Pokémon Reading Challenge

The Pokémon Reading Challenge turns reading into a Pokémon-catching adventure. Each Pokémon has a reading prompt. Complete the prompt with a book, add that book, and mark the Pokémon as caught. Catch favorites, complete a region, challenge the Gyms, or try to catch them all — there is no required pace.

No! This is an ongoing challenge with no end date. It has been running for about nine years; only the website is new. When a new year begins, the challenge continues with it. There is no December 31 deadline.

Pretty much anything you consider reading can count: novels, novellas, short books, chapter books, picture books, graphic novels, manga, comics, audiobooks, fan fiction, and more. This challenge is about making reading fun, not policing what counts as a “real” book.

No. A DNF (did not finish) does not count as completing a Pokémon reading prompt or catching that Pokémon. Finish the book before using that reading for a catch.

Normally, no. Each time you read a book, that reading can only count toward one Pokémon.

The exceptions are if you re-read the book, or when catching Unown. A re-read counts as a new reading, so you may use that new reading to catch a different Pokémon. For a re-read, BOTH book entries must have a read date entered, and the two read dates must be different. Unown are a special exception: an Unown may reuse a book even if that same reading already counted for any other Pokémon.

Example: If you read Alice in Wonderland and use it to catch Bulbasaur, you may still use that same reading to catch Unown A. You still could not use that reading to catch another regular Pokémon.

For the two special-character forms, Unown ! requires a book title containing !, and Unown ? requires a book title containing ?. Those forms still receive the normal Unown reuse exception.

Yes. A re-read counts as a separate reading, so the same book can be used again for another Pokémon.

Important: BOTH book entries must have a read date entered, and the two read dates must be different.

If both entries do not have dates, or if the dates are the same, the site will treat them as the same reading and will not allow the book to be reused.

Display Name is the name shown around the site, including places like your profile and Trainer Card.

Username is your unique account name.

You can set or update both under Settings. You are allowed to change your display name or username when needed, but please avoid changing your username too often so other readers and teammates can still recognize you. Usernames must remain unique and use 3–30 letters, numbers, or underscores.

No. This is an unofficial, noncommercial fan-made reading challenge created by fans for fans. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, or associated with The Pokémon Company International, Nintendo, Creatures Inc., or GAME FREAK inc.

Pokémon and all related names, characters, images, and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. No ownership of Pokémon intellectual property is claimed.

Yes! Since the website launched in 2026, you can backlog books you read during 2026, including books finished before creating your account. Each book can still only be used once.

There is no prompt policing. If you genuinely think your book fits the prompt, use it. Prompts are here to make choosing books fun, not stressful.

Find the Pokémon in the Pokédex, complete its reading prompt, add the book you used, and mark it as caught. Your progress saves to your account and contributes to your personal progress and, if applicable, your team's totals.

Next Uncaught moves you to another Pokémon you haven't caught yet, making it easier to browse for your next challenge.

Yes. You can update a Pokémon entry if you need to correct or change its book information.

Open an individual Pokémon/form and use the What Others Read tab inside Books Read to see anonymous book ideas other readers used for that exact Pokémon/form. Only books attached to caught Pokémon are included, duplicate title/author entries are combined, and usernames are never shown.

No! You can catch Pokémon in any order you want. You do not have to follow National Pokédex number order, complete one region before moving to another, or catch an evolution family in sequence. For example, you can catch a final evolution before its earlier stages if that is the Pokémon or prompt you want to complete.

Tags and filters help you find special groups of Pokémon, such as Legendary Pokémon, Mythical Pokémon, Starters, Fossils, Trainer Teams, Team Bonuses, Safari encounters, shiny status, and Pokémon types. A tag helps organize Pokémon; it does not automatically mean you earned the matching achievement.

Can't decide what to read next? Select a region — or Any — and the Safari Zone can choose a Pokémon for your next reading challenge. By default, Safari searches your uncaught Pokémon.

Yes. Turn on All Pokémon — Caught + Uncaught when you want Safari to include Pokémon you already caught. This is especially useful when shiny hunting. Leave it off when you only want new uncaught Pokémon.

Turn on Wishlist Pokémon Only if you want Safari to choose only from Pokémon on your wishlist. You can combine this with your region choice and the Caught + Uncaught option.

Mark the Pokémon as a Safari encounter before you catch it. If you then complete the prompt and catch that Pokémon, the Safari credit is locked into that catch. Marking it after it was already caught does not count toward Safari achievements.

Safari itself is unlimited, but only your first 5 Safari searches each day can roll for a shiny. Each eligible search has a 1 in 60 shiny chance. The Safari page shows your Shiny Attempts Today counter and a live countdown to the next daily reset. After those 5 rolls, you can keep using Safari normally; you just will not receive another shiny roll until the counter resets.

Choose Save Shiny. This keeps the shiny on your Saved Shiny list so you can come back to it. Complete that Pokémon's normal reading prompt and catch it to finish the shiny catch.

Saved Shiny means you found a shiny but have not permanently caught it yet. Shiny Caught means the shiny has been caught and unlocked. The Pokédex has a separate filter for each list, and both lists show the shiny artwork.

In Safari, turn on All Pokémon — Caught + Uncaught. If a Pokémon you already caught rolls as shiny, choose Catch Shiny. You do not need to read another book or add another book because you already completed that Pokémon's regular catch.

Yes. Catching the shiny also counts the regular Pokémon as caught. The reverse is not true: catching the regular Pokémon does not automatically catch its shiny.

It is moved to the Missed Shinies dropdown in Safari. Select that Pokémon later to make the same shiny encounter appear again, then choose Save Shiny or Catch Shiny. Missed Shinies can hold up to 4 unfinished shiny encounters. If all 4 spots are full and you find another shiny, Safari will make you save or catch that shiny before you can keep searching, so nothing gets deleted or replaced. Once a missed shiny is saved or caught, it leaves the Missed Shinies list.

Yes. After you permanently catch a shiny, open that Pokémon and use the Regular / ✨ Shiny toggle to choose which artwork you want to view. Your shiny remains caught either way.

Shiny Start — catch 1 shiny.
Shiny Hunter — catch 3 shinies.
Shiny Collector — catch 5 shinies.
Shiny Specialist — catch 10 shinies.

The Achievement Binder collects achievement cards you earn by reaching goals throughout the challenge. Achievements can come from catching Pokémon, collecting types, Safari encounters, shinies, Gym progress, teams, Trainer Teams, and completing regions.

Complete the requirement shown on the locked card. When an achievement is ready, claim it to reveal the full card artwork in your binder.

For Type Collector achievements, a Pokémon counts only toward its primary/first listed type. A dual-type Pokémon can still appear when browsing either type in the Pokédex, but it contributes to only its primary type's collector achievement.

Safari Specialist requires 20 Pokémon that were marked as Safari encounters before they were caught. Once you catch a properly marked Safari Pokémon, that Safari credit stays attached to the catch.

Yes. You can download an individual unlocked achievement card or use the binder download menu to download the full binder, locked cards, or unlocked cards.

When you battle a Gym Leader, you are completing the reading prompt for the Gym Pokémon you are trying to defeat.

For example, if the Gym Pokémon is Geodude, you are working with Geodude's reading prompt.

If you have already caught that same Pokémon in your Pokédex, you can choose Use Existing Caught Pokémon. That means you already completed that Pokémon's prompt before, so you can use your existing catch for the Gym Battle and you do not need to read another book.

If you have not caught that Pokémon, you will only have the New Entry option. With New Entry, read a new book that fits that Pokémon's prompt.

A New Entry can be used only for the Gym Battle, or you can choose to also count that book toward your Pokédex. If you count it toward the Pokédex, the same entry defeats the Gym Pokémon and catches that exact Pokémon for your Pokédex.

No. If you choose to use a book strictly for the Gym Battle, that book counts only toward defeating that Gym Pokémon. It cannot later be reused to catch a different Pokémon in your Pokédex.

No. Using an already-caught Pokémon for a Gym Battle does not remove it from your Pokédex.

Yes. Gym completions contribute to the Gym Rankings for competitive teams.

Yes, every account must choose a team. You do not have to participate in competitive rankings: choose one of the competitive teams if you want to compete, or choose Poké Dolls for the noncompetitive option. Team selection also helps the Reading Frenzy admin keep accounts and challenge participation organized, and it unlocks your team-themed Trainer Card and character choices.

Bragging rights and community fun! Team Stats tracks Pokémon caught and Gym progress for friendly competition.

Each team can have featured Team Pokémon Bonuses. Catching one of those featured Pokémon while it is active earns 2 team points instead of the normal 1 — your regular catch point plus one extra bonus point. For Poké Dolls, the same system awards 2 community hearts instead of 1. Bonus credit only applies to qualifying catches made after the bonus feature became active; Pokémon that were already caught beforehand do not receive the extra point or heart.

You can! Team selection shows current member totals. If you're torn between teams, joining a smaller one can help keep the competition balanced.

Team Leaders hype up their team, encourage members, and pass along issues, concerns, or questions. Team Leaders also have a private Discord chat.

The Reading Frenzy Discord has dedicated team chats for talking, sharing what you're catching, and showing off customized Trainer Cards.

No. Friendly competition and playful trash talk are fine, but please be respectful. The point is to read, catch Pokémon, and have fun together.

Yes, but you cannot change your team yourself. Contact the challenge administrator to request a team change.

A fun personalized profile card. After joining a team, choose one of your team's characters, a team-themed card background, and your Pokémon team.

Any Pokémon. It does not have to be caught. Adding an uncaught Pokémon to your card is just for fun and does not catch it or change your Pokédex progress.

Up to six Pokémon.

Special Trainer Badges are collectible awards earned through things like community milestones, events, raffles, anniversaries, or other special challenge moments. They are separate from the Gym Badges you earn by completing Gym Challenges.

When you earn a new Special Trainer Badge, the site will let you know. Open your Trainer Card and choose Edit Card → Special Badges. You can preview an earned badge in a larger view before displaying it, and you can choose up to five earned badges to show on your Trainer Card at one time. Selecting a displayed badge again removes it from the card without taking away the badge you earned.

Team rankings, Pokémon caught, member totals, Gym rankings, Team Leaders, and your My Team Members list.

Yes. A Team Leader is still a team member and is included in the total.

For now, My Team Members displays usernames. Your email address is not shown there.

Yes. Challenge progress saves to your account so you can access it again when you sign in.

It gives you your own copy of your challenge data as an extra safety net. Downloading a backup occasionally is recommended.

On the Pokédex page, choose 📚 Download Caught List. It creates a PDF of your caught Pokémon and the book title, author, and read date you saved for each one, making it easy to remember which book you used for which Pokémon.

Yes. Compatible backup data can be imported/restored using the site's backup tools.

No. Your email is used for your account and is not displayed to other challenge members through community features.

Yes. Your Pokédex, books, caught Pokémon, Gym progress, Trainer Card, and personal challenge progress belong to your account. Team Stats combines certain totals for competition without combining personal collections.

Community features may show challenge-related information such as your username and team affiliation. Your teammates can see your username in My Team Members. Your email is not displayed there.

There may be holiday, seasonal, or other special events throughout the challenge, so keep an eye out.

The core challenge is live, but the website will continue receiving updates, improvements, bug fixes, and potentially new features.