26 Books Series #2:
Read 26 Uniquely Written Books in 2026
July- September
Here are the uniquely written books I read in the third quarter of this year. This is the third part of my Read 26 Uniquely Written Books in 2026 post series. If you would be interested in seeing the other uniquely written books I read during the first half of the year, I'll share those two posts below.
- 1st Quarter (Books 1-6): Read 26 Uniquely Written Books: Jan-Mar
- 2nd Quarter (Books 7-14): Read 26 Uniquely Written Books: April-June
15. Letters from the Last Apothecary (Tressport Magic, #1) by Bita Behzadi
- This is a novel told through both prose and letters. At the end of each chapter there are letters between Josie and Reid that show how they formed a bond through the aliases of Miss Davies and Mr. Clarke. They also know each other in person and because of a misunderstanding do not like each other.
- The juxtaposition of their animosity to each other in person compared to their admiration and growing love for each other in the letters was an entertaining read. The enemies to lovers aspects of this story worked for me pretty well.
16. This Is a Door by Daniel Nayeri
- This Is a Door by Daniel Nayeri was a great middle grade novel told in verse. I loved the author's note at the end of the book where he explains his process of writing the story. He created a story based on the writing structure of the hero's journey but changed it a bit to fit Nothing's journey. Each chapter goes along with a part of the structure.
- Daniel Nayeri describes the book as an illustrated novel without pictures, which is the perfect description of this book. The shape of the verses change to fit what is being told on the page such as into different shapes, twisting around the pages, and even changing size. It was one of the most inventive ways I have ever seen a book written and I highly recommend this for younger readers and for the older readers who still enjoy these types of stories.
17. Walt Disney's Alice in Wonderland (The Making of a Masterpiece) by Taschen
- This is a detailed look into the making of Alice in Wonderland and what Walt Disney went through to make it come about. I highly enjoyed the beautiful artwork and getting to see even more of the concept art.
18. The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
- One of the most beautiful books I have read in a long time. This one hit me hard many different times throughout.
- It is told entirely through letters and emails, correspondences between Sybil and many different people. She writes letters to family, friends, authors whose books she has read, customer service people, etc. You learn so much about Sybil from her letters and her story is endearing. She is a stubborn woman mostly set in her ways trying to navigate life in her later (winter, as she would call them) years. Along with dealing with terrible grief and guilt.
- I loved getting to know each of the characters through their writing in the letters. Their voices were each distinct. This was a tandem read for me where I listened with the audio book and read along with the physical book. I highly recommend both. The narrators were phenomenal, especially Sybil's.
19. The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien by John Hendrix
- John Hendrix’s The Mythmakers blends prose, images, and narrative comics as it chronicles the lives of two literary greats, C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien. It not only focuses on their Fellowship but also goes into details about their early lives, inspirations, how they were affected by fighting in WWI, their friendship, and many other aspects of their lives.
- He does a wonderful job using this medium to tell his story and I loved the use of Mr. Lion and The Wizard, who are takes on Aslan and Gandalf. Along with the information on both authors, Hendrix also has what he calls Portals, which discuss other information such as myth and fairy tales. These sections were great extras that added to the overall experience of the book.
20. Two Truths and a Lie: Fun Facts, Unusual Knowledge, and Trivia to Test Your Wits by Drew Basile
- Learning new and interesting facts has always intrigued me and I highly enjoyed going through this entire book. There are many ways to play through it, which is completely explained at the beginning of the book, though I'm sure people could come up with plenty of ideas on their own too.
- There are twelve different topics with 23 topic sets each. The categories are: History, Geography, Nature, Science, Psychology, Sports, Culture, Arts, Food, Technology, Law & Order, and Language. Every topic set has three statements: two truths and a lie and players must pick out what the lie is out of the set.
21. We've Been Here the Whole Time!: A Not So Sacred Guide to All Things Native America by Joey Clift
- The information is all highly accessible because of the way Joey decided to tell it all. He breaks down these topics in a way that made them enjoyable to read but also does not downplay how important they were. Also, the illustrations by Julie Fiveash were great additions to everything. I highly enjoyed the way this book was designed.
22. The Call Me Ishmael Phone Book: An Interactive Guide to Life-Changing Books by Stephanie Kent and Logan Smalley
- Such an entertaining interactive guide for book lovers. I love interestingly formatted books and this is one of the most unique I have ever found. It is formatted like a phone book, where you can call a number with an extension and get people's testimonials about books. There are many of the testimonials throughout the book and they vary in content. Some are quite touching, surprising, and insightful. They worked for me because I now want to read many of the books mentioned.
- Along with the testimonials, there are bookish ads, bookstore checklists, and so many different literary Easter eggs. I really enjoyed finding the many nods to different books throughout the book. Many of them are quite creative.
