Make it your resolution to read more in 2026—and Burlington Public Library will help you get over the finish line!
January is the official kick-off month for BPL’s twelve-month BPL Reading Challenge, but you don’t have to wait to start. Now’s the perfect time to plan the first leg of your 2026 reading journey and get excited about the year ahead.
It can be tricky to stick to New Year’s resolutions, so for some year-long reading inspiration, Lita Barrie, BPL’s chief executive officer, shares her To Be Read (TBR) list, based on this year’s Reading Challenge themes.
To get ready for the Reading Challenge, Lita revisited her ever-growing TBR list and discovered twelve titles that perfectly fit the monthly reading themes. You may even find a few titles for your own 2026 reading list.
January
Theme: A book about a journey.
Lita’s pick: The Tiger and the Cosmonaut by Eddy Tan Boudel.
A fan of Canadian fiction, Lita chose a novel longlisted for the 2025 Giller Prize as the starting point for her 2026 reading journey. A man returns to his rural British Columbia hometown to face his family’s buried grief and the events surrounding his twin brother’s disappearance decades earlier. Genre: Literary Fiction
February
Theme: A book that makes your heart skip a beat.
Lita’s pick: Crying in the H Mart: A Memoir by Michelle Zauner.
After spotting a past favourite on a Staff Picks booklist for February, Lita plans to reread this poignant and honest memoir that traces a Korean-American woman’s coming of age through food, family, and the devastating loss of her mother. Genre: Memoir
March
Theme: A book that makes you laugh out loud.
Lita’s pick: Hair for Men by Michelle Winters.
Hair for Men is a bold and quirky story set in Canada’s East Coast. After a violent youth, a woman reinvents herself working at a men’s hair salon, discovering a strange kind of peace—until her past resurfaces in a most unexpected way. Genre: Contemporary Fiction
April
Theme: A book published at least 25 years ago.
Lita’s pick: Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston.
BPL Reading Challenge is a great way to rediscover books you’ve long been meaning to read, and this is one of those titles for Lita. Set in the 1930s American South, a determined Black woman searches for love and independence, even when her community disapproves of her choices. This modern classic was first published in 1937, and then out of print for nearly 30 years until 1978. Genre: Classic Literary Fiction
May
Theme: A book with extraordinary or magic elements.
Lita’s pick: Piranesi by Susanna Clarke.
In Piranesi, a man lives alone in an endless, flooded house filled with statues, slowly uncovering that his reality may not be what it seems. While fantasy is not her favourite genre, Lita chose this title for its intriguing themes. Genre: Fantasy / Speculative Fiction
June
Theme: A book that explores identity and acceptance.
Lita’s pick: Universality by Natasha Brown.
Words are the central theme in this story—what we say, how we say it, and what we really mean. Longlisted for the Booker Prize in 2025, Universality peels back the layers of modern media culture. Genre: Literary Mystery / Satire
July
Theme: A book with a number in the title.
Lita’s pick: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel.
A fan of St. John Mandel’s novel Sea of Tranquility, Lita plans to read Station Eleven before watching the series. Moving between past and future, the story follows a troupe of performers travelling through the ruins of a post-pandemic world, trying to keep art alive. Genre: Post-Apocalyptic Literary Fiction
August
Theme: A book about a real person or event.
Lita’s pick: Night by Elie Wiesel.
A powerful memoir by Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel that recounts a teenager’s survival in Nazi death camps. More than history, it is a moral reckoning that demands to be read and remembered. Genre: Memoir / History
September
Theme: A book by an Indigenous author.
Lita’s pick: If the Dead Belong Here by Carson Faust.
This year’s BPL Hidden Gems winner! When a little girl disappears, her sister’s vivid dreams hint that the family’s past holds dangerous secrets. Genre: Supernatural Mystery
October
Theme: A book that features a library.
Lita’s pick: The Paris Library by Janet Charles Skeslien.
The Paris Library combines three of Lita’s favourite things: libraries, Paris, and books based on true stories. Set in occupied Paris, librarians quietly join the Resistance, risking everything to protect readers and books. Decades later, a lonely teenager uncovers the story behind one woman’s guarded past. Genre: Historical Fiction
November
Theme: A book that sends shivers down your spine.
Lita’s pick: King Sorrow by Joe Hill.
A popular title on several ‘best books of 2025’ lists. When a college student is forced into stealing rare books, his desperate friends try to summon a dragon to fix things—and nothing goes as planned. Genre: Dark Fantasy
December
Theme: An old favourite or a new discovery.
Lita’s pick: The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters.
Lita plans to wrap up her 2026 reading challenge as it began, with an award-winning Canadian author. When a Mi’kmaq child disappears during blueberry-picking season, two families are forever altered. Genre: Literary Mystery
Plan your reading journey today
Make 2026 your most book-filled year yet! Be sure to sign up for the BPL Reading Challenge — it’s fast, and it’s easy. Start your own TBR list based on this year’s themes by browsing Burlington Public Library’s huge selection of Staff Picks booklists, talking to book-loving staff at any BPL location, or asking for recommendations through the library’s free Handpicked For You service.
