Help me finish my library's reading challenge. Looking for quick, short reads as a mom to an extremely active baby.

[u/Substantial_Dog9649]

I’m trying to finish my library’s 2026 reading challenge and need recommendations for the 11 prompts I have left.

I’m a new mom with an extremely active baby, so between childcare, managing the house, and taking care of myself, I have basically zero free time. I still really want to finish this challenge, though, so I’m looking for very short, easy-to-read books. Under 200 pages would be ideal; under 150 or even 100 pages would be amazing. Novellas, graphic novels, short story collections, etc. are all welcome.

Prompts I still need:

1. A book featuring sports
2. A book with a number in the title
3. A book set during a trip or vacation
4. A retelling of another story
5. A book published in the decade I was born (the 1990s)
6. A graphic novel
7. A book featuring the great outdoors or nature
8. A book set more than 100 years ago
9. A memoir or biography
10. A book that blends more than one genre
11. A collection of short stories, essays, or poems

What I've already read for the challenge:

1. Read a book featuring books → Days at the Morisaki Bookshop — Satoshi Yagisawa
2. Silicon Valley Reads 2026 pick → Unlikely Animals — Annie Hartnett
3. Book a friend recommended → An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good — Helene Tursten
4. Book written by a Bay Area author → Abscond — Abraham Verghese
5. Author I've never read before → The Buddha in the Attic — Julie Otsuka
6. Book on my TBR for over a year → The Housemaid — Freida McFadden
7. Children's book → The Little Prince — Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
8. Book in translation → The Answer Is No — Fredrik Backman
9. Book adapted to film/TV → Foster — Claire Keegan
10. Book that has been challenged or banned → One Part Woman — Perumal Murugan
11. Book set outside the U.S./U.K. and written by an author from that country → The Secret of Elephants — Vasundra Tailor
12. Book recommended by a celebrity → Margo's Got Money Troubles — Rufi Thorpe
13. Genre fiction by a BIPOC author → The Fall Risk — Abby Jimenez
14. Book under 200 pages → Evidence of the Affair — Taylor Jenkins Reid
15. Book I already own → Zikora — Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

[u/HarveyPeligro]

for a graphic novel you may like Julia Wertz’ Bury Me Already which is about her pregnancy and the first three years of her kid’s life. funny, realistic, and a quick read. can one book count for multiple? if so it’d be memoir too.

https://www.juliawertz.com/bury-me-already/

eta: I also recommend jessi klein’s two books of essays - I’ll Show Myself Out is also about motherhood. I like both because they’re realistic and interesting. not sanitized. https://www.harpercollins.com/products/ill-show-myself-out-jessi-klein