2026 books i'm reading

mom died dec 23rd 2025 

for several weeks prior to that my world was different, slower, harder, colder

i read lots of books once my mom was bed bound and dying

sometimes i'd read to her

sometimes i'd listen to a book on headphones and just hold her hand for hours

my 2025 book list was never completed

my 2026 book list is inaccurate because as i start this in mid february, i'm going to write down the books i remember reading and not logging, though i'm not certain when i read them exactly. here's to having a smoother ride eventually. i'm still sad a lot. i'm surprised by how hard it has been. which seems a dumb thing to be surprised about. of course i'm still sad. 

2026 book list that will start inaccurately: 

1. Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean Auel

2. Valley of the Horses by Jean Auel

3. The Mammoth Hunters by Jean Auel

4. Plains of Passage by Jean Auel ..... My mom started reading Jean Auel in 1980 and I read each book after her. I believe my brother, David, also read each of them after us. So Clan of the Cave Bear, book 1, is what I read aloud to her at the beginning of her ending. And then I switched to audio books. I have all six book on Audible from eons ago, and I have listened to all of them multiple times, even though they decrease in goodness after the first three. The last one is really not so great. The two main characters that I love aren't very lovable in that last one. So, I started reading book 1 to mom in December, and last night I finished listening to Plains of Passage. I'll continue the next two books, I think, as my bed time listening, putting the timer to end of chapter or 15 minutes, depending on how tired I am. I frequently wake up and don't want to get out of bed, so i relisten to the last couple minutes to make sure I didn't sleep through anything important. I've read them so many times, that it usually doesn't matter if I snooze through a bit. 

5. Terra Incognita: Travels in Antarctica by Sara Wheeler. Well. This one I know I read last year while I was in Antarctica ... on an airplane on my way actually. Fun to read it in situ. I know I didn't add it to last year's list. 

6. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros 

7. Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros 

8. Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros ... I like this series and I"m trying to make myself feel better. I think rereading or relistening to favorite books is like comfort food. I might be holding my breath til the next one comes out

9. If Tomorrow Never Comes by Allison Ashley .... a romance with a cancer twist. Easy read. 

10. Theo of Golden: a Novel by Levi Allen. For January tennis book club. I think another book club is reading it too. 

11. Call of the Camino: a Novel by Suzanne Redfearn .... got this on kindle and asked my Camino pals to read it ... and then it turned into a whole road trip to discuss it at the beach and we went to the beach together and barely discussed it. haha. However, I have read loads of Camino books and this is probably my favorite, likely because it is fiction. All those non fiction ones didn't have as good story arcs and character development and such. 

12. The Correspondent: a Novel by Virginia Evans .... lovely. I love an epistolary novel! 

13. Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins. same as above. registering because i've read the other Hunger Games books loads of times and it felt like a reread of this would be comforting. Which is weird, cause it is a pretty horrific book ... but a great add to the series.  

14. Flesh by David Szalay. I read about this one on a list of Booker Award 2025 nominees .... and it sounded interesting .... all the descriptions talked about how surprising it was..... well. I read it. and GOSH it was surprising. Way too much flesh for me. haha. And then it got picked for my Wedn book club for February. Eek. They are not going to like it. I have found myself sticking up for it among my girlfriends. If you come at it from a place of acknowledging his trauma, it is easier to be sympathetic to the character that is not that likable. 

15. Artemis by Andy Weir.... a reread because I wanted some sci fi and I like the main character, probably because she's a woman. 

16. The Rush by Beth Lewis ... tennis book club for Feb. .... Western crime novel

17. The Hitch by Sarah Levine .... listened to it on a road trip with Jody .... because it was a selection in Roxanne Gay's online reading club. A little boy is POSSESSED by a Corgi that died. OMG what an awesome, oddball premise. Very Funny. I loved it. 

18. The People We Keep by Allison Larkin .... for February INK book club at my house .... I loved it. Reminiscent of Daisy Jones and the Six with a musician main character. Also similar to the Odyssey. haha. 

TO READ

The Shelters of Stone by Jean Auel (book 5)

The Land of Painted Caves by Jean Auel (book 6)