Adult 2022 Summer Reading Challenge Book Suggestions
The 2022 Summer Reading Challenge is here! Below are a few book suggestions for each category as well as links to other articles with book recommendations in case you need help selecting a title. Remember that you can read any book that meets the criteria for a specific category - it does not have to be on this list - and each book can only be used for one category. We encourage you to be creative. YA and children’s chapter books will also work for some categories.
Click here for the Summer Reading Challenge card and official information. If you are looking for suggestions for the Children’s Summer Reading Challenge, click here.
A book about food or try cooking a new recipe
Oaxaca by Bricia Lopez
The Mistress of Spices by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Arsenic and Adobo by Mia Manansala
Living Lively by Haile Thomas
Momofuku Milk Bar by Christina Tosi
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
More Suggestions:
13 Best Cookbooks of 2022 (So Far) | Bon Appétit
The Ten Best Books About Food of 2021 | Arts & Culture| Smithsonian Magazine
Food in Fiction: 100 Must Read Books Featuring Food
21 Cookbooks by Black Authors to Add to Your Shelf
Novels About Food: 32 Scrumptious Books For Foodies
35 Young Adult Books Featuring Food, Cooking or Baking
Non-fiction released in 2022
Rajneeshpuram by Russell King
Patriarchy Blues by Frederick Joseph
Admissions: A Memoir of Surviving Boarding School by Kendra James
The Limits of the World by Andrew Raymond
Booth by Karen Joy Fowler
Illogical by Emmanuel Acho
Atlas of the Heart by Brene Brown
Lost in the Valley of Death by Harley Rustad
How the World Really Works by Vaclav Smil
More Suggestions:
35 Best New Novels and Non-Fiction Books to Buy in March 2022
Best New Nonfiction: Winter, 2022
MUSIC & MUSICIANS: The Best Books of 2022
38 Best New Memoir Books To Read In 2022
A book under 250 pages
Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
Meditation and Mindfulness by Andy Puddicombe
All Systems Red by Martha Wells
Your Music and People by Derek Sivers
The Hill We Climb by Amand Gorman
Toni’s Room: A Poetic Journey to Restoration by M. Tonita Austin
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
How to be a good creature by Sy Montgomery
A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park
More Suggestions:
50 Must-Read Short Books Under 250 Pages
Books Under 250 Pages to End the Year
The 20 Best Books Under 200 Pages
20 of the Best Books Under 200 Pages
A book written by an Asian or Asian-American author
Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
Exhalation by Ted Chiang
The Making of Asian America by Erika Lee
Days of Distraction by Alexandra Chang
The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee
Permission to Come Home by Jenny T. Wang
To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara
More Suggestions:
World Book Day 2022: 15 Must-Read Books By Asian Authors | Tatler Asia
New Books by Asian and Asian American Authors
100 Must-Read Books by Asian Authors
12+ Great 2022 Short Story Collections by Asian Authors
One World, Many Voices: Asian Authors
Six Asian-American Memoirs to Read for Women's History Month
A book you chose because of the cover
Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
30 Things I Love About Myself by Radhika Sanghani
Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
The Stationary Shop by Marjan Kamali
The Far Field by Madhuri Vijay
We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib
More Suggestions:
Here Are The Most Beautiful Book Covers Of 2020
The 101 Best Book Covers of 2021 ‹ Literary Hub
12 Books We Bought For The Pretty Covers But Totally Loved - Glitter Guide
A book written from more than one point of view
There, There by Tommy Orange
Imposter Syndrome by Kathy Wang
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
No Good Men Among the Living by Anand Gopal
What a happy family by Saumya Dave
Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue
More Suggestions:
8 Favorite Books with Multiple Points of View
A book by an author new to you
The Bad Muslim Discount by Syed M. Masood
Hola Papi by John Paul Brammer
The Inheritance of Orquidea Divina by Zoraida Cordova
Essential Labor by Angela Garbes
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
The Fell by Sarah Moss
The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
The Ministry of the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
More Suggestions:
The Best Books of 2022 (So Far)
Introducing our 10 best debut novelists of 2022 | Fiction
February’s Best Debut Novels ‹ CrimeReads
Stunning Debut Novels to Read This Fall
Discover the best books coming from Central and South America
A book about Civil Rights or Social Justice
The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein
When Stars are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed
Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi
Backlash: What Happens When We talk Honestly about Racism in America by George Yancy
Just Mercy by Bryan Stephenson
Stonewall by Martin Duberman
I am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai
More Suggestions:
Top 10 Social Justice Books Everybody Should Read – Social Justice Art
11 Best Books on Social Justice | The Manual
100 Must-Read Books about the Law and Social Justice
9 Essential Books About Women's Rights You Should Read Before National Women's History Month Is Over
LGBTQ History Month: 17 must-read books about queer history
Booklists - Social Justice Books
8 Books That Take a Historical Look at Current Social Justice Movements
A book about a STEM topic
Nature’s Best Hope by Douglas W. Tallamy
The Cuckoo’s Egg by Cliff Stoll
The Radium Girls: The Dark story of America’s Shining Women by Kate Moore
Power in Numbers: The Rebel Women of Mathematics by Talithia Williams, PhD
The Equation that Couldn’t Be Solved by Mario Livio
Frequently Asked Questions About the Universe by Jorge Cham & Daniel Whiteson
More Suggestions:
Top 53 Best Science Books Of All Time: 2022 Pick
8 Books That Take a Historical Look at Current Social Justice Movements
STEM Books for Adult and Young Adult Readers 2017
23 Best New Science Books To Read In 2022
20 Best Books on Climate Change and Sustainability in 2022 | Earth.Org - Past | Present | Future
Sum Great Books About Math for Your Reading Pleasure
A book set in a warm climate
Hawaii’s Story by Hawaii’s Queen Liliuokalani
The People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin
The Vacationers by Emma Straub
More Suggestions:
9 Books That Help You Escape the Winter Blues
Confessions of a Book Addict: Beach Reads with Tropical Settings