I like to set some goals for my reading year. If I mean to read more of a certain author, or get to particular titles, those things don’t happen unless I plan for them.
But I also like having flexibility to read a new find or pick up something I am in the mood for or feel the need to read about.
Some of my reading goals this year:
- One Dickens book I’ve not read yet.
- A couple of classic books.
- One C. S. Lewis book I’ve not read yet.
- A book about writing.
- A book about productivity, time management, or organization.
- At least one biography, autobiography, or memoir.
- A Bible study book.
- A Christian living book.
- A book related to midlife or aging.
- Some of the unread books on my shelves or in my Kindle.
I like reading challenges that help me reach my goals and expand my horizons. Plus, reading challenges are a fun way to share about books we love. But I don’t like being involved in too many because of the record-keeping involved.
These are the reading challenges that best intersect with my goals:
Bev at My Reader’s Block hosts the Mount TBR Reading Challenge, where we set a goal to read a certain number of books we already own. Details and rules are here. Bev has set the challenge up in increments of twelve, each set represented by a particular mountain. Last year I read 31 books from my shelves and Kindle app. This year I’m aiming for Mt. Blanc again, which is 24 books.
Shelly Rae at Book’d Out hosts the Nonfiction Reader Challenge. This can be done one of two ways. Shelly has twelve books in different categories that we can aim for. Or we can be a “Nonfiction Grazer” and make our own goals. Although I might hit a few of her categories, I’ll go the grazer route and incorporate the nonfiction goals mentioned above.
Finally, The Intrepid Reader hosts the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge. A lot of my fictional reads fit this category. I’m going to aim for the Medieval level at 15 books.
Do you make reading plans or participate in reading challenges?
Stray Thoughts 
Sounds like a challenging year!
Worthy challenges! I have a list of books, both on my shelves and Kindle that I want to read and a separate list of those I want to read but need to obtain.
I admire you doing this! I feel like I’m pretty regimented in most of my life, so I prefer just letting my reading be whatever I feel like at the time. For your CS Lewis pick, I vote for “Till We Have Faces” unless you’ve already read it. I found it really impactful and was apparently his favorite book he wrote.
I like a balance between making some definite plans yet having room for spontaneous reads as well. I think I have that book from Lewis but I don’t think I’ve read it yet.
Barbara, I love how you make a list of goals that you want to accomplish…and make them specific to genres and authors. I did a reading challenge a couple of years ago, but I actually read more books last year by just listing them on my books read page on my blog than I did when I did the reading challenge that I signed up for. I love list making and crossing things off when it comes to things that pertain to homemaking, etc. but not when it comes to books. I read first and then write them down. But I always enjoy seeing what you have read, and I have ended up reading a lot of good books because of your reviews.