2025 may have been a year full of transition for me and my family, but I was able to keep track of the books I read. A huge improvement over the disastrous book list of 2024!

It was a strong reading year with over 50 books in the middle grade category and older. I also had the privilege of reading more than 30 chapter books with my youngest and beta reading some truly fabulous stories by my agent siblings.

While my youngest is moving more towards chapter books, here are some of the brilliant picture books I read this year:

• Leafy Landmarks: travels with trees by Michelle Schaub
• The Tide by Clare Helen Welsh
• Seriously, Do Not Open this Book by Andy Lee
• This is Not a Sleeping Bear Book by Brian Gehrlein
• The Teeny-Weeny Unicorn by Shawn Harris

I won’t list the chapter books out, but we did read extensively in the Rainbow Magic Fairies series by Daisy Meadows as well as CBs in the Rescue Princesses series by Paula Harrison. Recently, we started another delightful series, Diary of an Ice Princess by Christina Soontornvat.

Now, let’s dive into my middle grade reads. They were a fun mix this year of classics, spooky stories, and feel-good MG:

• Tale of the Flying Forest by R. M. Romero
• First to Find by Catherine Arguelles
• Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
• Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan
• Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan
• The Wild Robot Escapes by Peter Brown
• Grenade by Alan Gratz
• Curse of Eelgrass Bog by Mary Averling
• What Fell From the Sky by Adrianna Cuevas
• Grimmworld: The Witch in the Woods by Michaelbrent Collings
• The Creepening of Dogwood House by Eden Royce
• Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
• Doll Bones by Holly Black
• The Wild Robot Protects by Peter Brown
• The First State of Being by Erin Entrada
• The Stars did Wander Darkling by Colin Meloy
• The Firefly Summer by Morgan Matson
• Frindle by Andrew Clements
• The Experiment by Rebecca Stead
• A Million Ways Home by Dianna Dorisi Winget

My YA list is usually smaller than MG because I write more in MG. This held true for 2025. However, since I will be spending more time on my YA wip in 2026, I am hoping to read more YA next year. Below are my 2025 YA reads. I continued The Talismans of Teregrin series and the Above the Black series and read both YA horrors by Trang Thanh Tran:

• Being Mary Bennet by J.C. Peterson
• Among Serpents by Marc Gregson
• The Door of Hope or Peril by Katy Metzger
• Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
• Coffeeshop in an Alternate Universe by C. B. Lee
• She is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran
• They Bloom at Night by Trang Thanh Tran

It always surprises me when I reach the end of the year, and I see how many adult books I read. They are usually ones I find at the library or recommendations. And there is always a combination of romance, sci-fi, and thriller/mystery. Here are my adult reads from 2025:

• One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle
• She Doesn’t Have a Clue by Jenny Elder Moke
• A Killer Getaway by Jenna Satterthwaite
• Happiness Falls by Angie Kim
• The Happily Ever After Bookstore by Bernadette Marie
• Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Canas
• The Martian by Andy Weir
• Ice Planet Barbarians by Ruby Dixon
• Dear Mr. Knightly by Katherine Reay
• Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
• Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
• The September House by Carissa Orlando
• Tell Them You Lied by Laura Leffler
• The Peculiar Garden of Harriet Hunt
• Swords & Stones by Kimberly Lynn Hanson
• Shadowbound by Amelia Cole
• The Pumpkin Spice Café by Laurie Gilmore
• Twice in a Lifetime by Briana Newstead
• The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer

If you read any of the books listed above, let me know what you think! Looking forward, I’m excited to dive into my growing pile of books for 2026. Wishing all of us a productive and joyful new year!