My reading challenge could have gone either way in 2020 but I’m glad I ended up reading more than ever.
I still like the reading challenge feature on Goodreads as it’s easy to track my reading and I can see how my friends are doing with theirs, and whether we liked the same book. My aim was 52 books and I read 63! If I counted re-reads (which you can, but I don’t), it would be way over 100 I’m sure. Here’s a little breakdown.
- Fiction: 25 / Non-Fiction: 19 / Comics / 18
- Female authors: 43 / Male authors: 20
- 5 stars: 21 / 4 stars: 26 / 3 stars: 12 / 2 stars: 1 / Unrated: 3
I’m happy enough with this. I try hard to mix up my reading between fiction/non-fiction, long/short reads, challenging/easy etc. Also good to see I mostly read books I enjoyed. I’m a generous reviewer because I know it helps but that 2 star book is the only one I regret reading. You can read about them all on my Books, Comics & Zines I Read in 2020 page.
2021 Challenge
This year I’m sticking with 52 books again and have already finished 1 book. I also have some other goals:
Get my Unread folder to under 30 books
The unread folder on my Kindle is getting ridiculous – I could buy zero books this year and still complete my challenge! I’m going to try to only buy random ebooks on my wish list when they’re £1.99 or less. Books that drop to the £3-£5 level usually stay there for a long time so can wait. At least I hardly bought any real books, and there’s only 2 left on my bedside table.
Finish what I’ve started
2020 was a difficult one for my attention span and I have let some longer or more difficult books go unfinished. I want to finish the history of modern Africa and the book on Exoplanets that I took a break from.
Read more diversely
I considered doing a Read Harder-type challenge this year but it clashes with the unread folder. I’m not researching 58 books to see which categories they fit into. I’ll continue to get book recs from places that strive to be inclusive (like Book Riot and Tor) and work towards maybe doing it next year.
Use Amazon less
There’s isn’t really a workable alternative to Amazon’s ebook buying process and wish lists, for me, but I’m making an effort to buy less physical books there. Now that Bookshop exists, there’s really no excuse not to support independent book stores instead.
Go back to the library
I can see the local library from my house but only borrowed books once in 2020. Obviously it was closed for a long time but they’ve been doing pickup for a while now and I owe them some support.
If you’re doing a Goodreads reading challenge this year, feel free to friend me.
