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The 51 Most Read Books of the 2021 Goodreads Reading Challenge
We’ve gathered below the 51 most read books of the 2021 Goodreads Reading Challenge, as determined by which titles readers have marked off as “read.” (We take your word on these things.) These are titles generally categorized as adult books—YA is a whole other interesting story—and it’s amazing to see the sheer variety and range of it all.
This year’s list features old classics like The Great Gatsby and Wuthering Heights, modern classics like Where the Crawdads Sing and Mexican Gothic, and a constellation of literary fiction, mystery, romance and biography. It’s encouraging to see a strong showing this year from books about mindfulness and mutual support. Plus Agatha Christie, of course.
If you want to see how you're doing with this year's challenge, just click on the link below:
And scroll over the book covers to learn more about each title, adding the ones that pique your interest to your Want to Read shelf!
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What are some of your favorite books you've read for the 2021 Reading Challenge? Share them with us in the comments below!
Check out more recent articles:
44 Short New Books to Crush Your Reading Challenge
Lose yourself in These New High Fantasy Worlds
Staff Picks: Goodreads Employees’ Top Reads of 2021
Check out more recent articles:
44 Short New Books to Crush Your Reading Challenge
Lose yourself in These New High Fantasy Worlds
Staff Picks: Goodreads Employees’ Top Reads of 2021
Comments Showing 51-100 of 130 (130 new)
16 of these. Most are on the to read list. I will get there!!
Yikes, only read The Midnight Library from this list... Quite a few are still on my TBR.
I've actually read a lot more of this list than I expected!
Read 13 from the list and 8 more are on my TBR. My favorites of the almost 120 books I've read this year are Douglas Stuart's Shuggie Bain and Wells Tower's Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned. I've found some wonderful indie authors, too.
So many good books!! I've read 22 from this list of 51. Some of my favorite reads thus far in 2021 include:Jodi Picoult's "Wish You Were Here" - set in our own pandemic with a wild twist in the middle of the story!
I read several of Colin Cotterill's "Dr. Siri Paiboun series." All are wonderfully written!
"The Lincoln Highway" by Amor Towles
"The Sum of Us" by Heather McGhee - nonfiction and excellent~
"The Night Watchman" by Louise Erdich
"The Anthropocene" by John Green
"News of the World" by Paulette Jiles
I have read nine books from the list. A lot more are on my to-be-read list.
I’ve read 32 on the list! All great reads except for Mexican Gothic. Wasn’t my jam. There are only 2 I don’t want to read: Bridgerton because I heard the book sucks in comparison and Fifty Shades of Grey, which was a DNF for me. The rest I would like to read some day :) Great list!
33/51 read. My favorites this year not on the list were:Firekeeper's Daughter
I Hope this Finds You Well
We Are the Brennans
Noor
Artificial Condition
The Dark Hours
Piranesi
These Alien Skies
Oh William!
A Spindle Splintered
The Lincoln Highway
Uprooted
Other People's Things
Apples Never Fall
The Visit
Forgotten in Death
A deadly Education
The Heart Principle
All the Ways We Said Goodbye
The Ghost Tree
The Whisper Man
The Rosie Project
False Witness
A Psalm for the Wild-Built
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies
The Once and Future Witches
The Premonition
Things You Save in a Fire
A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor
The Galaxy and the Ground Within
In Her Tracks
The Complete Wheel of Time
The Gap Series
The Fall of Koli
The Good Daughter
Prodigal Son
Concrete Rose
Good Talk
This is How it Always Is
Is This Anything?
Wow, I read a lot of really good books this year!
Very happy to have read 14 out of this 51 books!
Most of these are on my 'DNF' or 'Not interested' shelf.
I’ve read 44 books this year, 17 of which are on this list. The book on the list that I’ve remembered most is “The Handmaiden’s Tale,” even though I read it decades ago. Chilling.
This year ive read The Kite Runner and And Then There Were None.Both went on my favorites list.
If I count only this year, then I have read 3 of themThe Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
And Then There Were None
Mexican Gothic
I haven't read a single one off this list (not this year, not ever, nor ever will), and I'm glad. My tastes aren't that pedestrian.
I've read 11 of them (2 in 2021) & have 5 more on my To Read. I'm good with this.
KT wrote: "Karl wrote: "Goodreader's choices in books are pretty terrible NGL"A person's choice of what to read is personal and subjective. You don't share taste generally with Goodreads users, and that's f..."
I totally agree with you. If we all liked the same books, this world would probably be a lot more boring!
I've read 13 of these. So happy to see so many by Taylor Jenkins Reid on the list. She's definitely a favorite author of mine.
I think it's a little premature to call Where the Crawdads Sing and Mexican Gothic "modern classics"—how about popular releases from the last 5 years?
I've read 28 of them. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine was one of my favorites.
Warren wrote: "Karl wrote: "Goodreader's choices in books are pretty terrible NGL"Boy, do you have that right! No Sanderson, Connelly, Sandford, Flynn, Clancey, Nesbo, Jance, Slaughter, and on and on. They did h..."
I would not read their choices then. Stick with what you like, although the authors you have listed (except maybe Slaughter) do nothing for me. It's a matter of personal choice - not bad or good.
s
Karl wrote: "Goodreader's choices in books are pretty terrible NGL"
According to you perhaps. It is a matter of CHOICE, and doesn't necessarily have to please you. It is what it is.
KT wrote: "Karl wrote: "Goodreader's choices in books are pretty terrible NGL"A person's choice of what to read is personal and subjective. You don't share taste generally with Goodreads users, and that's f..."
Agree.
I’ve read 14 of these, and some are on my TBR list
19 for me, but not all this year. A few more are on my TBR list!
Ellie wrote: "In a year when Indigenous authors have some of the best books (and scooped literary prizes) I noticed none here. Out of 31 books I read so far this year, 8 were by Indigenous artists."Could you give me some recommendations? :)
I’ve read 30 of these so far… over the course of a couple years.
This year I’ve read The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, 1984, The Silent Patient and A Promised Land. Can’t believe The Maidens came in second for best fiction book of the year or whatever. SP was great; The Maidens was absolutely awful. Loved ILOAL, A Promised Land... thought 1984 has been ridiculously overrated all these years. Really want to read The Push.
22 for me (not all this year). The House in the Cerulean Sea coming in as my favorite from this list (of the ones I actually read this year).
I have read 12 books from the list above and many of the others are on my unlimited TBR so there's maybe I would be able to read a few more in the coming years.
Read all but 5 of this list and can definitely see why most of them made the list.
I’ve read 38 of these and almost all were amazing! My favorite read this year and not on this list was A Little Life.
Read only one this year, but eight overall.
I've only read 4 out of the 51. Sent many titles to my TRL!
I have read 23 books from this list but not all from this year.Four Winds was amazing!
Verity left my jaw still hanging!
The Tattooists Of Auschwitz Was a book I could not put down!
I loved The People you meet on Vacation. in the Romance category.
I recommend both Audio versions of the Obama books, where you will hear their voices tell the story. Much better if you ask me.
i’ve 27 of these (14 this year and 13 in previous years)
Read 8, 11 on my list. "Where the Crawdads Sing" was the most overrated, in my opinion. Enjoyed all the classics at the top!
yeeee... I have 50 more books to read. I read the Kite Runner in this list.
I've read 22 of them. I might be very basic ahah
Uk and Australian markets are obviously very different.