Tackling the Pile of Shame: A Reading Challenge

keithy23's profile picture keithy23 Host

19 participants (144 books)

01 Jan 2025—31 Dec 2025

Overview

Have you ever started a book, set it aside, and somehow never picked it back up? Maybe life got busy, the timing wasn’t right, or you just weren’t feeling it. We all have them—those books sitting in our “pile of shame*,” waiting for a second chance.

This year, I’m challenging myself (and anyone who wants to join!) to tackle those unfinished reads. The goal? To finally finish 10 books that I’ve softly DNF’d and give them the attention they deserve.

Whether you’ve got a handful of books you’ve paused on or an entire stack calling your name, this challenge is for anyone who wants to turn unfinished pages into completed stories. Let’s dust off those books and see where the journey takes us—because it’s never too late to finish what we started!

Are you ready to face your pile of shame? Let’s do this together!

*quoted by Emily Fox

Challenge Books

All books added
Hartendief op pootjes by Melinda Metz

Mac #1

Hartendief op pootjes

Melinda Metz

320 pages • 2018 • 13 editions

fiction romance lighthearted medium-paced
The Psychology of Stupidity: Explained by Some of the World's Smartest People by Jean-François Marmion

The Psychology of Stupidity: Explained by Some of the World's Smartest People

Jean-François Marmion

384 pages • 2019 • 16 editions

nonfiction philosophy psychology self help reflective fast-paced
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Six of Crows #1

Six of Crows

Leigh Bardugo

493 pages • 2015 • 183 editions

fiction fantasy lgbtqia+ young adult adventurous dark tense medium-paced
Time Is a Mother by Ocean Vuong

Time Is a Mother

Ocean Vuong

113 pages • 2022 • 27 editions

nonfiction lgbtqia+ poetry emotional reflective sad medium-paced
Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman

Call Me By Your Name #1

Call Me By Your Name

André Aciman

248 pages • 2007 • 120 editions

fiction lgbtqia+ literary romance emotional reflective sad slow-paced
The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young

The Unmaking of June Farrow

Adrienne Young

320 pages • 2023 • 33 editions

fiction magical realism mystery romance adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced
The Pairing by Casey McQuiston

The Pairing

Casey McQuiston

411 pages • 2024 • 52 editions

fiction contemporary lgbtqia+ romance emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
Leaves of Grass: Selected Poems by Walt Whitman

Leaves of Grass: Selected Poems

Walt Whitman

360 pages • 1855 • 264 editions

fiction classics poetry inspiring reflective slow-paced
Niin kauan kuin tunnen eläväni: Taidemaalari Elin Danielson-Gambogi by Salla Leponiemi

Niin kauan kuin tunnen eläväni: Taidemaalari Elin Danielson-Gambogi

Salla Leponiemi

285 pages • 2021 • 1 edition

nonfiction art biography
Tales of Edgar Allan Poe by Edgar Allan Poe

Tales of Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe

252 pages • 1843 • 12 editions

user-added

fiction classics horror short stories dark mysterious tense slow-paced