This year I have decided to participate in my favorite local bookstore's reading challenge.
Each year they sponsor a challenge that requires you to read a certain number of books, each coming from a different category. This year the goal is 40 books. If you read all 40, then you receive a $50 gift card to Pioneer Book, and to any book lover, this is a win and very motivating.
Forty books is truly a challenge for me. That averages out to being about about three books a month. I am already 10 in and a few books ahead of schedule.
So far, what is my trick? Well, I have ADHD of reading. So at any one time, I am reading three or four books. I know what you are thinking, it is hard to hold all those books at one time, but in reality, being able to go from one book to another when you get a little bored with one is fantastic.
Currently, I am reading four books: two non-fiction and two fiction.
The Grapes of Wrath will probably be on my currently reading list for most of the year. Steinbeck is wordy and dry, but it fits one of the categories and I feel like a failure of a English major if I haven't read anything by him. I also read a book about the dust bowl earlier this winter and it sparked interest in reading The Grapes of Wrath, so here I am miserably trudging through it. But, how I do get through it is by taking breaks and reading other books at the same time. See, to read 40 this year, I have to read this way...I must keep moving forward. Also, I do not suggest just trudging through a book. I am going against my own rules, see the end of this post for more on this.
Chasing Down the Dawn is a favorite I have already read a few times and it fits the "Title Starts with Letter C" category. Jewel has always been one of my favorite singers, songwriters, and authors. If you haven't read her book of poetry entitled: A Night without Armor, you are missing out. This book is also short, which helps with the whole getting through 40 books in a year. It is also pleasant to read because it is short vignettes about Jewel's life from growing up in Alaska, being homeless in LA, and life on the road. I don't often re-read books, but this is one of the books on my "I can read this over and over and not care" list.
New York: An Illustrated History is a daunting read in a different way than Steinbeck's book. It is over 500 pages, which is also a category from the reading challenge. It will probably spend most of the year on my currently reading list because I often just read tidbits as I sit in the front room chilling with my kiddos.
Being Henry David will probably be a very quick less than a week read. It is a young adult novel where the main character wakes up on a bus with no clue who he is or what his past is. His only possession is a book by Henry David Thoreau so he names himself Henry David. I am only a chapter in so I don't have much else to say about this book so far but I am excited to read it.
If you are interested in joining this reading challenge or any other that are out there here are a few pro tips to get through in time:
1. Have reading ADHD. Be okay with reading more than one book at a time. Of course you should pick books that are pretty unlike one another because then your brain won't mix up story lines.
2. Pick some books at are pretty short. I am sorry to say but when they say read a book by a writer with a pseudonym, Dr. Seuss counts! Graphic novels are also a great choice, as well as poetry books and children books.
3. Remember to pick books you like. Do not assume that just because something is a bestseller and EVERYBODY is reading it, that you should too. I often find those books aren't worth my time if they don't catch me within the first 20 pages. Life is much too short and there are way too many good books to waste your time on a bad to you book. I learned that from a very wise librarian friend eons ago. (Isn't life cool that we have so many options when it comes to everything. There really is something out there for every single individual taste! And this doesn't just ring true for books. Quit judging people because of their choice of whatever that you don't like. Whether it be desserts, movies, books, music, cars, houses, clothes, etc. there isn't always the "right" choice, but rather "the right choice for you!" End life lesson preaching.)
Happy Reading.
