 min read
Recently, I have not participated in any challenges, due to time restraint, mainly because I have been travelling quite a lot. I think I will have some time in the summer so will join this challenge and try to read 20 books from my TBR.

The challenge has been taken on by AnnaBookBel and Emma of Words and Peace. Head of the their websites for more info. Here is the challenge in short.
The #20BooksofSummer2025 challenge runs from Sunday June 1st to Sunday August 31st
The first rule of 20 Books is that there are no real rules, other than signing up for 10, 15 or 20 books and trying to read from your TBR.
Pick your list in advance, or nominate a bookcase to read from, or pick at whim from your TBR.
If you do pick a list, you can change it at any time – swap books in/out.
Don’t get panicked at not reaching your target.
Just enjoy a summer of great reading and make a bit of space on your shelves!
Here is a Bingo sheet for thos who wants to get some help on the way.

I will be bold and go for 20 books. Here is a preliminary list, which might change. Reading in no particular order.
Aurelius, Marcus - Meditations (NF)
Austen, Jane - Lady Susan
Brook, Timothy - Vermeer's Hat (NF)
Brooks, Geraldine - Nine Parts of Desire
Byatt, A. S. - The Children's Book
Craike, W.A. - The Brontë Novels (NF)
Desmond/Moore, Adrian/James - Darwin's Sacred Cause, Race, Slavery and the quest for Human Origins (NF)
Edwards, Amelia - A Thousand Miles Up the Nile (NF)
Fitzgerald, Penelope - Edward Burne-Jones - A Life (NF)
Franzen, Jonathan - Freedom
Gabaldon, Diana - The Scottish Prisoner
Geras, Adèle - Ljus och skugga (Facing the Light)
Johannesson, Jan - Experimentet
Koen, Karleen - Och nu ansikte mot ansikte (Now Face to Face)
Laoutaris, Chris - Shakespeare and the Countess
Lucas Correa, Armando - De som färdas om natten (La viajera nocturna/The Night Travellers)
Merriman, Helena - Tunnel 29 (NF)
Oates, Joyce Carol - Blondie
Roy, Arundhat - The God of Small Things
Talbot Rice, Tamara - Tamara - Memoirs of St Petersburg, Paris, Oxford and Byzantium (NF)
This is a mixture without any order. Eight of them are nonfiction and the rest fiction. I have been trying to choose some books that have been on my TBR for a long time. There are a few very thick books here as well. I am not sure I find that many that will fit with the Bingo titles, but never mind.
I will enjoy the reading, I am sure, and will feel happy when some of these books leave my TBR shelves. Looking forward to seeing what you are reading this summer.
Welcome to summer reading! Great list. I have only read #1, but am intrigued by #20. NB for the Bingo Card: NB: it’s not a 5×5 card, but 4×5, so you have 20 squares, in case you exclusively want to pick your books based on this card.
The horizontal lines have 4 squares, so feel free to complete any 4 square diagonals as well! Here is my list: https://wordsandpeace.com/2025/05/21/20-books-of-summer-2025/
The Children's Book is one of my all-time favourite reads - but it is long!
Brona - This Reading Life
Good luck with your summer challenge. I love a good book bingo!