1. Progress on 2018 Reading Goals

    October 21, 2018 ♥ Posted in: Books by Kristina Horner

    I’m going to be honest… I actually forgot that I set specific reading goals this year. It’s one of those things that was BW…. Before Wedding. Some of those things are a bit hazy these days, lol.

    Anyhow, I was reminded of my goals, and so I have dug them up so that I can check in on my progress. There’s just a little over two months left in the year, so I think hitting most of them is still pretty reasonable at this point.

    Below is my progress, with the bold ones being the ones that are incomplete.

    1. Read at least 3 books in the category of “you should have read this by now” whether it’s a classic or been on your shelf too long
      • Vicious by V.E. Schwab
      • The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
    2. Read at least 3 books about people who are very different from yourself
      • The Gentlemen’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee
      • Far From the Tree by Robin Benway
      • If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodsen
    3. Read at least 8 actual physical books
      • My Boyfriend is a Bear
      • If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson
      • The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
      • Undead Girl Gang by Lily Anderson
      • Midnight at the Electric
      • City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab
      • An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green
      • The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
    4. Finish reading The Book Thief
    5. Read The Name of the Wind
    6. Read a book that’s over 500 pages
      • Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman (504 pages)
    7. Quit a book before you’ve finished (or at least skim the rest)
      • Black Beauty by Anna Sewell — this is the second time I have tried to read this book, and I just can’t do it. I can’t get past the fact that it’s from the POV of a horse. I know it’s a classic and was written in the 1800’s. I’m sorry.
    8. Get rid of a book immediately after reading it
      • Lies My Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Anne Peters (did not like this book at all)
    9. Read a book immediately after acquiring it or hearing about it (before it even makes it to the shelf or TBR)
      • Midnight at the Electric by Jodi Lynn Anderson (Bought this book at the Strand when I was in NYC and read it immediately, loved it)
    10. Read a book you think might make you a better person
      • How to Stop Feeling Like Sh*t by Andrea Owen
    11. Read a book of short stories
    12. Read a book with a cover that bothers you
      • Save the Date by Morgan Matson
    13. Get rid of a book without reading it
      • (I have definitely done this already this year, but I want it to be intentional, so I still need to pick one.)
    14. Get at least 2 books behind or ahead of schedule at some point in the year
      • Definitely have been 2 books behind at multiple points. Only 1 book behind now, though!
    15. Decide not to do one of the challenges on this list
      • The Name of the Wind might be waiting until 2019…

    I’ve read 23/30 books I set out to read on Goodreads, putting me 77% of the way through that goal as well. November is a bit of a tough month for reading, sine so much of my time will be spent writing my NaNoWriMo novel and finding creative ways to procrastinate writing my NaNoWriMo novel… hey! Maybe I will do some reading that month!

    Being unemployed for awhile has been an interesting journey and it’s definitely given me a bit more time for reading, as well as for other things I tend to have much less time for with a 9-5 job. I think I’ll be writing an entire blog post about this experience soon, so keep an eye out for that.

    Wish me luck! If all else fails, I will consider the year a win if I at least finish reading The dang Book Thief.

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