It brings me so much joy to plan and release the Diversify Your Reading Challenge each year. Though I often struggle to keep up with it myself, I am so impressed by how many people see the challenge all the way through and look forward to the release of the new genres each autumn.
I often see people come back to the previous years challenges over and over again when they find them on Pinterest or via Google Search; so, this time around, I’m making this a static page that you can revisit each year for the most up to date reading challenge!
What is the Diversify Your Reading Challenge?
The Diversify Your Reading Challenge was created in an effort to force myself out of a reading rut. I was going through a historical fiction phase (mainly WWII historical fiction) and started feeling like I was reading the same story over and over again. So, to force myself to try something new, I set out to read 12 different genres. And the Diversify Your Reading Challenge was born!
Each year, I publish an updated list of 12 genres and recommended books to go along with them. I also try to put together some graphics and trackers so you can keep track of your progress. It’s all posted online (and here!) and you can be as engaged as you’d like on the social side.
Think of the Diversify Your Reading Challenge as a reading challenge and global book community all in one!
Diversify Your Reading Challenge Genres – Updated for 2025!
If you’ve participated in the Diversify Your Reading Challenge previously, you will know that I like to throw in the occasional wildcard genre. This year, we have two! Poetry is always hit or miss with challenge participants, but I’ve seen so many beautiful poetry books pop up over recent years, I had to include it again just to force myself (give myself the opportunity) to buy one of them.
We also have a genre appearing for the first time ever – the new (to me) ROMANTASY genre that has everyone riled up in the best way possible. Is this the year I finally venture into the world of ACOTAR? Or will I find a different series to dive into? And will you be joining me?!
Here’s the full list of #DYRC25 genres:
- Jan – Self-Help
- Feb – Romance
- Mar – Contemporary Fiction
- Apr – Science
- May – Thriller
- Jun – Memoir
- Jul – Young Adult
- Aug – Non-Fiction
- Sep – Poetry
- Oct – Romantasy
- Nov – Literary Fiction
- Dec – Historical Fiction
DYRCLite – Updated for 2025!
DYRCLite is a great way to dip your toes into the challenge even if you aren’t convinced that you can get through 12 books. It’s also more thematic than strictly genre-based, which means you have even more flexibility in what you read. Generally, if you complete one of the genres every other month, you’ll complete DYRCLite; however, you can choose to just do the light version or add it onto the main challenge if you want to challenge yourself even more.
2025 DYRCLite Categories:
- Jan/Feb – Love Yourself: Show yourself some love with a self-improvement book, or read a book about love
- Mar/Apr – Today and Tomorrow: Read a book set in present time or set in the future. Time travel stories work, too!
- May/Jun – Dark Secrets: Memoirs often include new revelations about the author’s life; alternatively, a psychological thriller will do
- Jul/Aug – Coming of Age: Read a book about teenagers coming of age, or about a certain age/era in history
- Sep/Oct – Fall in Love: Whether through poetry or prose (or the new romantasy genre!), we’re falling in love this autumn
- Nov/Dec – Epic Stories: From family dramas to historical sagas, aim for a 400+ page novel
How does the Diversify Your Reading Challenge work?
The Diversify Your Reading Challenge is an extremely flexible and entirely self-governed reading challenge. All you need to do to complete the challenge is read one book from the listed genre each month. That’s 12 books over 12 months.
Genre interpretation is completely up to you, as are any rules on length of book, how many of each genre you’d like to read, etc. You could even get creative and come up with some fun sub-genres each month if you want!
If you want to track your progress on paper, check out these social media trackers or printables!
Join the DYRC Community
I post about the challenge on Instagram and in the Diversify Your Reading Challenge Facebook Group. Hop over there if you want to join a community of fellow book lovers looking to expand their reading horizons. You can also participate and share your progress on social media using #DYRC25.
I also select a book each month as a ‘buddy read’, so if you’re stuck on what to read or need some motivation, you are welcome to join in and share your thoughts. Scroll down to the bottom to see the books that have been selected so far this year.
Lastly, you can follow me on my book Instagram @diversifyyourreading to keep up with what else I’m reading and to hold me accountable for completing my own reading challenge – I’ll be the first to admit I struggle to complete it most years!
More Resources
- If you track your reading on Storygraph, join the challenge and log your progress!
- My recommendations for each genre can be found on this Amazon list or on Instagram
- Follow me on Storygraph to see what I’m reading each month!
DYRC25 Book Club Picks:
Self-Help
Romance
