A new year is dawning tomorrow, full of new promises and exciting experiences. Like most people stepping into the new year, I have goals for my 2020 self. One of the goals on my list has to do with one of the most popular reading sites: Goodreads. I’ve done their yearly reading challenge for the past three years. While the first year wasn’t a success, for the past two attempts I’ve been over my book goal. This year I’ve read 35 books and my goal was only 30! 

I want to use this momentum to go into the new year with my 2020 goal. I want to read 40 books by December 31st, 2020. While this is only five more books than what I read this year, it feels like a strangely overwhelming amount of books. It’s odd, because when I was little I could knock out 40 books like it was nothing. Now, with my job and the distracting pull of the internet, it feels almost impossible. However, when I do the math it adds up to about 3 books a month, plus a few extra here-and-there. That, readers, is a great way to make your goals more attainable. Narrowing it down to a month-by-month basis has helped me accomplish my reading goals, so it might help you accomplish yours as well!

Another way I’ve helped set myself up for success is the “want to read” list on Goodreads. When I’ve reread my yearly novels and am out of ideas, I can consult that list and find some great stories to check out. Last year I had it pulled up every time I went into the library for inspiration. I can also keep track of the books coming out this year that I want to read. I would’ve forgotten the release date of Maureen Johnson’s new book if it wasn’t a part of my list! I can also use it to vett what I want to read, so that I don’t waste my time with books that I end up putting down. 

However, I’ve thrown a wrench into this plan that makes it a bit more difficult. I want at least five of the 40 books I’m going to read to be either non-fiction or classic literature. I don’t think that the classic literature challenge will be that difficult, but the non-fiction side of this challenge makes me nervous. Since I could read, I’ve been a fiction-obsessed reader who rarely dips her toe into the non-fiction world. Non-fiction can be fun, but the writing style of most novels in that genre make me want to slam my head on a table. I’m hoping that this challenge will remind me that there is a good side to non-fiction, and maybe even find some books that I want to reread in the future.  

The books are piling up in my mind, and my “want to read” list is rapidly growing. With that in mind, I have a feeling I’ll be sipping champagne and thumbing through a book when the clock strikes twelve. What are your reading goals for 2020? Are there new books you want to read, or old ones you’ve been meaning to read again? Let me know in the comments below! If you have any book recommendations for me to check out in 2020, you can fill out the survey found here. Happy New Year everyone!