Wednesday, December 31, 2025

26 Things About the Number 26--Part 1

Colleen at The Thursday 13 holds a weekly blogging prompt where bloggers make a list of 13 things on Thursdays. The topic is for you to choose. The blog host doesn't have any official graphics to display on the Thursday 13 posts, so I decided to whip one up myself. 🙂  



As we enter 2026, I chose to post 26 things about the number 26. Since 13 is half of 26, this will be a two-parter (more next week). For this week:

  1. It takes 26 moves or less to solve a Rubik’s Cube.
  2. In a human foot, there are 26 bones.
  3. 26 is the atomic number of iron.
  4. Michigan was the 26th state to be admitted into the US.
  5. There are 26 letters in the alphabet.
  6. A full marathon race is about 26.2 miles long (or 42.195 kilometers).
  7. A shape with 26 faces is called an icositetrahedron.
  8. There are 26 red cards and 26 black cards in a deck of cards.
  9. Walt Disney has won the most Oscars ever, this stands at 26.
  10. Quincy Jones won 26 Grammys.
  11. Astroid number 26 was discovered in 1853.
  12. The 26th president of the US was Theodore Roosevelt.
  13. 26 is known as the “joke throw” in darts and is reached by throwing 20, 5 & 1 after trying for a treble 20.

Tune in next week for Part 2. 

PS--I posted this tonight, even though I meant to schedule-post it for tomorrow.


My Year in Reading

I completed one last book today and am looking forward to starting again tomorrow for next year. I got 210 this year. Here are my results from Goodreads:







Still deciding what to read first for 2026.

2026 Book to Movie (and TV) Reading Challenge

Another I have waited to see appear for next year.



My books:


New Year's Eve

 Some old and new ones.










Tuesday, December 30, 2025

The Nerd Daily’s 2026 Reading Challenge

Another I have been waiting for!


  1. 2026 release:
  2. Five-word title:
  3. Non-illustrated cover:
  4. SFF or mystery:
  5. An author new to you:
  6. Set in summer:
  7. An author you love:
  8. Bookstore or library rec:
  9. October 2026 release:
  10. Reader's choice:
  11. Book with red spine:
  12. Author surname starting with D:
  13. Recommended by The Nerd Daily:
  14. 2026 adaptation:
  15. Picked at random:
  16. Part of a trilogy:
  17. Indie bookstore purchase:
  18. Standalone:
  19. Protagonist starting with R:
  20. Multiple perspectives:
  21. 2026 debut author:
  22. Explores love:
  23. Judge a book by its cover:
  24. In your TBR pile:
  25. Gothic or romance:
  26. Holiday setting:
  27. Between 380 and 440 pages:
  28. Double-barreled name:
  29. June 2026 release:
  30. Won an award in 2024:
  31. Features education:
  32. Picked by someone else:
  33. Indie author:
  34. Mythology:
  35. Title starting with C:
  36. Questionable cover:
  37. Guilty pleasure:
  38. Crime or cozy:
  39. Six-syllable title:
  40. Gifted to you:
  41. Limited Edition or Exclusive:
  42. Supporting character starts with T:
  43. Title with punctuation:
  44. #OwnVoices:
  45. Topical or tropical:
  46. Different cultures for country:
  47. A 2025 release you missed:
  48. Title without "the":
  49. Blue on cover:
  50. Explores loss:
  51. Translated:
  52. Quoted by an author you like:

Monday, December 29, 2025

Linz The Bookworm 2026 Reading Challenge

 Another favorite that I have been waiting for.  This one always has interesting categories.




Level 1: Book of the Month Club

1 Read a book that is under 250 pages long

2 Read a book that you got for free

3 Read a book by Darcy Coates

4 Read a book with a dark cover

5 Read the first book in a series that you've wanted to start

6 Read a book that was either given to you or recommended by someone who means a lot to you

7 Read an author's debut novel 

8 A book with a title that starts with the letter B

9 Read an Urban Fantasy novel

10 Read a book that takes place in a small town

11 A book that's been made into a movie or TV show

12 Free Space - Pick any book!


Level 2: Casual Reader Club

13 A book in a series you've yet to finish (the most recent/next book)

14 Read a book with exactly four words in the title

15 Read a book by an author named Mary, Maria, Marie, or a variant

16 Read a book with an animal on the cover

17 Read a book involving a Cryptid (Bigfoot, Mothman, Chupacabra, etc.)

18 Read a book recommended by the Chicago Public Library website https://www.chipublib.org/

19 Read a genre you haven't read before 

20 Read a book by an author who's been really popular in the past 5 years

21 Read a book that was published in 1996 (30 years ago)

22 A book with a pastel cover

23 Read a book with a title that follows the pattern A/The _____ of _____ and _____"

24 Free Space - Pick any book!


Level 3: Dedicated Reader Club

25 Read Book 1 of a Quartet

26 Read Book 2 of a Quartet

27 Read Book 3 of a Quartet 

28 Read Book 4 of a Quartet 

29 A book by an author with a color in their name

30 A book you picked out because of the cover

31 A book with "sound" or "silence" in the title

32 A book that involves a robot or AI

33 Read a book by an author that's new to you

34 A book with a weapon on the cover: The Odious Duke--Barbara Cartland

35 Read a book with the word "man" or "boy" in the title

36 Free Space - Pick any book!


Level 4: Speed Reader Club

37 A book on a banned book list

38 Read a book that was published through a crowdfunding campaign

39 read a book by an author that uses initials as part of their name

40 Read a book over 600 pages OR listen to an audiobook over 18 hours

41 Read a book with a title that includes an ampersand

42 A book where the main character is a criminal

43 Read a book that has a crown on the cover

44 Read a book about a historical woman (or group of women)

45 Read a book by an author whose first name starts with the letter 'D.'

46 Read a book with a four-letter word in the title 

47 Read a Space Opera

48 Free Space - Pick any book!


Level 5: Overachiever Club

49 Read a book by an author from a place you have been

50 read a book on this list https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/the-read-down/fiction-coming-soon/

51 A book with "angel" or "demon" in the title

52 Read a book with a sisterhood or brotherhood trope

53 Read a book about unlikely allies

54 Read a book published when you were 9 years old

55 Read a book that includes a character who is a photographer

56 Read a book involving a sacred object

57 A book published by one of the Independent Publishers Caucus https://www.indiepubs.org/member-presses

58 A book with numbers on the cover

59 The Great Beatles Category - read a book about The Beatles *or* a book with the same title as one of their songs  

60 Free Space - Pick any book!