Reading Challenge
If you’re looking for a bit more structure for your Sirens reading, or you simply love a challenge, you’re in the right place. Each year, our staff reads a wide selection of fantasy works written by women and nonbinary authors, some within our theme and some more broadly. We invite you to take our challenge!

To complete the challenge, simply read 25 books, in accordance with the rules below, by October 1, 2020. Once you’ve finished—and by no later than October 1—send an email to (help at sirensconference.org) with Reading List Challenge as the subject line, and let us know that you’ve finished the challenge and the books that you read to do so. We’ll give all timely finishers a special button, suitable for gloating, at Sirens

If you buy from Amazon and you’d like to purchase these books, please use the links below. We are a member of the Amazon Associates program, and if you use these links to purchase these books, Amazon will provide us with a referral fee.


Sirens 2020 Reading Challenge

In each required category, you must read—or have previously read—each work listed. In each category of selections, you must select books by authors who are new to you. If you cannot reach the required number of selections without selecting authors you have already read, you may select works you haven’t yet read by authors you have read before. If you cannot reach the required number of selections without selecting books you’ve read, bravo, and please read as many new-to-you books as you can to complete the challenge.


Guests of Honor: Required

Kinitra D. Brooks

Rin Chupeco

Sarah Gailey

Joamette Gil (publisher)
Heartwood: Non-binary Tales of Sylvan Fantasy

Fonda Lee



Villains Books: Required

Kameron Hurley

Marjorie Liu & Sana Takeda

Dia Reeves

Angela Slatter

Noelle Stevenson



Villains Books: Pick Five

Kendare Blake

Kelly Barnhill

Kacen Callender

April Daniels

Julie C. Dao

Kelly Sue DeConnick, Emma Ríos & Jordie Bellair

Nicky Drayden

Maria Dahvana Headley

Tessa Gratton

Alaya Dawn Johnson

R. F. Kuang

Claire Legrand

Tahereh Mafi

Cori McCarthy & Amy Rose Capetta

Sarah Pinborough

Sarah Porter

Rory Power

Emily Skrutskie

Caitlin Starling

Nova Ren Suma



Middle Grade/Young Adult Books: Pick Five

Nafiza Azad

Rena Barron

Claire Eliza Bartlett

Amy Rose Capetta

Emily Carroll

Roshani Chokshi

Charlotte Nicole Davis

Akwaeke Emezi

Hafsah Faizal

Corey Ann Haydu

Joan He

E. K. Johnston

Elizabeth Lim

Erin Entrada Kelly

Emily Lloyd-Jones

Tehlor Kay Mejia

Joanna Ruth Meyer

Mai K. Nguyen

Margaret Rogerson

Rebecca Kim Wells



Adult: Select Five

Cecelia Ahern

Robyn Bennis

Mirah Bolender

Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone

Jennifer Giesbrecht

Alix E. Harrow

Daisy Johnson

Karen Lord

Kate Mascarenhas

Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Tamsyn Muir

Claire North

Mallory O’Meara

Helen Oyeyemi

Sarah Pinsker

Sofia Segovia

Namwali Serpell

Samantha Shannon

Sharma Shields

Rivers Solomon

Presented by Narrate Conferences, Inc.
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