Although it was a late addition in my year of reading challenges, the good folks at Wonderland Books provided some structure for my summer reads.

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After deciding I was going to visit all 30 independent bookshops in the DC region and taking on the 2026 Reading Challenge from Chapter One Book Store in Hamilton, MT, I then made the decision to add a summer challenge, this one from Wonderland Books in Bethesda. Why not?!

As of yesterday I’ve just completed this third reading mission of the year and turned in my form with plenty of time before the Labor Day deadline.

Truth be told, the real challenge for me in Wonderland’s contest was to limit myself to a five word review. Phew! I’ve never been known as terse, so that was tough. You’ll find those offerings in the bullet point under each title.

1 — A Book Released in 2026

• Thy Will Be Done: George Washington’s Legacy of Slavery and the Fight for American Memory (2026) by John Garrison Marks
  • History, myth, and memory clash

2 — A Memoir

• Things in Nature Merely Grow (2025) by Yiyun Li
  • Profound, difficult, unsettling, deeply moving

3 — A Book Set in Summer

• Levels of the Game (1969) by John McPhee
  • A brilliant and timeless classic

4 — A Recommendation from a Friend

• The Paul Street Boys (1907) by Ferenc Molnár
  • Classic Hungarian young adult novel

5 — A Book That Has a Wonderland “Shelf Talker” (employee review)

• The Baseball 100 (2021) by Joe Posnanski
  • Pure baseball bliss

6 — A Book You Haven’t Read by an Author You Love

• The Beginning Comes After the End: Notes on a World of Change (2026) by Rebecca Solnit
  • America‘s time of goo

7 — A Book From a Genre You Don’t Normally Read

• The Gardens of Emily Dickinson (2004) by Judith Farr
  • Delight for scholars and gardeners

8 — A Book You’re Ashamed to Say You Haven’t Read

• The Ordeal of Thomas Hutchinson (1974; new 250th anniversary edition published in 2026) by Bernard Bailyn
  • The American Revolution’s losers

9 — A Re-Read of a Book You Loved

• Oh, the Places You’ll Go! (1990) by Dr. Seuss
  • You’re off to great places

10 — A Book From Your Bookshelf

• American Visions: The United States, 1800 – 1860 (2023) by Edward L. Ayers
  • Contested visions; future hope

And now I have the snazzy mini tote, one of the prizes given to those readers who complete all ten categories. It is perfect for loading up some good beach books!

Thanks to Wonderland my summer reading had some variety. Ten murder mysteries would have been fun, but not exactly the balanced diet I need.

More to come . . .

DJB

Photo of beach reading by s-o-c-i-a-l-c-u-t on Unsplash