My 2014 Readolutions

I have set a goal on Goodreads again of reading 100 books in 2014.  That will include the chapter books I read with my kids, too. I have been reading lots of middle grade & YA fiction, which I love, but as always, I want to make sure I find time for "grown-up" books as well.

I will read at least 25 shelf-sitters this year!  I have too many books on the shelves that I've been neglecting.  I picked the number 25 because that's about how many I read last year, but I'd be happy to see that number move up this year.  Included in this goal is to read at least six of my Persephone books.

I will continue to read with my kids. The three of us read a chapter book together just about every night.  I also read books alongside Skye for our mother-daughter book group and our teen book club at the library, and we discuss together; and I've been reading chapter books aloud with Felix, some for the kids book club at the library.  I'd like to find more time for us to look at picture books together, which they both still love.  I hope they always do!

I will keep up with the reading for my online and IRL book clubs!  We just started our IRL group this past year, and it's been fun to get together every month or so, discussing books and developing friendships.

I will track my reading on Goodreads. This has been a great resource for me. I really enjoy being able to look back at what I've read, putting books onto different "shelves," and I love seeing updates about what my friends are reading.

I hope to post much more on this blog.  Writing is another goal for me this year, and this is such a fun combination of two of my favorite things to do.

2012 Readolutions

I love readolutions.  This year, instead of making a list, I will write a bit about the kind of a reading year I hope to have in 2012.

I look forward to reading with my kids (ages 12 & 7). I read to them from a chapter book just about every night, and I read books with Skye for our mother-daughter book group and our teen book club at the library. I'd like to find more time to read one-on-one with Felix, and I'd like to remember to make time for picture books, which they both still love.

I plan to continue to track my reading on Goodreads. This has been a great resource for me. I joined in July 2011, and since I had already been keeping a book list, I added all of the books I’d read from the start of the year on. I'm really enjoying taking a look at everything I read in 2011! I love how you can put the books into different groupings (called "shelves").

I will participate in my reading communities! I am a co-moderator of StorkNet's Reading Circle, so that’s a priority; I will do my best to post a reading update there each week, and to read the group reads and post about them on our discussion threads. I will participate in the challenges there. I’ve been enjoying FridayReads on Facebook. I love the Chicklit forums and hope to post more there. Maybe I’ll even jump into some discussions at the Republic of Pemberley. My biggest leap will be to enter the bookish blogosphere more fully.

As for my blog, do I even have to say? Of course I want to post more. Maybe this pretty new format will keep me motivated for awhile. I’m also signing up for the 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge, so that should help, too.

I just posted a goal on Goodreads of reading 100 books in 2012. That will include the chapter books I read with my kids, too. I have been reading lots of middle grade & YA fiction, which I love, but I'd like to find a bit more time for "grown-up" books this year.

I also want to:

~ Read more books from my shelves. I’d like to especially focus on my lovely collection of Persephone books, as well as books that have been given or loaned to me.

~ Organize our bookshelves. We got some new shelves this year, but the organization is maybe only half-way complete. I love doing this, but I think I put it off because it seems more like a treat than a must-do.

~ Rein in my bookstore shopping – at least make it more purposeful. I will focus on book club books, the kids’ Christmas book stacks, and keepsake books (ones I love and want on my shelves.) I will try to avoid those impulse buys.

~ Participate in Buy a Friend a Book week at least once this year. I’d forgotten about this cool tradition!

Ah.  I love envisioning my great reading year ahead.  Do any of you make reading goals, or have any special reading plans for 2012?

Readolutions 2009

1. I will read at least 50 books.
2. I will read some of my shelf-sitters, including Newbery winners, Persephone books, poetry and short stories, parenting books, and something in French.
3. I will read every day with my kids, use my book lists (from Under the Chinaberry Tree, The Read-Aloud Handbook, and Book Crush) to request books for them, and take them to the library regularly.
4. I will keep my reading journal/calendar up-to-date.
5. I will keep a monthly TBR list, and start a list of books I'd love to read someday.
6. I will keep lists for "books purchased/received" and "books lent."
7. I will keep my Amazon wish list updated.
8. I will post on this blog regularly, hopefully at least weekly, and keep my sidebar updated.
9. I will post on friends' blogs.
10. I will participate in BAFAB week at least once this year.
11. I will participate in some reading challenges.
12. I will participate in several book clubs, online (the Reading Circle and maybe Chicklit) and offline (women's book club and mother-daughter book club).
13. I will read all of this year's Reading Circle group reads, and reply to all of the discussion threads.
14. I will post every week on the Reading Circle, and post at least monthly on Chicklit.
15. I will buy fewer books.
16. When I buy books, I will do my best to buy independent/used, or to buy in support of a charity (public library, school, etc.).
17. I will order some Persephone books for my birthday!
18. I will work on organizing my book shelves, and find a new home for some of my books.

Readolution #12

12. I will organize my book shelves, and find a new home for some of my books.

This was my last readolution for 2008. What a fun one! I didn't find much time for it, but this is a great task to carry over into 2009.

I'd love to have a place for books in each room of the house. I think I somewhat have that now, but I'd like to make these places more deliberate, as well as practical. Ah, that never-ending project: home organization!

Readolutions #10 & #11

10. I will buy fewer books.

Ha.

11. When I buy books, I will do my best to buy independent/used, or to buy in support of a charity (public library, school, etc.).

I did quite well with this one. Always room to improve, of course.

I am going to reevaluate both of these goals for 2009. For one thing, I really don't believe there's anything wrong with aquiring books. It's a much healthier (and less expensive!) habit than lots of things I can think of. I love having lots of books around me; they are in integral part of my home. I also believe it's important, especially now, to support books and their authors, as well as libraries. Hmm. I'd like to come up with some readolutions around these thoughts for 2009.

Readolution #9

9. I will participate in BAFAB week at least once this year.

Receiving a book unexpectedly, chosen just for you, is one of the best feelings in the world. Buy a Friend a Book Week is a such brilliant idea. From the website:

Celebrating BAFAB is easy. Just get yourself to a real-life or virtual book store during Buy a Friend a Book Week (the first weeks of January, April, July, and October) and, well, buy a friend a book! But here's the fun part: you can't buy your friend a book because it's their birthday or they just graduated or got engaged or had a baby or anything else. You have to give them a book for no good reason. In fact, this present out of the blue from you should shock the pants off of whomever you decide to give it to. And it'll make them happy. And that's the point: promote reading, promote friendships. Just make sure to let them know about Buy a Friend a Book Week, so they can spread the joy in turn.

I've done this twice now, and it's so fun! I did pick two friends who had birthdays in those weeks -- one in early October, one in early January -- but we hadn't exchanged gifts for ages and because they were on my mind, I chose them as recipients. (They are also two of the biggest book lovers I know.)

For Jennifer, I got a Persephone book. We'd been talking about these books for awhile, but she hadn't treated herself to one yet. I had her go to the website and pick out the one she wanted me to order for her, as I couldn't choose from all of the lovely books they have. And I wanted her to experience the fun of browsing the beautiful website and picking out a title she could anticipate receiving. (She picked Every Eye by Isobel English.)

For Michelle, I got The Soup Peddler's Slow & Difficult Soups: Recipes & Reveries by David Ansel. Michelle used to be my neighbor, and she was the person I could call up and say, "Have you got a cup of sugar? I'm baking and just discovered I'm all out!" And then we'd end up hanging out together for the rest of the afternoon with our kids. She always has great food ideas, and I thought she'd enjoy this fun recipe/story book.

Later, Jennifer and Michelle both surprised me with books during a BAFAB week: Jennifer with Eat, Pray, Love, and Michelle with The Creative Family. I didn't expect them to "spread the joy" back to me, but I'm not complaining! As I said at the start of this post, receiving a book unexpectedly, chosen just for you, is one of the best feelings in the world.

Readolutions #7 & #8

7. I will keep a "books purchased/received" list.

I started doing this in 2007, and I did pretty well with it that year, so I decided to continue. Well, I haven't done it at all this year. I really enjoyed keeping this list and looking back at it, so this readolution may reappear on my 2009 list.

8. I will keep my Amazon wish list updated.

I started an Amazon wish list in 2007, I believe, and it was really nice to have. I liked being able to look back at books I'd considered buying for whatever reason. I started gift idea lists, too -- it's really easy to do, and you can make several of them. I made one for my kids and one for extended family. I have just recently peeked at them again (the holiday season and all) and I'm making updates and resolving to again use these great Amazon features.

Readolution #6

6. I will keep a TBR list.

I imagined that this year I would keep a running list (a "To Be Read" list) on the computer of all the books I'm interested in reading, maybe organized into categories and in priority order. Of course, I pictured this list being pages and pages long, including every book I'd read about or heard about that sounded vaguely interesting, and adding in my towering piles of shelf-sitters.

I think I intimidated myself into not even starting this project.

I have kept a list of books I'd like to get to each month, listed in the monthly section of my reading calendar. I do this each month, and try not to foresee what the next month will bring. This has been fun; I've learned a lot about my reading habits by setting these goals and seeing what happens with them. I started doing this in 2007, and although my lists started out as being very unrealistic (too many books, too many "I really should read..."s), I've noticed I'm better at predicting what I will want to and be able to read each month.

Readolution #5

5. I will post on this blog regularly, perhaps weekly.

I think it's fairly obvious how I've been doing on this one. I'll spin it in a positive light: Since October, I've been doing pretty well. Ha.

I hope to continue posting on this blog regularly. I think the key is just doing a short post (like this one) when I have a moment. Because the more I blog, the more I want to blog, and the more time I find to do it.

Readolution #4

4. I will keep my reading journal up-to-date.

I've always had big plans for reading journals, and I've never really stuck with any of them. As usual, I had a complex journal scheme for 2008 which has not come to fruition. But there is one reading journal that I've been keeping faithfully for a few years.

Every fall, I order the QPB Calendar of Days. It's the main reason I keep my membership to QPB. I love this gorgeous desk calendar. Each week is on a two-page spread, with a small space to write about each day, listings of birth and death dates of authors, and a short literary piece to read each week. In the back, it has literary awards listed, along with a little monthly calendar section and some blank lined pages for notes.

On the weekly pages, I record what I read each day -- no thoughts, just title and page numbers, and noting when I complete a book. In the monthly section, I set reading goals for myself (titles I'd like to get to that month), and circle each date when I finish a book. As for notes, I keep a running list of the books I've read that year.

For 2009, I think I should just add a new piece to this record keeping I'm doing. I'll have to think about that....

Readolution #3

3. I will post every week on the Reading Circle.

I just checked my posts on The Reading Circle, and as I suspected, I only posted about once a month during the summer. I've done very well with this goal otherwise, missing just one week in February and one week in May.

I'm on a roll with writing about my reading, so hopefully I'll finish out the year strongly on this goal!

Readolution #2

2. I will read all of this year's Reading Circle group reads, and reply to all of the discussion threads.

The Reading Circle is an online book discussion forum that I co-moderate with my friend Susan. (Click on the link in my sidebar to visit The Reading Circle.) Each month, we choose a group read, and we post a discussion thread to go along with it. There is rarely much discussion on these threads, but people sometimes do read the books and post their thoughts on our weekly "What are you reading?" threads. One of my goals this year was to get discussion going on these specific threads, too. I have not done well with this part of the goal; I've only truly posted about my reading on one of the threads this year. Let's see how many of them I have read:

January: The Soup Peddler's Slow & Difficult Soups: Recipes And Reveries by David Ansel
February: Heart in the Right Place by Carolyn Jourdan
March: The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
April: The Girls by Lori Lansens
May: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
Summer reads: Hens Dancing by Raffaella Barker, If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries, What Am I Doing in the Pits? by Erma Bombeck, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Gods in Alabama by Joshilyn Jackson
September: The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry
October: Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

Hey, I've read all of them except the September and October reads, and I plan to get to both of them this month.

I think I should recommit to this goal, starting with The Lace Reader. I love looking up info about books/authors after I've read their work; maybe I'll set an evening or two aside after reading these books to do that and post on the discussion threads. (And I could post my thoughts about them here, too!)

Readolution #1

1. I will read at least 50 books.

I've surpassed 50 books already this year, mostly thanks to my daughter and some great children's literature. Nineteen of the titles on my list are books she read also. Some of the books we shared as read-alouds, and others she read first and then told me she thought I'd like them. What fun, to have my nine-year-old recommending books to me! I love watching her develop a love of reading, quite different from my own as a child, but just as strong. (She searches for the silly and the fantastic, while I think I tended to look for books that realistically portrayed the experiences of girls my age.) Books are such a great foundation to have, like a second home, and I'm happy for her.

Readolutions 2008

1. I will read at least 50 books.
2. I will read all of this year's Reading Circle group reads, and reply to all of the discussion threads.
3. I will post every week on the Reading Circle.
4. I will keep my reading journal up-to-date.
5. I will post on this blog regularly, perhaps weekly.
6. I will keep a TBR list.
7. I will keep a "books purchased/received" list.
8. I will keep my Amazon wish list updated.
9. I will participate in BAFAB week at least once this year.
10. I will buy fewer books.
11. When I buy books, I will do my best to buy independent/used, or to buy in support of a charity (public library, school, etc.).
12. I will organize my book shelves, and find a new home for some of my books.

Readolutions 2007

1. I will read at least 40 books.
2. I will buy fewer books.
3. When I buy books, I will do my best to buy independent/used.
4. I will organize my book shelves.
5. I will read several of my shelf-sitters.
6. I will find a new home for some of my books.
7. I will read all of this year's Reading Circle group reads, and reply to all of the discussion threads.
8. I will post every week on the Reading Circle.
9. I will keep my reading journal up-to-date.
10. I will post on this blog regularly -- whatever that turns out to be.
11. I will keep my Amazon wish list updated.
12. I will keep a TBR list.
13. I will keep a "books purchased/received" list.
14. I will participate in BAFAB week at least once this year.