2024 Year in Reading

This year I read 120 of 100 books, beating my goal. I've gone higher than 100, but I always remember the year my goal was 125 and I only read 92 - not even 100!! So now I just keep it at 100 now, and anything extra is just good reads, heh.

Let's be Goodreads friends if we're not already!

My Goodreads Reading Challenge History:

In addition to my Goodreads reading goal, one thing I really wanted to focus on this year was getting back into the habit of blogging. I did a good job and exceeded my goal of 48 posts this year, and next year I'm really going to try and have more fun with it. Instead of expanding my Goodreads reviews as I did this year, I want to write more commentary on books and maybe do round-up posts on a theme. I did a few early in the year but then slacked off, so I want to be more thoughtful about that.

Read and Weed

It's March! It's Spring! It's time for spring cleaning, bookworm-style!

I'm excited to announce a personal reading project called Read and Weed.

Basically, that means that I have too many books on my shelves, and instead of quietly reading through them and donating the ones I don't want to keep, I need to make a big deal about it, complete with cutesy rhyming name.

My problem is that I love to buy books. It used to be much worse when I'd frequent library book sales and used bookstores, but I now avoid those as best I can. However, I still buy a lot of books from independent presses to support authors I know and love and have good stuff to read for Shorter is Better book club.

But if I'm already ordering one book, I often buy one or two others, either because they sound good or I want to get free shipping or just, you know, buy more books?

That means I have a lot of books that I haven't read. Because then I inevitably get distracted by other new books, or want to revisit an old favorite, or find something that looks good at the library. So while I might not continually spend money, I'm still bringing more books into my home. Even when the library books are returned, I still rarely turn to those unread volumes on my shelves.

Until now.

I may have gorgeous built-in bookcases that can handle this load, but I want to curate a library I love. And that means I need to assess what I already own.

It's my goal to read at least two books I already own each month, meaning this project should take about 20 years to finish. Okay, not really. But maybe?

At the same time, I'm going to try to curtail my book-buying so it's possible to actually have an end date for this project.

Wish me luck!

Goodreads History

Yesterday was a completely lazy day, but this morning my kid and I officially set our Goodreads goals. In doing so, I remembered that they show your whole history on the sidebar. I thought it would be interesting to share here!

My goal history

My kid's goal history

2023 Year in Reading

What a year! I started with good intentions of blogging regularly (as you do) and then dropped off mid-summer (as I do). But that doesn't mean I stopped reading!

In fact, I read 147 books this year after setting my Goodreads goal at 100. Whoops/yay! Clearly I prefer to spend my free time reading instead of blogging. However, my reading history shows that if I set my Goodreads goal too high, I fail miserably, so I'll probably keep it at 100 for 2024. I definitely went through phases where I'd devour books and then hit a dry spell, so it usually evens out. I also feel like I remember books less in the past few years. I'm not sure if that's me getting older and my memory failing, or it's because I read too much. Either way, I'd like to try and take reading slower next year. We'll see if it happens, but it seems like a nice approach to the new year.

My kid beat his goal, too! He wanted to read 40 books this year. I was a little iffy on that because we don't read together like we did when he was younger. Well, we read "together" in the sense that we make time each night to read, sitting side-by-side on the couch, but we're not sharing three picture books before bedtime like when he was little. Thankfully, his friend recommended the Wings of Fire series and he started reading both the chapter books and graphic novels. He was so into them that he'd choose to read over playing games, so I was happy! He still has about half the series to go, so that will be on his plate for 2024. I think we'll stick with the 40 book goal for him, too.

2021 Year in Reading

My year in blogging here was a bit hit or miss, so it only seems right that I do a big dump post of my year in reading, instead of my nicely planned out posts like last year.

First off, the general Goodreads goal. I wanted to read 125 books this year, and I read 142. Despite that leap, I'm only going to aim for 100 books in 2022. I want to read slower, feel less guilty about reading slumps, and focus more on my writing.

My son's Goodreads goal was 200 books, and he "only" read 165. I set his goal as high as it used to be because we'd read picture books together, but now we mostly read chapter books. He also reads on his own, so it's understandable he's reading fewer books even if we still read just as much. So his goal for 2022 will be 80, because there are some picture books I can't resist reading to him! So much good stuff out there, so my librarian heart needs an outlet.

It's hard to choose my favorite books of the year. This year I did my Beverly Cleary author study, and so many of those are amazing books, even as an adult reader. I also read a lot of small press books, and those are fantastic as well. If I was on my game, I could have done round-up posts for Beverly Cleary on her own, middle grade, young adult, graphic novel, small press, and adult books. And probably more subdivisions if I really tried.

But ain't nobody got time for that, so I'll just pick my favorite book from each month, whether it's old or new, small press or big 4, for kids or for adults.

January

Some of the Times by Gina Myers. I attended an online zoom reading event and heard Gina Myers read and was absolutely blown away. I love how she paired poetry with photos in that particular event, so I wanted to get some of her work. Her poems are really powerful on their own, but the last portion of this book includes photos that accompany her poems, and they both help elevate the stories told. More than words alone or images alone, they work together to lift your imagination up so it can run wild.

February

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw. Deesha Philyaw read part of “Peach Cobbler” at an event I attended and I was hooked from the first line: “My mother’s peachy cobbler was so good, it made God himself cheat on his wife.”

I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this collection, and once I got it I was torn between racing to finish it and wanting to drag it out so I’d have longer with these multi-layered characters. I can’t pick a favorite from this collection because they’re all that. damn. good. I’ve been recommending it to everyone I know, and that includes you. It’s the perfect mix of gossip, drama, and breathtaking storytelling you need in your life.

I usually try to not re-read a book until a year after my last reading, but this is one I’ll be coming back to more often than that. I can’t stop thinking about it and I want more. I've also gifted copies to several people.

March

Little Feasts by Jules Archer. This collection blew me away. From the cover alone I knew I was in for a treat (no pun intended), but the actual writing far exceeded my expectations. Each piece was so weird and delightful, like peeking into an entirely different world.

April

Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone. Short stories that address all of the different relationships you have in your life. I loved getting sucked into each person’s life for a brief moment. So many of these were absolutely amazing.

May

The Trouble with Language by Rebecca Fishow. I heard Fishow read at a book launch and was blown away by her writing style. I ordered her book before the event was over. As soon as it arrived, I sat and read it in a day, and am already wanting to read it again. The stories are so delightfully strange that they seem almost too real, and there is always something to notice hiding beneath the words that are written.

June

Revenge by Yoko Ogawa. A classmate in a writing workshop recommended this collection and I was blown away by it. I love the simple language that tells such powerful stories. I love how they’re connected. I’m already going to read it again just to study it.

July

Watching Edie by Camilla Way. I liked another Way book I read, but I think this was much better. The twists were well done and I think this is the only borderline-unreliable narrator book I’ve enjoyed. If you know me at all, you know unreliable narrators are one of my biggest pet peeves, so that it was well-done impressed me.

August

Cheating and sharing two because they're worth it - plus they're short, so grab them both and read them in one sitting and thank me later.

Daughters of the State by Leigh Chadwick. Chapbook of prose poems about girls in foster care. Very powerful.

Signs by Massoud Hayoun. Psychological thriller with a suspenseful storyline and nice twist at the end. Love the structure of the story.

September

The Evolution of Birds by Sara Hills. This collection is so beautiful I can’t stand it. I kept highlighting and underlining so many phrases that were powerful or awe-inspiring. Definitely one to revisit frequently.

October

A Carnival of Snackery by David Sedaris. As much as I love anything Sedaris writes, I think his diaries are my favorite. Yes, he has a lot of weird shit happen to him, but he even makes the mundane humorous and noteworthy, and I think that’s a great trait to have. So much of this book had me laughing, though he got serious as well.

November

Eternal Night at the Nature Museum by Tyler Barton. I loved Barton’s first collection, The Quiet Part Loud, and was eager to read more. Some stories are flash and some are longer, but all really resonated with me. I kept underlining beautiful phrases and find myself wondering about the characters even though I was only in their lives for a brief moment.

December

My Share of the Body by Devon Capizzi. Amazing story collection exploring grief and growth in so many different ways. It’s definitely one I’ll keep coming back to. I can’t get the egg urn from the title story out of my head as it is, and this whole collection is full of great details like that.

If you're interested, check out my 2021 Writing in Review post.

2020 Reading Challenges

I have to admit that I like to do Reading Challenges... just because. I'm the type of person who writes every little thing down on a To Do list just so I can mark it off. So even though reading is something I do every day (um, mostly...), I like being able to tick some boxes with my yearly reading habits.

The Goodreads challenge is one I've been doing the longest. Even before I had a Goodreads account, I had a Notepad document with all the titles I'd read each year. I actually used to also write down the page numbers of each book and do that math too, just because I liked seeing the numbers representing how much I'd read.

Now I don't care so much about page numbers, but I do still like setting a goal for myself and then reaching it. Or exceeding it. I've been participating since 2012, and only didn't reach my goal once, in 2013. It's nice to have a long streak going, and it feels pretty good to log in to Goodreads and see the challenge progress on the sidebar.

I read 134 out of 125 books. I'm going to keep my goal the same for 2021 just because I feel like it's attainable with a bit of work, but not so far out I blaze through books just to reach the goal.

This was my first full year of Book of the Month membership, so of course, I got swept up in their challenge as well! It's more limited since it focuses on BOTM choices, but it was fun to try and review all the books I got, as well as read one from each genre.

This year, my son read 285 out of 225 books. I'm changing his goal for next year because, though I'll still read to him, and we'll still read picture books, I want to start reading chapter books with him. Those will take more time to read, so while we'll still be reading together every night, we won't be checking books off as quickly. I also hope that most of the pictures read will actually be by him, but that happened a few times this year and I made notes in the reviews. 

Speaking of reviews, I'm hoping to get more of his input on the books starting in 2021. I usually just write about his reactions to the story and illustrations, but I think I'm going to explain Goodreads to him and get him more involved in the reviews. He's had a Goodreads account since he was a baby because I thought it'd be cool to keep track of every book he's ever read, but now I think it's time he's more active in the process.

2018 Reading Challenge

I didn't do a full-on Reading Challenge this year with certain genres to check off, but I did challenge myself to read 115 books via Goodreads. I read 134 books and completed the challenge! Check out what I read in 2018.

I also challenged my son to read 200 books via Goodreads, and we did it! See what we read together in 2018.

For 2019, I'm challenging myself to read 120 books and write two sentences about each. I want to read more of the books I'm hoarding on To Be Read shelves, as well. I've been really good about not BUYING new books, but my library card is constantly maxed out. I see books on bookstagram or am recommended by friends and family and put them on hold, and never get around to reading what's already in my house! I'm also determined to get this blog started back up again - maybe more as an informal book-related journal than a book review blog, though.

I'm challenging my son to read 222 books, just because I think that's a nice random goal to have that we can easily meet! I have to admit that we didn't read every night this past year, and I'd like to make sure we prioritize bedtime stories this year, so having a higher goal will help us with that.

My Year in Books: 2017

In 2017 I read 127 books, broken down into 34,396 pages. My Goodreads goal was 104, or 2 a week. I exceeded that by reading one book every Saturday in the late fall, as a way to decompress after a stressful work week! I can't give a reason for my months with especially low numbers, except I feel like I fell into a lot of reading funks this year, where nothing sounded good, or I couldn't get into something I had to read, or I was just wasting time playing on my phone instead (yeah, it happens).

My monthly breakdowns:
January - 11
February - 14
March - 11
April - 8
May - 15
June - 6
July - 9
August - 7
September - 9
October - 6
November - 13
December - 18

My broad genre breakdowns:
Young Adult - 54
Middle Grade/Elementary - 28
Nonfiction (adult and children) - 19
Adult Fiction - 26

Picture books not included, since I keep track of those on my son's Goodreads page.

I read 20 books for review. This includes books I was sent to review for the blog, as well as books I review for the Memphis Public Library's Teen Bookletters. I started reviewing for this newsletter in May. You can sign up for these reviews (and others) here.

I only re-read 4 books this year. I feel like that is really great for me, even though I haven't kept stats like this in previous books. I used to want to re-read my favorites so often, I limited myself to reading them only once every year. I guess I have been cutting down on that, to the point that I only re-read a few, and at least 2 of those were because I was reading the next book in a series and needed to re-read the first to get back in the series groove.

I didn't do so well with my Reading Challenge. I hardly even attempted any of the classics, but read 6 of the diverse reads. I actually read a lot of diverse books this year though, like The Hate U Give and Dear Martin, among others. So the challenge to read more diverse books was a success, and I plan to keep this up in 2018. As far as actually accepting any other challenge, though - I'm going to pass. Even as a bookworm, I have balked against required reading and either trudged through, or gone to Cliffs Notes (I admit it!). So as an adult, giving myself required reading beyond books I am required to review is just... not something I'm going to do this year. I can challenge my reading in other ways. I'm going to stick with one broad goal of 115 books as a Goodreads challenge.

How was your 2017 in books? Do you have goals for 2018's reading life?

PopSugar Reading Challenge

I did the PopSugar Reading Challenge for the second time this year. (See 2015’s Challenge here.) I start off by reading whatever strikes my fancy, then looking at the list to see what it qualifies as when I’m adding it to Goodreads. In November, I decided I’d actually use the list as a Challenge, and picked out books specifically to fit criteria I hadn’t yet met. See 2016’s Reading Challenge here.

I’m going to tackle this year’s list as more of a challenge, and look specifically for books that will help me mark off the list. I’m sure there will still be some books I read just for the fun of it that will qualify for the challenge, but I want to read a bit more widely this year.

Goodreads Wrap Up

I love a good reading challenge, whether it’s a loose goal of how many books to read in a year, or a more structured goal of what books to read in a year. I’ve been doing the Goodreads challenge since 2012, which is just a number of books to read.

My past Goodreads goals

2012: 125/120 - I went above and beyond, so I upped my goal for the next year!

2013: 92/125 - I was well below my goal. That's what I get for being smug and determined.

2014: 110/100 - I went a little bit above, but kept my goal in check for the next year. I learned my lesson.

2015: 141/100 - Well above my goal, which kind of amazes me because my course load was really heavy this year.

2016: 140/100 - Well above my goal again; also surprising since I finished up my MLS and adjusted to a new full-time job.

2017: ?/104 - My friend’s 2016 goal was 104 because that’s 2 books a week, and I like that logic. I don’t usually do too well if my goal goes over 100, but let’s try it!

My son’s Goodreads goals

2015: 183/100

2016: 273/200 - This doesn’t include the books my son hears at school; his teacher loves to read to the class! We try to read 2 books a night, sometimes reading more, and sometimes skipping storytime altogether if we’re running late with bedtime. A lot of the books are the same book over and over (coughDoCowsMeowcough) but I only counted the new books read, not how many times we re-read old favorites, so he did great!

2017: ?/250 - I want to keep the goal of reading 2 books a night, but try to miss fewer nights. I wanted to bump the goal up to 300, but considering re-reading so many favorites, I’m not sure we’d make it! This gives us a little wiggle room so we can still read 2 books every night, but not have to push to hit a goal.

Do you sign up for the Goodreads Reading Challenge? How many books did you read this year? What's your goal for next year?

2017 Reading Challenges

In 2017 I plan to read more of those books that you’re “supposed” to read in your life. One I read a long time ago and want to re-read. A few are books that I’ve really wanted to read and always say I will, but put it off in favor of any other book that catches my eye. Some are books that never sounded that good to me, but are such staples that I feel like I need to give in and read them, for the sake of being a bookworm and librarian.

I plan to read one classic a month, which still gives me plenty of reading time for whatever books catch my eye on the shelves.

The Classics Challenge books are:

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Animal Farm by George Orwell

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

I pulled this list from here, so once I complete this challenge, I will have read 24 out of the 30 books. I’ll leave those last 6 to tackle in 2018…

- - -

I also want to read more diverse books. I am going to make conscious choices with every book I read in 2017, but will read a baseline of 12 diverse books, which again is one a month, minimum. I picked books from We Need Diverse Books’ end of the year booklist.

The Diverse Challenge books are:

Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

The Game of Love and Death by Martha Brockenbrough

Nest by Esther Ehrlich

If I Ever Get Out of Here by Eric Gansworth

Since You Asked by Maurene Goo

The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley by Shaun David Hutchinson

Under a Painted Sky by Stacey Lee

Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez

Gabi, a Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero

Show and Prove by Sofia Quintero

The Misadventures of an Awkward Black Girl by Issa Rae

When Reason Breaks by Cindy L. Rodriguez

Are you undertaking any reading challenges for 2017? Do you have any book recommendations I should add to my list, or feedback on the titles I chose?