My 2018 in Books

I love to read, and I have for as long as I can remember.

I’m a book nerd. And I’m proud of it.

I think I got this love of books from my parents, who have bookshelves upon bookshelves full of books in their home, and they always made reading a priority when I was growing up.

My sister is also a book nerd, in fact, she teaches English and Screenwriting on the collegiate level. Books are definitely her thing too.

I always get a bit giddy when I go into bookstores, and I definitely support Amazon’s book and kindle departments. Probably a bit too much.

I’ve been doing the Reading Challenge on Goodreads since 2013, and I’ve completed my challenge every year except for that one. I think I overestimated my ability to read that many books that year, and since then, I’ve been a bit more realistic about my capacity to finish books.

A few months after I made my 2018 Reading Challenge goal to read 24 books, I thought I might’ve been a bit too optimistic with a full-time job, church calling, family, and regular life stuff. And in June, I was really thinking I’d NEVER meet my goal.

But then something happened. And I not only reached my goal, but I totally annihilated it!

Like…I read 51 books!!! FIFTY ONE!!! I beat my goal by 213%!!!

No one was more surprised than I was.

Here’s my 2018 in books. Have you read any of these? Or if you need recommendations, hit me up! (That blank one is my Precision Nutrition Certification Manual, which was around 600 pages long!!!).

So…how did I do it? What was the magic formula that helped me read twice+ the number of books I wanted to read? And double+ the number of books I’ve read the past few years?

• I read books in a genre that I love and that helps relieve my stress. #regencyperiodalltheway!
• I found books I was excited about.
• Kam and I started a “Must Read” book list that we share, which makes it easy to find good books to read.
• I found books that helped me learn and get closer to my goals.
• I discovered authors I really like.
• I started going to bed earlier so I could have more time to read. This is pretty huge because I’m also a night owl who likes to stay up way too late, then I’m too tired to read before bed, or I start to read, and then the book or my iPad mini hits me in the face when I doze off. Seriously, that happened just a few weeks ago, and it was quite painful.
• If I started a book that really didn’t knock my socks off, I gave myself permission to stop reading it, and I moved on to another one.
• I MADE time for reading, and it helps to have books you’re excited to dive back into!  I’d sometimes get so wrapped up in a book that I’d stay up way too late—like until 3 or 4 AM—because I could not put it down. And I really paid for that the next day, but is was worth it!

For my 2019 goal, I’m going to aim higher than last year’s goal. Not 51, but 48, which is pretty close and double the goal from the last few years. And it’s a bit scary because what if I can’t hit it? Although I’m pretty competitive, so I think I can do it.  I’m learning that when I choose to spend any downtime more wisely, I surprise myself at what I can accomplish!

48 books this year. I’ve already got several in my “To Read” list on Goodreads, so here I go!

Wish me luck!

And I’m always looking for books to read, so if you’ve got some favorites, please leave them in a comment. Sharing is caring, after all!