Let’s talk reading goals!
I admit that I’m a bit of a slacker when it comes to New Year’s goals. I don’t choose a word for the year, though I think the idea of doing so is lovely. And I don’t make any resolutions. If I did they’d probably be along the lines of, ‘Don’t wear yoga clothes four days a week.’ ‘Spend less time procrastinating writing and more time actually writing.’ <But procrastination is so much fun!> ‘Sleep more’. ‘Investigate the existence of calorie-free chocolate.’
When I saw this reading challenge posted on Bethany House’s fiction blog, however, it piqued my interest. Reading goals! Now that’s the sort of new year’s challenge that I can get behind.
To read the blog post where this challenge originated click here.
I love that the categories are so varied. In order to fulfill all sixteen of the above, I’d need to step outside of my usual reading genres and try new things. Which would probably be good for my creativity. Also, it might be fun to become a sleuth in order to find books that meet some of the parameters. A character that has hazel eyes like mine? Huh. Or a book with a Christmas scene?
Lots of readers set a goal at the outset of a new year regarding how many books they’d like to read. Are you a Goodreads user? There, you can easily input the number of books you’re aiming to read. I just checked and it looks as if more than 500 thousand readers have already done just that for 2015! As you list the books you read throughout the year, Goodreads keeps a running tally on your nearness to your goal.
Two of my readers, who’re friends, are sharing the same reading challenge this year. Categories in their challenge include, ‘A book set in the future’ and ‘A book with a color in the title.’ They’re keeping score and the one who checks off the most boxes will receive a free book at the end of the year, gifted to her by her friend. Isn’t that a cute idea? I love that they found a way to create a buddy system for books.
I know that many of you are prolific readers. Do you give yourself reading goals? If so, what are yours for this year?
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Becky Wade
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I definitely, absolutely want to read more this year. Hope you have a wonderful 2015, Becky.
Wishing you a wonderful 2015, too, Ganise. God bless!
This looks like a fun challenge, Becky. I will give you a hint that Jane Austen has a character that has hazel (although she spells it hazle) eyes. I won’t write it out in case you wanted to find out on your own. I’m not sure why I remember that fact, except maybe because I have hazel eyes, too, or maybe the spelling difference made it catch my eye. 🙂
Ooh! Good tip, Amy. Thanks! It might be fun to curl up with a Jane Austen novel this winter.
I’m going to try to read the fifty or so books on my bookcases that I haven’t read yet. Also, my sisters and I are going to attempt the Pop Sugar reading challenge. http://www.pinterest.com/pin/440508407277472417/ There are a few of these categories in which I would like suggestions. Any recommendations for a story with a love triangle and a book that will make me cry? What about a scary book? I would prefer Christian fiction or at least clean secular fiction (no s*x, bad language, etc.).
Any recommendations for a book set in the future and a book with non-human characters?
I am on the Read a Book with Nonhuman Characters in it and I am reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. The Chronicles of Narnia are filled with non-human characters. As for a book set in the future, I still haven’t figured that one out yet, either….
The Pop Sugar challenge is the same one that the reader friends I mention in the post are doing! I’m intrigued by several of the categories listed on that one. Looks like a blast!
I’m drawing a blank re: books in the categories you’re seeking, but I just asked some super readers in a facebook group I’m a member of for help and I’m sure they’ll have some ideas for you, Sylvia! Best of luck with the challenge, ladies!
Oh, thank you, Becky! That will be a great help.
A book that made me cry last year turned out to be one of my favorite reads. It is a novella called This Quiet Sky by Joanne Bischof. I cried three separate times. It is a wonderful story. Love triangle? Try The Unbound Heart by Dawn Crandall. That is another favorite and is a regency. Both are clean and Christian.
Brittany, I’ve read THE BOUND HEART by Dawn Crandall and it is fantastic! I love her writing style. Maybe I’ll have read this one by Joanne Bischof. It must be a moving story if you cried three times! I read two of her others.
Scary Christian book? Not By Sight by Kathy Herman or No One to Trust by Lynette Eason.
I’ve never read anything by Kathy Herman, so I’ll look for that. Lynette’s novel TOO CLOSE TO HOME kept me up far into the night as I continued reading. It doesn’t take much to scare me. 🙂
A book that will make you cry would be The Healer (O’Malley #5) by Dee Henderson, it will make you cry but if you want a total tear duct cleaning kind of cry you need to read the first 4 books before it. Also the Runner Up by Leah Banicki is good, it might make you cry and is a lesser known book.
Sylvia, Emilee was having trouble making the comment feature here work for her, but she wanted to recommend Shades of Blue by Kingsbury as a ‘book that will make you cry.’ There’s something to be said for books that have hooked your emotions so much that they make you cry!
I think I am doing the same challenge that Sylvia M. has mentioned. I also found it on Pinterest and it is from Pop Sugar. Also she lists categories that are on my list. I have been doing reading challenges since 2011. They are fun because they get me to step out of my box with books. I have discovered great books this way.
Exactly! What a delightful way to discover ‘hidden gem’ or new-to-you authors.
I read and reviewed 45 books last year so I’m shooting for 50 this year.
Go, Gail! Whoo hoo!
Hi Becky.
No I’m not on Goodreads. I used to set goals for what type of books I read and how many I’d like to read. I think the most I read when doing that was 63 in one year. I became too obsessed with it. Now I read for pure enjoyment. Fora couple of years now I haven’t kept track. I just read what I want to and when I want to. This year I’m keeping track of what books I’ve read. That may go out the window also.
On my Kindle fire , on manage your content it keeps track of what books I’ve downloaded from the digital library so I can see what I’ve read there. I just want to enjoy my reading and not be tied down to goal setting.
Blessings
Shirley
I totally and completely understand, Shirley. Books should be, in my opinion, “pure enjoyment”, as you mention. That’s exactly what I always always hope a book will be for me when I open it to page one. Wishing you a year full of delightful books!
My “goal” is to read as many books as possible! 179 in 2014. I like using Goodreads because it tracks what I have read. I hate to start reading a book and realize I’ve already read it. Now, when in question, I can check my list. I have kept track of my books read in a planner for several years so just entered them in Goodreads.
179 in 2014! Wow, that’s amazing Joan. I’m thoroughly impressed. 🙂 And yes, Goodreads is a good tool for tracking which books you’ve read. My mom’s an avid reader and she, too, dislikes it when she begins to get into a new book and then has that, “Uh oh, I think I’ve read this,” realization.
Actually I don’t set reading goals because I READ everything! Right now I have a stack of books (fiction and non-fiction) to read and a new list with all of the wonderful books that have just released since the first of the year. My hubby appreciates the fact that I read books from the library, review copies, secondhand stores and retail because he would never be able to keep up with my reading habit.
God bless husbands! ….and libraries, and review copies, and second hand stores…. 😉 I’m thankful for avid readers like you, Lori. Happy reading in 2015!
I love the Bethany house goal. I usually read 30-50 books/ year. Just finished Billy Coffey’s When Mockingbird’s Sing. Great book for the child as a main character. It is also very different from my normal read.
Yes, I set a goal this year on GoodReads, but I read so consistently that a goal is not needed. I also read from different genres, so I really don’t need to set a goal. The one you shared might be fun though.
I’ve participated in a Back to the Classics challenge, where we’re supposed to read classics in different categories (a classic translated from its original language, a classic from an author you’ve never read before, etc.) and a TBR challenge, where the requirement was to read 12 books from your bookshelves that you hadn’t yet read. I also participated in one where we were to read Christian nonfiction books that were written by people who had gone on to be with the Lord. I did all of those in one year – and got a little burnt out with reading challenges. I like some intentionality with what I read and some impetus to read some things I might not otherwise, but I also like the freedom to pick up something I come across during the year without feeling like I am behind on my challenges. So this year I am trying to find the right balance, I’m making a list of things I want to read, and then if they fit into a challenge, I’ll participate in it.
What a fun idea! I read pretty prolifically, and I love the idea of the BINGO card. Fun!
On Goodreads.com I set a goal to read 100 books this year. That part is easy. The hard part I will have to work on is doing a review on all, or at least most, of them.