# Will You Complete the Challenge This Summer?
We're halfway through the year! How are you doing on your Jax Stacks Reading Challenge bookmark? If you're unsure about what to read next, here are some recommendations to help you check off those last few categories... Remember, you only need to read 12 books to complete your bookmark. If you haven't started yet, there's still time to earn that prize. You've probably already read books that count.
New to Jax Stacks?
Jax Stacks is Jacksonville Public Library's year-round Reading Challenge for adults! If you read just one (related) book this year, you're a Jax Stacks reader! To officially complete the challenge (and win), we just ask that you read at least 12 books from 12 of the 16 categories listed below. The challenge runs January 1 - December 31, 2025. Get the complete rundown at jaxlibrary.org/jaxstacks.
# 2025 Challenge Categories
1. A book by a 2025 Lit Chat author
Lit Chat Interviews and Author Talks bring authors from far and near to talk with you about their books and writing process (as well as some delightful tangents)! Check out the events calendar to find all the authors coming this year and then, grab a book by one of them to read!
- Paterson Joseph's The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sanchos
- Django Wexler's How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying
- Kelly Mustian's The Girls in the Stilt House: A Novel
- Marie Bostwick's The Book Club for Troublesome Women: A Novel
Find more books by our authors
Find a book you liked and want to know more about the author? Catch any Lit Chat Interview you might have missed (or want to revisit) by checking out this YouTube playlist. You can also subscribe to our Completely Booked podcast (using the podcasting app of your choice) for audio-only replays of our Lit Chat Interviews. Note: Some interviews are only available for a limited time.
We'll be announcing more 2025 Lit Chat authors soon at jaxlibrary.org/litchat.
2. A book read by a Library Book Club in 2025
Our Library Book Clubs read widely and bring together great folks for conversation and community. Check out our blog to see what’s coming up and pick out a book to read from the list. Then, go ahead and join us at a meeting to share your opinions!
Pro Tip: Many of the books selected by our Library Book Clubs in 2025 work for other Jax Stacks categories. So, joining one or more of these groups may help you cross off multiple categories over the course of the year. Each book only counts for one category, though! Click here to find upcoming Book Club meetings.
3. A book from a Library display
Take a trip to your favorite Jacksonville Public Library location (or visit a new one) and check out a book we have on display! Many locations have dedicated Jax Stacks displays or even ones dedicated to a featured Lit Chat author(s). Any display counts, even endcaps or books placed "face-out" on a shelf, where the book cover is showing.
Post picks of your book hauls to Facebook or Instagram! Just be sure to tag @jaxlibrary so we see it. We'll post photos of our favorite book displays and our Jax Stacks winners throughout the year, too!
4. A book by an author who shares your name or initials
Do great names think alike? Find a title written by an author with your same first name, same last name, or just your initials. Just make sure it is a book you will enjoy!
Common First Names and Corresponding Authors
Common Male Names
- John (ex. John Sandford, John Irving, John C. Maxwell)
- David (ex. David Baldacci, David Mitchell, David Eddings)
- James (ex. James Patterson, James Rollins, James Agee)
- Robert (ex. Robert Jordan, Robert Greene, Robert Harris)
- Michael (ex. Michael Lewis, Michael Connely, Michael Peterson)
- Paul (ex. Paul Theroux, Paul G. Tremblay, Paul Doirin)
- Richard (ex. Richard Ford, Richard Powers, Richard Evans)
- Chris/Christopher (ex. Chris Pavone, Christopher Pike, Chris Carter)
- Dan/Daniel (ex. Dan Brown, Dan Wells, Daniel H. Pink)
- William (ex. William Shakespeare, William Faulkner, William Boyd)
Common Female Names
- Jan/Jane/Janet (ex. Jane Harper, Jane Green, Jane Yolen)
- Mary (ex. Mary Stone, Mary Shelley, Mary Stewart)
- Susan (ex. Susan Cain, Susan Isaacs, Susan Mallory)
- Ann/Anne/Anna (ex. Anne Lamott, Ann Hood, Anna Todd)
- Elizabeth (ex. Elizabeth Berg, Elizabeth Acevedo, Elizabeth Strout)
- Laura/Lauren (ex. Laura Dave, Laura Scott, Lauren Groff)
- Caroline/Carolyn (ex. Carolyn Hart, Carolyn Haines, Caroline Leavitt)
- Judith (ex. Judith McNaught, Judith Guest, Judith Viorist)
- Jennifer (ex. Jennifer Egan, Jennifer Vogel, Jennifer Ryan)
- Barbara (ex. Barbara Kingsolver, Barbara Davis, Barbara Taylor Bradford)
Pro Tip: If you're having trouble with this (or any) category, call in a book recommendation expert! Request a Personalized Booklist from one of our librarians! Of course, you can use this any time (not just for Jax Stacks). It's also a great way to find books your kids or gift ideas for the book lovers in your life.
5. A book published before 2000
Go back in time... no Delorean required! Pick up any Y2K or earlier written book.
- Princess Bride, by William Goldman (1973)
- All the Pretty Horses, by Cormac McCarthy (1992)
- The Remains of the Day, by Kazuo Ishiguro (1989)
- Catch-22, by Joseph Heller (1961)
Find more published before 2000
6. The first book in a series
This could be the beginning of a beautiful readership. Take a chance on a new series.
- Ninth House, by Leigh Bardugo (Alex Stern Series)
- Fourth Wing, by Rebecca Yarros (Empyrean Series)
- Finlay Donovan is Killing It, by Elle Cosimano (Finlay Donovan Series)
- Red Rising, by Pierce Brown (Red Rising Trilogy)
7. An anthology or book with two or more authors
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or related fiction/nonfiction excerpts by different authors.
- The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
- The Unhoneymooners, by Christina Lauren (combined pen name of longtime writing partners and best friends Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings)
- The Ancestors: Stories, by L.A. Banks, Tananarive Due, and Brandon Massey
- All the Ways We Said Goodbye, by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White
8. A retelling of another book or story
Revisit an old story, told from another character's POV or updated for a contemporary read.
- The Wife Upstairs, by Rachel Hawkins
- Lucy Undying: A Dracula Novel, by Kiersten White
- Ramón and Julieta, by Alana Quintana Albertson
- Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors, by Sonali Dev
9. An epistolary book or diary format
The use of letters or diaries is a wonderfully intimate method to tell stories.
- Gabi, A Girl in Pieces, by Isabel Quintero
- An American Marriage, by Tayari Jones
- The Diary of a Bookseller, by Shaun Bythell
- Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl
More books with letters and diaries
10. A graphic novel, either in fiction or nonfiction
Graphic novels are similar to comic books because they use sequential art to tell a story. Unlike a single issue of a comic book, a graphic novel is longer-form, often stand-alone, and contains more complex plots (the same as any other novel).
- March: Book One, by John Lewis (Author), Andrew Aydin (Author), Nate Powell (Illustrator)
- Through the Woods, by Emily Carroll
- A Man and His Cat, by Umi Sakurai
- One Hundred Nights of Hero, by Isabel Greenberg
11. A book featuring a Neurodivergent character
This category focuses on characters with neurological differences such as ADHD or autism or those with developmental disorders. Like their real-world counterparts, these characters experience life differently because of the way their brains work.
- Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries: A Novel, by Heather Fawcett
- The Kiss Quotient, by Helen Hoang
- Unseelie, by Ivelisse Housman
- Hester: A Novel, by Laurie Lico Albanese
Find more Neurodivergent characters
Some examples of neurodivergent people and characters in popular culture include Spencer Reid (from Criminal Minds), actor Dan Aykroyd (who played the Ghostbuster Ray Stantz), Julia (the Sesame Street muppet), and Percy Jackson (Percy Jackson & The Olympians by Rick Riordan).
12. A mystery set outside the U.S.
Use your library card as a passport and take a trip outside the United States to try to solve a mystery.
- American Spy, by Lauren Wilkinson (set in Burkina Faso, West Africa)
- A Master of Djinn, by P. Djèlí Clark (set in Cairo, Egypt)
- The Motion Picture Teller, by Colin Cotterill (set in Thailand)
-
Lightseekers, by Femi Kayode (set in Nigeria)
13. A nonfiction book about a minority group or person
Your library has an amazing collection of books featuring stories and information written by and about people from varied backgrounds, races, ethnicities, life experiences, and viewpoints.
- Code Talker: The First and Only Memoir by One of the Original Navajo Code Talkers of WWII, by Chester Nez (with Judith Schiess Avila)
- Barefoot Heart: Stories of a Migrant Child, by Elva Treviño Hart
- Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America 1619-2019
-
A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America, by Ronald Takaki
14. A book about music
Feel free to pick a book about your favorite music style, musician, or a book with a musician or singer as a central character.
- Sammy Espinoza's Last Review, by Tehlor Kay Mejia
- The Violin Conspiracy, by Brendan Slocumb
- Hip Hop is History, by Questlove
- Vampire Weekend: A Novel, by Mike Chen
15. A book with a heist
A broad category, this can be a tale of a bumbling burglar, a professional crime ring, or something more outlandish like Bilbo and the dwarves taking back their treasure in the Hobbit. Hold your diamonds and clutch your pearls as you take a ride on a daring heist!
- Portrait of a Thief, by Grace D. Li
- Star Wars: Han Solo & Chewbacca: Vol. 1, The Crystal Run, by Marc Guggenheim
- A Tempest of Tea, by Hafsah Faizal
- The Last Outlaws: The Desperate Final Days of the Dalton Gang, by Tom Clavin
16. A book written for children
Re-read a childhood or family favorite or borrow something new from the children's or teen department at your local library.
- City Spies, by James Ponti
- Slug Fest, by Gordon Korman
- Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun, by Tolá Okogwu
- The Last Wild, by Piers Torday
Looking for reading challenges and book recommendations for kids and teens?
Sign up for Mayor Deegan's River City Readers city-wide literacy challenge on the Beanstack tracker app. A new set of recommended titles are added each month, to match the theme. At the end of the year, the city’s top young readers are given prizes!
Make Your Plan
If you need help keeping track, pick up a Jax Stacks Reading Challenge bookmark - available at your local library. If you complete the challenge before December 31, 2025: Snap a picture of your completed bookmark and send it to jplprograms@coj.net to claim a prize!
All winners receive a 50% off coupon to the Friends of the Jacksonville Public Library Bookstore. You may also choose from a Jax-Stacks-branded reusable canvas tote, ceramic mug, journal, or stainless tumbler (while supplies last).
Get Even More Book Recommendations
- Find recommendations from other readers on the Jax Stacks StoryGraph Challenge.
- Check out or add books to the group bookshelf on our Jax Stacks Goodreads Challenge!
- Sign up for The Book Hookup and get recommendations via email from popular genres.
- Use the free tools on Novelist Plus to find read-alikes for your favorite titles and authors.
- See all Forthcoming Books, New Fiction and New Nonfiction on the Library's catalog.
Get book recommendations and program reminders by email!
