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The 11 Books We're Reading in Book Club 2025 - 2026
Published about 1 month ago • 4 min read
11 Books for a Year of Deep Reading
Hello Reader,
One of my favorite moments every year is sharing the new reading list with all of you—and this year, it’s especially good. I’ve spent the past few months thinking carefully about the arc of our year: what kinds of conversations we want to have, what stories will challenge us, and how we can keep growing together as readers and thinkers.
We’re covering a lot of ground this time around—classics, sci-fi, philosophy, memoir, nature writing, and even a trip back to Ancient Greece. Some of these books will feel like old friends, some will stretch us, and a few might just change the way we see the world.
Here’s what we’re reading together:
📘 June 17 – July 17, 2025 The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck A devastating and beautiful portrait of American resilience. Get ready for big emotions and unforgettable prose.
📙 July 29 – August 26, 2025 The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell A sweeping conversation about why stories matter—perfect for the deep thinkers (that’s us!).
📕 September 2 – September 24, 2025 Brave New World by Aldous Huxley Dystopia, consumerism, and engineered happiness. It's unsettling, provocative, and always timely.
📗 October 7 – October 23, 2025 The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro Quiet, masterful storytelling about memory, regret, and the cost of loyalty. Bring tissues.
📘 November 4 – December 9, 2025 An Immense World by Ed Yong Let’s zoom out—and in—and marvel at how animals experience life. This one’s pure wonder.
📙 December 16, 2025 – January 2, 2026 Kindred by Octavia Butler Time travel, slavery, and survival. A genre-bending classic that grips you from page one.
📕 January 13 – February 8, 2026 Being Mortal by Atul Gawande A wise, humane book about aging, medicine, and what it means to live well to the very end.
📗 February 17 – February 28, 2026 Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin Short, gorgeous, and haunting. Baldwin always gets to the emotional core.
📘 March 10 – April 3, 2026 The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin A mind-bending look at utopia, anarchy, and the human cost of ideals.
📙 April 14 – April 29, 2026 The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde Wicked wit, beauty, and decay. It’s Wilde at his most chilling—and most quotable.
📕 May 12 – June 29, 2026 The Odyssey by Homer Epic in every sense. We’ll end our year with a hero’s journey through gods, monsters, and memory.
More details will come as we get closer to each book, but for now—mark your calendars, stock your shelves, and let’s get excited. It’s going to be a good year.
If You Haven't Joined Book Club Yet, You Can Learn More Here:
👋 Until next time, read slowly – take notes – apply the ideas.
-Eddy
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Red Rising by Pierce Brown
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This Week's Book Recommendation
Red Rising by Pierce Brown
This book caught me off guard.
Think The Hunger Games meets Gladiator meets Ender’s Game, but bloodier and with better political theory. But what surprised me—and what really stayed with me—is how deeply this book wrestles with morality, identity, and the price of transformation.
Darrow, the main character, is thrown into an impossible situation and forced to become something he hates to destroy it from the inside. The book isn’t just about rebellion or revenge—it’s about what happens to a person when they’re asked to lie, kill, and betray in service of something bigger. Red Rising asks: How do you hold onto your soul when the world demands you sacrifice it?
It’s also just pure, page-turning fun. The kind of book that makes you stay up way too late.
If you’re in the mood for something that delivers both entertainment and substance—Red Rising is a fantastic pick.
And once you start, fair warning: you’ll probably want to read the whole series.
I read to spend time with people—fictional or not—that make me think, make me laugh, or just feel like good company. In this episode, I talk about why Less by Andrew Sean Greer worked for me, why Artemis by Andy Weir didn’t, and why I give every novel exactly 50 pages to win me over. This isn’t about snobbery—it’s about using your time wisely.
This is episode 100 of The Read Well Podcast, and to mark the moment, I’m sharing the 11 books we’ll be reading together from June 2025 to June 2026 in season 3 of the Book Club. If you’re someone who wants to read more deeply, especially when it comes to philosophy and big ideas, I think you’ll want to see what’s on the list. I’ll also explain how to join us for book club—whether you want to talk, listen, or just read alongside a community.
Feel free to respond to this email. Let me know how I can make your experience in our reading community better, or if you have questions, I'm all ears.
As always, read slowly - take notes - apply the ideas.
-Eddy
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Subscribe to my newsletter for tips on close reading, detailed note-taking, and applying bookish wisdom to your life. I talk about fiction and non-fiction, interview literary experts, and host The Read Well Podcast. Subscribe today and build better reading habits.