2026 Holiday Reading Challenge | The Running Bibliophile

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Who doesn’t love a good challenge, especially when it pushes you to read outside your comfort zone or discover a new author? I’ve always wanted to join a reading challenge or reading bingo, but so many of them feel repetitive. So, I decided to create something a little different. It doesn’t mean a challenge like this isn’t out there; I just haven’t come across one myself. Introducing The Running Bibliophile’s 2026 Holiday Reading Challenge, a fun and unique way to expand your reading list while celebrating the spirit of the year. This challenge features 14 books of your choice, with one key twist: each book’s plot must revolve around the specific holiday mentioned. The challenge runs for January 1 through January 31, 2026. To keep things exciting, you may not duplicate any books on the list. By the time you've completed the challenge, you will have read 14 new books to diversify your reading list. To kick things off, the first prompt is simple: choose any holiday-themed book as l...
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Book Review: Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

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Science Fiction Book Review of Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
Kindred by Octavia E. Butler is the first science fiction novel written by a Black woman. It's part memoir, part fantasy, and part historical fiction. The book opens with Dana, an African American woman in 1976 Los Angeles, California, who is transported back to 1815 Maryland and saves a drowning white boy.  However, she finds herself fearing for her life when the boys father, a slave owner, is pointing his shotgun at her.

I discovered Kindred through my book club, which selected it for our September meeting. Although I had heard of the novel, I wasn’t familiar with its plot. Science fiction isn’t usually my go-to, but I was captivated from the first page. The story is compelling, well-written, and utterly immersive.

Octavia E. Butler’s writing is engaging, vivid, and unputdownable. The characters feel real, and I found myself thinking about them long after finishing the book. Butler expertly portrays the horrors of slavery and imagines what it might be like if a Black person from modern times were thrust into that era. Though fictional, the novel resonates with historical accuracy, making its events feel hauntingly real. Key themes include racism, slavery, trauma, rape, and suicide, all explored with depth and nuance.

More than 43 years after its publication, Kindred has truly stood the test of time. It remains a powerful, thought-provoking story that deserves every bit of its acclaim. I rate it five out of five stars and look forward to reading more of Octavia E. Butler’s extraordinary work.

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