Carer Mentor's 2026 Top Ten 'Annual Re-Reads'

and the current twenty-five books competing for a top-ten spot.

Jan 26, 2026

Hello, Dear Reader! Welcome to our new Carer Mentor community members!I’m Victoria. You can read why I’m publishing Carer Mentor here: Who Started Carer Mentor and Why?

Connecting with empathy and inspiration is at the heart of Carer Mentor’s mission.

I hope this offers you some new ideas and inspiration, for your reading in 2026!

1. An Introduction to My 2026 List of ‘Annual ReReads’

These are my Top Ten books I read each year. I started the list in 2017. I review and revise it every December based on what I’ve read that year. Many books compete for a spot in the top ten.

So this list is based on what I’ve read in 2025. But this is more than just a list.

Some books have stayed in my Top Ten since I first read them. Every year, I learn something new with each read, because my mindset and personal lens change. I may concentrate on a different part or draw different interpretations from the text.

The list marks a shift in my journey. Before 2017, ninety percent of my reading focused on advancing my business knowledge and leadership skills. I’ve kept a reference list of all those books, but they’re no longer my priority.

The Top Ten books now have a broader life context.

Re-accessing insights and checking out what I learnt before requires an organised system. I use Notion to interlink book references and lists.

Music, songs, and classical pieces serve as the vertebrae that keep me upright or moving.1

Books, scientific evidence, and articles help me stretch my mindset and expand my views. It’s how I build the mental-muscle strength I need to be agile and creative in my responses to life.

Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.

Viktor E. Frankl

These are some of the reasons why I value my Top Ten list so much. It’s helped me navigate some of the most challenging times of caregiving, especially the shift from my ‘big’ corporate job to being a caregiver. Curiosity and creativity are life skills!

Do you have a Top Ten list?
Do you re-read any books?
What’s shifted the second or third time?

2. CarerMentor’s Ten Annual Re-Reads

Caregiving is still my highest priority, but I also thrive from learning and growing my ideas. My 2026 Top 10 Reread list is for comfort, validation, motivation, and new inspiration.

The top two books have remained the same for several years. New additions are highlighted in bold.

There are three new books in the Top Ten, a significant change compared to previous years.

Man’s Search for Meaning: An introduction to logotherapy. The classic tribute to hope from the Holocaust. Viktor E Frankl. Published 1946.

Viktor E. Frankl was a professor of neurology and psychiatry at the University of Vienna Medical School until his death in 1997. He was the founder of what has come to be called the Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy (after Freud's psychoanalysis and Adler's individual psychology)—the school of logotherapy.