Can you read a book a month?

The Wichita Public Library joins Suzanne Perez, KMUW, and the Wichita Eagle to challenge adults to read 12 books in 2024. To make it fun and challenging, we've chosen 12 different categories of books to read – and these categories might not be what you'd expect!

For help completing the challenge, try our book recommendations for these categories.

Instructions

• Register online through the reading tracker Beanstack or track on a paper reading log
• In order to register for the online challenge, participants must be adults age 18 and up
• Any book, audiobook, or e-book that fits one of the categories will count
• Once you've completed a book, log your reading progress by entering the title in the appropriate category
• Each month that you log a completed book in at least one category in Beanstack, you'll be entered into a drawing featuring book-related prizes
• Prizes must be picked up in person at one of our seven Wichita Public Library locations

Categories

The categories can be read in any order. The 12 categories are:

1. A book with a map
2. A book you meant to read last year
3. A book about something lost or found
4. A collection (stories, poems, essays...)
5. A book by or about someone neurodivergent
6. A book set in space

1. A book someone told you not to read
2. A book with a season in the title
3. A book featuring an animal sidekick
4. A book with a recipe
5. A book published the year you turned 16
6. A book by an indigenous author

Get started!

Track your progress using the Wichita Public Library's reading program site, Beanstack. If you've never registered for one of our reading programs online, sign up on the Beanstack website by filling out some basic information, and then you can enroll yourself in #ReadICT and other Wichita Public Library challenges. By tracking on Beanstack, you will be eligible for monthly drawings featuring book-related prizes.

If you prefer to track your progress on paper, you can download and print a paper reading log . A paper log can be returned to any Wichita Public Library location so staff can record your success.

Get started in Beanstack

Beanstack mobile app

Download the free Beanstack app to track your progress on your Android or Apple mobile device.

Frequently asked questions about Beanstack

Listen to our podcast!

It's no secret we love books. Check out Read. Return. Repeat., a podcast where we talk to authors and book lovers and share reading recommendations in different #ReadICT categories. Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch us on YouTube.

Join the conversation!

Share your love of reading with others taking the challenge by joining the #ReadICT Challenge Facebook group. Find out what's trending near you, post book reviews, look for local and virtual events, and share book humor with like-minded folks.

Previous ReadICT Challenge Categories

• ReadICT 2023 Categories

  1. A book with a non-human narrator
  2. A book with a long title (7+ words)
  3. A book about friendship
  4. A guilty pleasure read
  5. A book told from a villain's point of view
  6. A book about time

  1. A book with a color in the title
  2. A book featuring a LGBTQIA+ protagonist
  3. A book about death or grief
  4. A book set in the Great Plains
  5. A book about a secret or closed society
  6. A book by an author visiting Wichita (in-person or remote)

• ReadICT 2022 Categories

  1. A book by a debut author
  2. A book with a cover you like
  3. A book that intimidates you
  4. A book about a culture or topic you're unfamiliar with
  5. A middle-grade or teen book
  6. A book about mythology or folk tales

  1. Reread a favorite book
  2. A book set at sea or on a beach
  3. An immigration story
  4. A genre-blending book (fantasy/romance, historical mystery, etc.)
  5. A book that deals with mental illness
  6. A book by an author visiting Wichita or hosted remotely by a Wichita organization

• ReadICT 2021 Categories

  1. A book with a one-word title
  2. An "own voices" book
  3. A book about animals or pets
  4. A book about travel
  5. An illustrated book
  6. An untold story/history

  1. A book by an author under 30
  2. A book about local history
  3. A challenged book
  4. A book with an ugly cover
  5. A book recommended by someone you admire
  6. A book from the Kansas Notable Books List

• ReadICT 2020 Categories

  1. A book with a number in the title
  2. A fix-it, how-to or self-help book
  3. An epistolary novel
  4. A speed read (less than 100 pages)
  5. A book about someone you admire
  6. A book that has been or will be adapted to the big or small screen

  1. A selection from a celebrity book club
  2. A book written by an author new to you
  3. A book featuring a strong female lead
  4. A book everyone is talking about
  5. A "cli-fi" (climate fiction) book, or a book about a natural disaster
  6. A book by an author visiting Kansas in 2020

  An additional six categories were added midway through the 2020 challenge:

  1. A book about a microhistory – a specific point in time such as an event, community, individual, commodity, or a settlement
  2. The first book in a series
  3. A book with charming escapism (think Anne of Green Gables or anything Jane Austen)
  4. A book about food, bonus if it has recipes!
  5. A book about a tiger or a king (we don't really need to explain this one, do we?)
  6. A book that allows you to travel vicariously

• ReadICT 2019 Categories

  1. A book with a face on the cover
  2. A book in a genre you don't normally read
  3. A book that makes you LOL
  4. A book set where you were born
  5. A book that is a classic or retelling of a classic
  6. A book you have avoided or didn't finish

  1. A translated book
  2. An award winning book
  3. A book recommended by a child or teen
  4. A biography, autobiography, or a memoir
  5. A book with a character different than you
  6. A book by an author slated to visit Kansas in 2019

• ReadICT 2018 Categories

  1. A library book
  2. A detective novel or true crime book
  3. A book about reading or writing
  4. A book set somewhere you’ve never been
  5. A book recommended, given, or loaned to you by a friend
  6. A book with an animal on the cover

  1. A graphic novel
  2. An essay or short story collection
  3. A book by an author of a different ethnicity than you
  4. A book about a topic in the news
  5. A book published the year you were born
  6. A book by an author slated to visit Wichita in 2018

• Wichita Eagle Reading Challenge 2017 Categories

  1. A book you've owned forever but have never read
  2. A book recommended by a local librarian or bookstore employee
  3. A book by a Kansas author or one set in Kansas
  4. A best-seller from a genre you don’t normally read
  5. A memoir
  6. A book you should have read in school

  1. A book by a person of color
  2. A favorite book from childhood
  3. A book that has won a major award (Nobel, Pulitzer, National Book Award, Newbery, Booker Prize, etc.)
  4. A book with a blue cover
  5. A book that is being made into a movie
  6. A book by an author who is slated to visit Wichita in 2017

  An "extra credit" challenge was issued on March 4, 2017 with 12 additional categories:

  1. A book with pictures
  2. The first book in a series you haven't read
  3. A book published this year
  4. A book you can read in a day
  5. A book in translation
  6. A book written by a celebrity

  1. A biography or autobiography
  2. A book with a one-word title
  3. A book with a subtitle
  4. A young-adult or middle-grade novel
  5. A book published before you were born
  6. A book you choose primarily for its cover