As I’m writing this it’s 2nd June and the 20 Books of Summer challenge (organised by the lovely Cathy at 746 Books) started yesterday! I wasn’t going to take part this year but I keep seeing posts about it and I feel like I’m missing out on a challenge that I love taking part in. This year I’m on a mission to read all of my unread physical books as they’re becoming more of a struggle to read and I don’t want them unread forever! Right now I think I have around seventy unread books (just don’t ask me about my Kindle or audiobooks as there are way more of them!) so I’ve picked the 20 that are calling to me the most for my summer reading challenge.

So without further ado, here are my 20 Books of Summer…

I’ve picked ten non-fiction books, which are:

Renegades by Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen was a Christmas gift from my lovely mum-in-law last Christmas and I’m really keen to get to this one soon. I think it’s a book based on a podcast or series of interviews they’ve done together and should be a good read.

I’d forgotten I had A Stitch of Time by Lauren Marks on my bookcase but it’s definitely one I want to read now I’ve been reminded of it. It’s the memoir of Lauren who had an aneurysm and details her long and difficult recovery.

I also want to read No Time Like the Future by Michael J. Fox, which is the next part of his memoir series and is one I’ve been wanting to read for a while now.

Just Ignore Him by Alan Davies was a surprise gift from my husband when it was published and I’m annoyed with myself that I haven’t read this memoir before now.

I’ve had Women and Power by Mary Beard on my TBR for far tooo long and I’m still so interested in reading it so am determined to get to it this summer. It’s a small book too so should be easy to hold.

I’m a huge fan of Philip Larkin’s poetry so was thrilled to get Somewhere Becoming Rain by Clive James as a birthday gift a couple of years ago. I think this will be such a good read so am determined to get to it.

More Than Just Coincidence by Julie Wassmer is a book about an adopted child seeking out her past as an adult. I’ve picked this up a few times and never actually read it so I’m looking forward to finally reading it in the coming weeks.

I’ve been putting off reading Walls Come Tumbling Down by Daniel Rachel as it’s quite a chunky book but I’m so keen to read more about Rock Against Racism, Red Wedge and 2 Tone.

I’ve been obsessed with space travel ever since I was a child so it’s not right that Leaving Orbit by Margaret Lazarus Dean has been languishing unread for so long. This is about the final days o f the shuttle missions so I think it will be a sad read but an interesting one.

I’d like to finally get to The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson, which I’ve been wanting to read for ages and somehow still haven’t managed to.

Then I picked ten fiction books, which are mainly novels but there are a couple of short story collections and a play in there.

My husband bought me The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki for my birthday this year and I’m so excited to read it.

I’ve had the play script of Angels in America by Tony Kushner on my TBR for ages and after recently reading another book about the AIDS crisis I would like to finally read this one too.

The Time it Takes to Fall by Margaret Lazarus Dean is a novel about space travel set around the tmime of the Challenger disaster so I’m really keen to read this one.

I believe The Dream Life of Astronauts by Patrick Ryan is a short story collection about space travel so I’m also excited to read this one.

I’m so sad that I haven’t read Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell as yet. She is my favourite author but I just couldn’t read this, for various reasons, before now but as she has a new novel coming out later this year I would like to have got to this one first and I’m sure I’ll love it.

Assembly by Natasha Brown is the most recent addition to my print TBR and was a surprise gift from the wonderful Litalist website.

Bonjour Tristesse by Francoise Sagan is the book that has been on my TBR the longest – it was the first book I added on Goodreads 12 years ago and I know I’ve owned it longer than that! It’s a short book but the font in small and that is my only reason for not reading it before now. I’m sure I’m going to enjoy it.

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin has been on my TBR for as long as the above book and I’m ashamed about that as I love Baldwin’s writing and am so looking forward to reading it.

I won a signed proof of Still Me by Jojo Moyes before publication and I shamefully still haven’t read it. I did enjoy Me Before You so it would be lovely to finish the trilogy and see how it all ends.

And last but not least a short story collection called The Beginning of the World in the Middle of the Night by Jen Campbell. I don’t read many short story collections but this one intrigues me so I’m looking forward to it.

So there we have it, my 20 books of summer! I’m feeling fairly confident that I can read 20 print books over the next three months but I can’t be sure that they’ll be these books as I’m very much a mood reader these days.