Since 2021 is already halfway over (eeekkkk.... seriously??!), I thought it might be timely to check in on the status of my Goodreads Reading Challenge and other reading goals. :) In my 2020 Reading Year in Review post last December, I wrote:
- Since I reached 30 books fairly easily this year (by mid-August), I've decided to increase my Goodreads Reading Challenge goal modestly to 36 books ( = 3 books per month on average) for 2021.
- This year, I reached 36 books by late October. I also reached the 36-book mark in October 2019, my best reading year since I started keeping track (50 books total). So we'll see how I do in 2021...!
I thought it might be cool if I could reach my goal of 36 books for the year by the end of June. For a while there, I thought I might do it -- but after blazing through 9 (!) books in May, I only managed to finish 2 in June, for a total of 34 books, year to date. Close, but no cigar, lol. Still, 34 books so far (94% of my goal) is pretty amazing. While I didn't quite make 3 books in June, I'd still like to keep to that 3 books per month goal for the rest of the year, if possible. I read 50 books in 2019 -- the most I've read in one year since I started tracking/taking the challenge on Goodreads in 2016 -- and while I'm not going to change my Goodreads goal midyear, I think that will be my unofficial target for the rest of the year, and 2-3 books per month for the rest of the year will help me get there. :)
I didn't set any other "official" reading goals for 2021. But back in January, I wrote a post (responding to a post of Mel's) about tackling my TBR (to be read) pile by making a "TBR priority list." I wrote:
Some of the books I've been meaning to get to for quite a while now include "Us Against You" and "Anxious People" by Fredrik Backman (after reading & loving "Beartown" for my library book club), "The Huntress" by Kate Quinn (after reading & enjoying "The Alice Network" for my library book club -- and she has a new book coming out soon too... gahhhhh...), "My Dark Vanessa" by Kate Elizabeth Russell (which I keep putting off, even though several people I know have read it & rated it highly, because it sounds... dark... and I need to be in the right frame of mind to tackle something like that), and "Maisie Dobbs" by Jacqueline Winspear, which By the Brooke recommended to me a long time ago. ;)
"Anxious People" was the pick for my "Clever Name" book club this month (review here), so I did get that one read. But that's the only one I can cross off that particular list (which has, in the meantime, grown longer, lol).
Dh is off Goodreads again (eyeroll). His goal was 24 books, which he blew past long ago. His last recorded total was 62 books so far this year, but the true number would be much higher than that.
Did you set any reading goals for 2021? How are you doing with them?
Yes. I set reading goals, but I'm doing TERRIBLY this year! Currently reading Hillary Mantel's third in the Thomas Cromwell series. Hope I can finish it before it has to go back to the library. (When other people have Holds on an ebook, it expires after three weeks.) I'm not holding my breath!
ReplyDeleteI've done pretty well this year so far, because I think I prioritized reading for mental health during the freaking craziest school year ever. My summer has been very reading heavy so far! I don't like to set a goal per se because then I obsess and it can actually influence what books I pick (putting off more challenging or lengthy things to "meet my goal" which then isn't so great).
ReplyDeleteI have many of the same on my TBR shelf/shelves/extraneous piles that keep growing. Anxious People is near the top, and I have The Huntress too for same reason. I have to look up My Dark Vanessa! Don't know that one! You are amazing with the reading and with the eclectic nature of your reads. I recently went back on GoodReads, but I really rely on my Google Keep list for numbers. My GoodReads isn't up to date for my "back catalog," but I vow to keep it current! :) Yay for making your goals and reading cool stuff!