My 2015 Book Challenge

Reading has always been an important part of my life, and now as I try to navigate the world of professional writing, reading is even more critical than ever.

For the past three years I have participated in the Goodreads Reading Challenge.  I have not managed to meet my reading goals yet, but to be fair – I keep upping the goal.  Two years ago I read 46 books, but my goal was 52.  I thought it would be a cool idea to read at least 1 book per week (52).  I did start after the year began, so my results were pretty good.  Then I decided to increase my goal to 100 books this past year –and so far I have completed 71 books.  With only a few days until the end of the year I doubt I will get much beyond 72, however I nearly doubled my reading total from the previous year.  I will do the Reading challenge again this year – and I think I will stick with a goal of 100 books in 2015, and hopefully this year I will make it all the way to 100 or I might up the goal to 104 – that way if I do finish, I will have read 2 books per week.  Each time I have increased my goal my reading has increased as well.    

…but reading is about much more than just the number of books, it is the choice of books.  I read new books by my favorite authors (Claire Cook, Jodi Picoult, etc.).  I read books by fellow aspiring authors.  I read books from the bestseller lists that everyone is talking about.  I read books that help me with my own historical research.  I read books that my book club chooses.  I have piles and piles of books at my house that I am hoping to read one of these days.  I am never at a loss for something to read; in fact it’s often quite the opposite.  I am often overwhelmed at the amount of choices I have for reading.  Recently I found this amazing book challenge list on a blog post (http://www.thelilacscrapbook.com/2014/12/daily-december-29-2015-book-challenge.html) and I was intrigued.  The list of books to read isn’t a list of specific titles, but more a challenge to find a wide variety of books.  I really love this list and I am going to try to fit these into my reading goal for 2015.  I will also share this list with my book club, because I think they would appreciate it too. Feel free to join me in this reading challenge and 'challenge' yourself to read one or more of the books mentioned on this list.  I would love to hear all about your reading, and I promise I will share about my reading on my blog this year too.

 

A book with more than 500 pages

A classic romance

A book that became a movie

A book published this year

A book with a number in the title

A book written by someone under 30

A book with non-human characters

A funny book

A book by a female author

A mystery or a thriller

A book with a one-word title

A book of short stories

A book set in a different country

A non-fiction book

A popular author's first book

A book from an author you love but haven't read yet

A book a friend recommended

A Pulitzer-Prize winner

A book based on a true story

A book at the bottom of your to-read list

A book your mum loves

A book that scares you

A book more than 100 years old

A book based entirely on its cover

A book you were supposed to read in school but didn't

A memoir

A book you can finish in a day

A book with antonyms in the title

A book set somewhere you've always wanted to visit

A book that came out the year you were born

A book with bad reviews

A trilogy

A book from your childhood

A book with a love triangle

A book set in the future

A book set in high school

A book with a colour in the title

A book that made you cry

A book with magic

A graphic novel

A book by an author you've never read before

A book you own but have never read

A book that takes place in your hometown

A book that was originally written in another language

A book set during Christmas

A book written by an author with your initials

A play

A banned book

A book based on, or turned into, a TV show
A book you started but never finished