Ultimate Book Nerd
Are you a self-proclaimed book nerd? Ready to put your nerdiness to the test? Read 50 books in 2026 to claim the title of Ultimate Book Nerd! This title comes with bragging rights and swag to let the world know you are the best of the book nerds!
UBN 2026 Challenge Categories
From January 1–December 31, read 50 books from the 50 categories listed below.
Guidelines:
- Read 50 books
- 1 book per category
- Graphic novels, audiobooks, and digital all count
- UBN is for ages 13 and up
- For book nerds ages 12 and under, read at least 30 books from this list
- Must have an active Boise Public Library card in good standing to earn swag
How to Participate
Download the Beanstack app to your mobile device or participate online at BoisePublicLibrary.Beanstack.org.
If virtual participation isn't an option for you, download the Ultimate Book Nerd 2026 Packet, or stop by any Boise Public Library service desk, and the staff will be happy to help.
Other Questions?
Email ultimatebooknerd@cityofboise.org or call (208) 972-8255 for more information.
Subscribe to our email list and receive monthly recommendations.
Use our Personalized Picks service to get personalized recommendations from our librarians by filling out a brief form to let us know more about your taste.
Join our Ultimate Book Nerd Facebook group to share what you're reading, ask for recommendations, and stay connected with fellow Book Nerds. We hope you'll join the group and the conversation. Review the terms for participating in the group.
Please fill out this form once you've completed the challenge and become an Ultimate Book Nerd to claim your UBN t-shirt. We will order the shirts in January after the challenge is complete and email you when they are ready to pick up.
If you do not receive a Certificate of Completion in your email within the next week, please email us at ultimatebooknerd@cityofboise.org to confirm your completion form submitted properly.
You worked hard on this challenge! Feel free to share your accomplishment and send a scan of your completed book tracker to ultimatebooknerd@cityofboise.org or share it on the UBN Facebook page! We are so proud of you and your accomplishment!
UBN 2026 Challenge Categories
Download the UBN 2026 Challenge list (PDF)
- Read a book that celebrates your freedom to read
- Read a book with the title: “A ____ of _____ and ______”
- Read a book featuring jazz music
- Read a middle grade horror book
- Read a book about community building
- Read a book with a state in the title
- Read a cozy book (i.e. cozy fantasy, romance, mystery, etc.)
- Read a book with books on the cover
- Read a Hugo Award Winner www.thehugoawards.org
- Read a book credited to James Patterson
- Read a book written by a transgender, nonbinary, or gender-nonconforming author
- Read a book about poverty
- Listen to a book narrated by the author
- 1 of 2: Read a non-fiction book that pairs with a fiction book (books with a shared theme, topic, or setting)
- 2 of 2: Read a fiction book that pairs with a nonfiction book (books with a shared theme, topic, or setting)
- Read a book set in your favorite American era or decade
- Read a book about architecture
- Read a book by or about first responders
- Read a book about the Founding Mothers
- Read a book published this year
- Read a book about an American movement (suffrage, civil rights, abolitionism, etc.)
- Read a book published posthumously
- Read a book featuring a wedding
- Read a book written by a Native, Alaska Native, or Kanaka Maoli author
- Read a graphic novel memoir
- Read about an inventor or invention
- Read a book about the New American experience
- Read a dramedy
- Read a survival story
- Read a book with a cover that makes you laugh or smile
- Read a book with “red” in the title
- Read a book set in an American future
- Read a book featuring baseball
- Read a book set in a national park
- Read about a change maker
- Read a book from the Dewey 320’s
- Read a book about an event that happened in your lifetime
- Read a book of teen short stories
- Read a book about a cryptid
- Read a book from a former UBN list
- Read a book with a ghost
- Read a book in diary form
- Read a book set in a U.S. territory (American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, or U.S. Virgin Islands)
- Read a book featuring an unsolved mystery
- Read a book with a subtitle
- Read a book mentioned in another book
- Read a book set in the current season
- Read a book about self-care
- Read a children’s book that won an award the year you were born
- Read a book recommended by a library staff member