Read with Jenna Book Club List 2026

Homeschooled

Author: Stefan Merrill Block

Year: 2026

Genre: Memoir

More info: January 2026 Read with Jenna Book Club Pick

Age Range: 16+

Plot

In his memoir, Stefan recalls life being homeschooled, which started when he was 9 years old. He recounts the five years he was taught based on his mother’s whims before making the startling adjustment back to public school as a high school freshman.

Trigger Warnings

Suicide, Abuse, Mental Illness

Why Kirsten likes it

It’s hard to read this story and not compare it to Tara Westover’s Educated. The setting was different, the parenting was different, and yet that same uncomfortable feeling of a parent claiming to be doing something for the betterment of their child while doing quite the opposite was hard to ignore. It’s clear that Block loves his mother, but also that he is beginning to understand the mental illness that led her to treat him poorly.

It was hard to read about the anguish of his homeschool wrecking his self-esteem. It was equally hard to realize his mother was suffering, and his father was oblivious and negligent in his own right.

One & Only

Author: Maurene Goo

Release Date: February 3, 2026

Genre: Romance

More info: February 2026 Read with Jenna Book Club Pick

Spice Rating:💋💋💋

Age Range: 18+

Plot

Cassia Park is the descendant of a long line of matchmakers who read people’s faces to find their one true love. They can look into past lives to find a person’s fated one. They are so confident in the results that they have a 100% guarantee.

Cassia has known the name of her fated one since she was 30, but cannot find him anywhere- even with her extensive network of employees. As she turns 40, she decides to have a fling with a younger man. When she starts to develop strong feelings for him, she is shocked to meet his boss and discover that he is the man she’s been fated to marry.

Why Jackie Loves it

This is a romance with the perfect touch of magic. It made me think about fate and how much it plays a role in our lives vs. the future we make ourselves. What a fantastic adult debut for this author. #gifted

Find this book in: Matchmaking Books / Read with Jenna Book Club List 2026

Wait for Me

Author: Amy Jo Burns

Year: 2026

Genre: Historical Fiction

More info: March 2026 Read with Jenna Book Club Pick

Spice Rating:💋💋

Age Range: 16+

Plot

Elle Harlow is a folk singer who reached the height of her fame in 1973. After a performance at the Grand Ole Opry, she disappears. Two decades later, when a meteor strikes her small town, Marijohn Shaw, also a folk singer, uncovers information linking her to Elle. Suddenly, Marijohn questions everything she thought she knew about herself.

Told in three parts, Elle and Marijohn each get their own narratives before their stories dovetail for the final portion of the book. From Nashville to Appalachia, this immersive story is filled with tales of the music industry in the 1970s and early 1990s. It’s a story of loss and redemption, and the fight within us all to be seen for who we truly are.

Why Kirsten loves it

I was captivated by Marijohn and Elle’s individual stories, but when they merged, I was swept into their world. You must listen to this story as an audiobook because all the original songs peppered throughout the book are sung with a musical accompaniment. I felt as if I was a fly on the wall watching two extraordinary artists come into their own.

I think this will be the runaway hit of the summer, because it’s a perfect balance of thought-provoking themes and imaginative storytelling. I’d also like to respectfully request an adaptation of this story! #gifted by Macmillan Audio and Celadon.

Find this book in: Read with Jenna Book Club List 2026 / Wait for Me Book Club Questions / Summary of Wait for Me by Amy Jo Burns / Novels About Music, Bands, and Musicians to Love / Books Set in the 70s / Best Beach Reads 2026

Upward Bound

Author: Woody Brown

Year: March 31, 2026

Genre: Literary Fiction

More info: April 2026 Read with Jenna Book Club Pick
Age Range: 16+

Plot

Upward Bound is an adult disabled daycare center in LA. From the director of the facility to staff and clients, an interwoven narrative is formed that tells the tale of broken dreams and the surprising realities of being among the Upward Bound community.

Why Kirsten loves it

This short novel was a moving multi-narrator look at life inside an adult daycare center. The full cast audiobook brought the story to life as Walter (voiced by T.R. Knight) anchors the story of his time at Upward Bound, and other staff members or community members are given one chapter of insight.

Each story brought the center and its clients to life in a wonderfully rich way. Usually, I think books are too long, but I could have spent way more time with Walter and the gang. #Gifted by Penguin Audio

Find this book in: Summary of Happiness Falls by Angie Kim, Read with Jenna Book Club List 2026 / Books With Neurodivergent Characters

Caller Unknown

Author: Gillian McAllister

Release Date: May 5, 2026

Genre: Thriller

More info: May 2026 Read with Jenna Book Club Pick

Spice Rating:💋

Age Range: 15+

Plot

Simone and her daughter are renting a cabin in Texas for some quality time together before Lucy leaves for university in the fall. When Simone wakes up in the morning, her daughter is gone, and there is a cell phone waiting with a demand to come to a location and tell nobody. Simone’s husband, back in the UK, begs her to tell the police, but she will not risk her daughter’s life and will do anything to get her back.

When she gets to the location, the demand is not for money; rather, Simone must do something unthinkable. Now, Simone must weigh the consequences of going against everything to save her daughter. Simone finds herself getting deeper into trouble as she tries to get her daughter home safely.

Trigger Warnings

Drug abuse, foster system

Why Jackie likes it

This is a twisty thriller that shows what a mother will do for her child. I loved the ending of the book as well.

Find this book in: Read with Jenna Book Club List 2026