How to Build a Notion Reading List Template (and Actually Use It)

If you've ever tried tracking your reading on Goodreads, you know the drill: limited shelves, no custom fields, no way to write actual notes alongside a book entry. And a plain spreadsheet works fine until you want to filter by genre, view books by status, or pull up that highlight from a book you finished eight months ago.

Notion solves all of that. A Notion reading list isn't just a list — it's a connected workspace where each book is a page, your reading notes live right inside, and you can slice your entire library by status, rating, or genre in seconds. This guide walks you through building one from scratch, including three views that make it genuinely useful, a formula trick to stop ignoring abandoned books, and a way to link your library to friends you want to recommend books to.

---

Setting Up Your Reading List Database

Start with a new full-page database in Notion. Call it My Reading List. These six properties give you everything you need without overdoing it:

| Property | Type | Notes | |---|---|---| | Title | Title | Default — the book name | | Author | Text | First and last name | | Status | Select | Want to Read / Reading / Finished / Abandoned | | Genre | Multi-select | Fiction, Non-Fiction, Business, Self-Help, etc. | | Rating | Select | ⭐ / ⭐⭐ / ⭐⭐⭐ / ⭐⭐⭐⭐ / ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | | Date Finished | Date | Fill in when you mark a book as Finished |

Keep the Status options simple. "Abandoned" is important — more on why in a moment. For Rating, using star emoji characters (⭐ through ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐) makes sorting and scanning the table view much more satisfying.

Once you have the database set up with a few entries, the real power kicks in when you add views.

---

Three Views That Make Your Reading List Useful

The default table view is fine, but Notion's real advantage is that one database can show you completely different perspectives depending on what you need.

1. Gallery View — the "cover art" feel

Add a Gallery view and set the card preview to Page Cover. Then add book cover images to each entry (drag in a JPG or paste a URL). Suddenly your reading list looks like a real bookshelf. This view is great for browsing your "Want to Read" pile — filter it to Status = "Want to Read" and you've got a visual queue.

2. Table View — sorted by Rating

Add a Table view and sort it by Rating, descending. This is your "best books I've read" view. When someone asks for a recommendation, you open this, filter by Genre or by Finished, and you've got a ranked list on the spot. It's far more useful than trying to remember book titles off the top of your head.

3. Board View — kanban by Status

Add a Board view and group by Status. You get four columns: Want to Read, Reading, Finished, and Abandoned. Drag cards between columns as your reading progresses. The Abandoned column is the honest one — most reading systems pretend you'll eventually finish every book you start. This one lets you admit when a book isn't working and move on.

---

Free Resource: Want a head start? Grab our free Notion template kit — no email required. → Get the free template

---

Reading Notes Inside Each Book Entry

This is where Notion genuinely beats every other reading tracker: each row in your database is also a full Notion page. Click into any book entry and you're looking at a blank page where you can write anything.

Set up a simple template for new book entries so every page starts with the same structure:

## Key Quotes
(paste your highlights here)

## Summary
(2–3 sentence summary in your own words)

## Action Items
(what will you actually do because of this book?)

You can create this as a database template in Notion — click "New" → "New template" and add those headers once. From then on, every new book you add can start with that structure automatically. This turns your reading list into a personal knowledge base. Six months later, you can search for a quote, find the book it came from, and see exactly what you planned to do with it.

---

Formula: Auto-Flag Abandoned Books Older Than 30 Days

Here's a small formula that adds a motivational nudge. Add a Formula property called Stale? and use this formula:

if(
  and(
    prop("Status") == "Reading",
    dateBetween(now(), prop("Date Added"), "days") > 30
  ),
  "⚠️ Check in",
  ""
)

(Add a Date Added property to track when you started reading each book.)

Any book that's been in "Reading" status for more than 30 days gets flagged with a ⚠️ Check in label. This isn't meant to shame you — it's a prompt to either pick the book back up or move it to Abandoned honestly. Reading lists get more useful when they reflect reality, not aspiration.

---

Linked Recommendations Database

If you swap book recommendations with friends, this is worth the five minutes it takes to set up. Create a second database called Recommendations with these properties:

• Book — Relation (linked to your Reading List database)
• Recommended To — Text (or a People property if your friends are Notion users)
• Date — Date
• Their Verdict — Select (Loved it / Liked it / Didn't finish / Haven't read yet)

Now when you recommend a book, you create a row in Recommendations, link it to the book in your Reading List, and track whether they ever actually read it. Over time you learn which friends share your taste — the ones whose "Loved it" responses reliably match yours are your best future recommendation sources.