2018 Reading Goals

While we are still in January, I thought I would make a post about my reading goals for the year.

1. Read 100 books

This is a pretty straightforward goal. I read 50 books in 2017, so 100 books may sound like a big leap, but I was a bit slack on the old reading front and spent more time than I would have liked procrastinating on the internet/playing Gardenscapes, so I would rather spend that time reading.

2. Read before bed

On a related note, I tend to faff about on my phone before I go to sleep, and that is not a healthy habit: apparently the blue light is very disruptive to falling asleep, and if I am honest, I can attest to that. I would like to leave the phone out of the bedroom and wind down by reading.

3. Read a lot more books than I buy

I, like many readers, end up buying many more books than I read. I have spent the last week logging all the unread books I own and there is more than 450, which I know is fewer than a lot of people, but when I moved to Germany, I only brought about 30 books in total, most of which I had already read.

4. Read at least 1 Booker Prize winner per month

This year is the 50th anniversary of the Booker Prize. I thought I had read a lot more than I actually have, so this year I want to tick some more off the list.

5. Engage with the afterlife of the book

Last year, I graduated with a degree in English Literature, and I have missed reading around the book such as critical essays (yes I even miss the crazy critics), reinterpretations by other authors, discovering source materials, etc. So I when a book peaks my interest I would like to investigate it more thoroughly, with the added bonus that I don't have to write an essay on it later!

6. Read more from genres I usually overlook

I have mentioned that I am quite an eclectic reader, but there are some genres that I do enjoy when I read them, but for some reason I just don't pick them up. Fantasy is one of those genres, so I have subscribed to Fairyloot to inspire me. The first book I read this year was Everless and I thought it was fantastic. I would also like to read more non-fiction this year.

7. Finish reading Harry Potter

So, I know this is unusual to find a bookie person who hasn't read Harry Potter, but that's me. In fact, I read all of the Robert Galbraith books before I started reading Philosopher's Stone. Why? Well, to begin with, it was because of my attitude towards series, so I didn't want to wait a year or so before the next book was released, and by the time Deathly Hallows was released, I was in a major reading slump, so I never got around to it. I have read the first three so far, and I adored them all, so this year I want to get the last four ticked off too!

8. Read some books in German

I mentioned in my Hello post that I would like to start reading some books in German because I have been living here for a few years now and I still want to improve my vocabulary. Some books will be originally written in German and some will be books I have already read in English.