Monday, December 18, 2017

Ramblings from the Stacks - Looking Forward to 2018














First of all how can 2018 be only weeks away?  That still seems like a science fiction year.  Like in a movie where they show flying cars and crazy dystopian type architecture and the words - "New York 2018" pop up on the screen. 

But since 2018 is actually a thing I figured I'd take some time to think about my reading goals for 2018.  Looking back over my reading for the past 2 years I realized that each one had an unintentional theme.  This year I think I'm going to try an intentional theme and see how I do with that. 

My theme for 2018 is - Read the Books I Own.

This past year I had to get rid of all the books I had crammed under the bed, stacked in corners, and crammed triple stacked into the bookcases.  So I boxed them up into numbered boxes and cataloged them based on genre and box number so I could keep track of them.  I was surprised to learn that I only have 379 books sitting around unread.  I expected it to be way more.  However, as the year has gone on the number has been going up and not down.  It's a case of 3 steps forward no steps backs.  Hence the read the books I own theme.  Now I know there have been lots of challenges about this the past year but I'm terrible at challenges so I've just picked 12 books out of my boxes and reading 1 a month.

Here are my 12:


1.  Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck
2.  Astor Place Vintage by Stephanie Lehmann
3.  Unhallowed Grave by Kate Ellis
4.  Can Any Mother Help Me? by Jenna Bailey
5.  Ghost Night by Heather Graham
6.  Queen of the Road: The True Story of 47 States, 22,000 Miles, 200 Shoes, 2 Cats, 1 Poodle, a Husband and a Buss with a Will of Its Own by Doreen Orion
7.  Beach Town by Mary Kay Andrews
8.  Meet Me in Atlantis by Mark Adams
9.  The Likeness by Tana French
10.  Too Bad to Die by Francine Matthews
11.  Eeny Meeny by M.J. Arlidge
12.  Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher

And 5 to shake up my reading life:


1.  The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
2.  Burn for Me by Ilona Andrews
3.  One in a Million Boy by Monica Boyd
4.  A School for Unusual Girls by Kathleen Baldwin
5.  The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

I'm working on a list of 12 Middle Grade books to read and am considering another list of Books I Want to Read but am afraid of overdoing it.  I'm trying to keep my reading plans on the simple side because if I get too far behind on my plans I tend to give up and some progress is better than no progress.

What are your reading goals for 2018?  Any books you're looking forward to reading?

14 comments:

  1. The Likeness is so good. I love Tana French. Yes, I have a bit of a list going too and it’s funny you mentioned reading what you have at home. I was thinking about that too as I crammed a book into the overburdened shelves.
    I joined the Girlxoxo challenge for Monthly Motif so some of my books will fit there nicely. But this upcoming year, I plan to get books out of the house. Shocking, I know! Room must be made!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I feel the same way. Isn't 2018 supposed to be way far away yet? I also want to read more of what I own in the new year. Tana French is an author I've been meaning to try, and I think you'll like Kathleen Baldwin. Not only do I like her books but she's active on Twitter too and is super nice.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm with you Katherine. Where in the world did the year go. And like you, I totally agree and need to read all the books I already own. 379 books is a lot, and I'm impressed that you pulled them all together! That must have taken some time.(lol) I'm not nearly that organized, but I need to be. Hugs...RO

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm looking forward to reading the two books I hope Santa will put in my stocking. I also requested two library books so I can choose one for Shelia's First Book of the Year.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lovely goals!! The Likeness is such a good read. Love Tana French. I also want to read The Bear and the Nightingale next year. Happy reading!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm trying not to make a list because I rarely stick to it. I can't wait to see your reviews for some of these books.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Only know a few of your books! I hope you do indeed get to Eeny Meeny as I love that series!! :) I want to read some of my own books as well!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Winter Solstice was a fav for me and One in a Million Boy too. It's good to make goals and hopefully reach them but not too worrying if you don't!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I'm kind of reassured that 2017 didn't fly by for only me. Whew! Love your goal of reading your own books.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I think your reading plans are great! And you're right, 2018 does feel like it's supposed to be a scientific year that we only saw in movies or read about in books! I hope you have a fantastic year!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I would like to read all the books I own, but then something else comes along that I can't resist... That sounds like a great list - have a wonderful 2018 and a superb reading year, Katherine:)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Yay The Likeness! My fav book ever! And I have The Bear and the Nightingale on my TBR too as I'm seeing so much hype about it. It's not my normal type of read but I'd like to give it a try. And I love that you counted up the books you haven't read. I think you've inspired me to do the same with my physical books. And then I might try to put them all on one shelf (as I have long shelves, and don't think I've a huge amount of unread physical books). That's sounding like a plan!

    ReplyDelete
  13. That's a good way to do it! I've been trying to read more from home but am bad about taking review requests. lol Good luck with your pile!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Yay for The Raven Boys! I want to read One in a Million Boy, too. I had been waiting for the ebook to go on sale, but now that we have the library card straightened out I don't have to. Ha ha. The first 20% of The Bear and the Nightingale was a bore for me, but after around 30% it was wonderful. I am reading the sequel right now and that one started off with a bang and has been stellar so far and I am past 50%. I too am going to be catching up in unread books I have, so we can cheer each other on! :D

    ReplyDelete