PS Reading Challenge 2025

What books do you want to read?

Every year I join and try to finish the PS Reading Challenge. In the past couple of years their prompts lacked creativity, I am sorry to say. But this year I really liked the ideas they have put out there to inspire us. I am going to share below a couple of books that I plan to read. I will also mention the prompts where they fit for me.

I’m still here by Marcelo Rubens Paiva

Since I still didn’t read the book myself, or watched the movie for that matter, I can’t say much about it. I will borrow the dust jacket promotion of the book from the editors:

Eunice Paiva is a woman of many lives. Married to Congressman Rubens Paiva, she stood by his side when he was impeached and exiled in 1964. A mother of five, she raised her children alone after her husband was arrested by agents of the dictatorship in 1971, then tortured and killed. Amid the pain, she reinvented herself. She resumed her studies, became a lawyer, and emerged as a defender of Indigenous rights. She never shed a tear in front of the cameras.

In speaking about Eunice and her final battle, this time against Alzheimer’s, Marcelo Rubens Paiva also reflects on memory. He explores his childhood and fatherhood. He delves into a dark chapter of recent Brazilian history. He recounts and attempts to understand what truly happened to his father, Rubens Paiva, in January 1971.

I believe it would fit in a couple of prompts for the challenge, for example:

• A book where an adult character changes careers
• A book about an overlooked woman in history
• A book that reminds you of your childhood (I was born under the dictatorship period in Brazil)

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Again, can’t say much about it before reading it… so, I will paraphrase the promotion material. But needless to say, it’s a classic, a modern classic.

The Alchemist combines magic, mysticism, wisdom, and wonder into an inspiring tale of self-discovery. It has become a modern classic. The book has sold millions of copies around the world, transforming the lives of countless readers across generations.

Paulo Coelho’s masterpiece tells the mystical story of Santiago. He is an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. His quest will lead him to riches far different—and far more satisfying—than he ever imagined. Santiago’s journey teaches us about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts. It instructs us on recognizing opportunity and learning to read the omens strewn along life’s path. Most importantly, it encourages us to follow our dreams.

For me it fits in a few prompts as well:

• A book under 250 pages
• A book that is considered healing fiction
• A classic you’ve never read
• A book you have always avoided reading

Did you know that I am always open to book recommendations? Please take a look at books that you can suggest for me to read this year! It’s a list of all the prompts in the PS Reading Challenge. I will be delighted to include your book in any of the prompts of the challenge.