2026 Reading Challenge: JuneLike this list

30 items

• You Deserve Better

  An Imperfect Guide to Finding Your Happiness

  Anne-Marie

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  A must-read book from singer-songwriter Anne-Marie that doesn't give you fluffy promises about self-care but speaks honestly about body image, mental health, being successful at work and more.

• The Vanishing Half

  Bennett, Brit

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  The Vignes twins take radically different paths after running away from their Southern hometown—one living as Black, the other passing as white. Decades later, their intertwined fates and those of their daughters explore family, identity, and the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Out of Mind

  Bergen, David

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  Lucille navigates betrayal, family turmoil, and lost love while traveling from Thailand to the south of France. Her journey becomes a quest to reclaim her identity amid grief, desire, and unexpected challenges.

• Probably Ruby

  Bird-Wilson, Lisa

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  Ruby, a Métis woman raised by a white adoptive family, navigates messy relationships while searching for her identity and heritage. Her journey unfolds through the people and experiences that have shaped her life.

• I Have Something to Tell You

  a Memoir

  Buttigieg, Chasten

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  Chasten Glezman Buttigieg shares his journey of growing up gay in the Midwest, coming out, and building a life with Pete Buttigieg. His memoir is a heartfelt, hopeful story of love, courage, and self-acceptance.

• Boy Erased

  a Memoir of Identity, Faith, and Family

  Conley, Garrard

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  Garrard Conley recounts being forced into a church-backed conversion therapy program as a young man and the brutal path it set him on. Through the experience, he discovers resilience, self-acceptance, and the courage to embrace his true identity.

• This Is How It Always Is

  Frankel, Laurie

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  When their youngest son Claude begins expressing a desire to live as a girl, his family must navigate love, understanding, and secrecy. This heartwarming story follows their journey of acceptance and identity.

• Time and Tide

  Frey, J. M.

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  A modern bisexual woman is thrown into Regency England and must figure out how to survive, while she falls in love with a woman who will one day become a famous author.

• Saltus

  Gereaux, Tara

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  Set in small-town Saskatchewan, Tara Gereaux's novel explores Métis identity, motherhood, aging, and the journey toward acceptance.

• We Have Always Been Here

  a Queer Muslim Memoir

  Habib, Samra

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  Samra Habib’s memoir follows her journey as a queer Muslim navigating faith, family, and identity from Pakistan to Canada and beyond. Along the way, she discovers that her multiple selves can coexist and thrive.

• The 10

  a Memoir of Family and the Open Road

  Hanks, E. A.

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  E.A. Hanks’s memoir traces a cross-country journey along the Ten, retracing a road trip with her late mother to uncover family secrets and understand her own identity. Along the way, she explores the landscapes, people, and memories that shape who…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Minor Feelings

  An Asian American Reckoning

  Hong, Cathy Park

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  Cathy Park Hong explores the hidden tensions and shame of Asian American life through memoir and cultural critique. She examines race, family, language, and identity with unflinching honesty.

• I Am These Truths

  a Memoir of Identity, Justice, and Living Between Worlds

  Hostin, Sunny

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  The co-host of The View recounts her journey from a biracial child in the South Bronx to a prominent attorney and journalist in Washington, D.C.

• All Boys Aren't Blue

  a Memoir-manifesto

  Johnson, George M.

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  Journalist and activist George M. Johnson reflects on his childhood and adolescence in New Jersey and Virginia, sharing the joys and struggles of growing up as a Black queer boy.

• Hold On, but Don't Hold Still

  Hope and Humor From My Seriously Flawed Life

  Kuzmič, Kristina

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  Kristina Kuzmič shares her hilarious and inspiring journey from struggling single mother to confident, grounded parent, offering hard-won wisdom on resilience, self-acceptance, and joy.

• The Namesake

  Lahiri, Jhumpa

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  Gogol Ganguli, the American-born son of Indian immigrants, navigates identity, family expectations, and belonging between two cultures. Through his coming-of-age, the novel explores the complexities of inheritance, love, and what it means to make a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Almost English

  Mendelson, Charlotte

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  Marina, a teenage girl caught between her Hungarian family’s traditions and the English world around her. As she struggles to belong at home and at school, she grapples with identity, displacement, and what it means to define herself on her own…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Dumplin'

  Murphy, Julie

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  Follow Willowdean, a confident but self-doubting teen in a small Texas town, as she challenges beauty standards by entering a local pageant. Along the way, she learns to embrace her body, her voice, and the power of self-acceptance.

• Born a Crime

  Stories From a South African Childhood

  Noah, Trevor

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  Trevor Noah recounts his unconventional childhood growing up during and after apartheid in South Africa. Through humor and insight, he reflects on identity, resilience, and finding his voice in a divided society.

• There There

  Orange, Tommy

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  This novel weaves together the lives of several Native characters drawn to the Big Oakland Powwow, each carrying their own histories of loss, survival, and hope. As their stories converge, the book explores identity, memory, and resilience within…Read moreRead more of this annotation