I know there are many people out there who keep track of how many books they read per week or year. I'm not one of them...if I can keep track of my two kids for an entire 24 hours, I consider the day golden.
So my 2011 goal is simple--to read more in 2011 than I read in 2010. I realize that's hard to track if I don't know how much I read in 2010, but I do know that I did NOT average more than one book a week in 2010. I'm going to shoot for at least one per week--and not feel guilty when I read blogs where people complain they "only" read 300 books last year. That may be, but do they know where their kids are?
My first YA of 2011 was NIGHTSHADE by Andrea Cremer. Holy great first pick on my part! I can already tell you that WOLFSBANE is one of my must-reads this year. Next up for me is THE GIVER by Lois Lowry, and then CUTTING FOR STONE by Abraham Verghese (not YA, but it's for my book club and I've heard it's amazing). My other YA must-reads for 2011 include POSSESSION by the lovely and awesome Elana Johnson, ACROSS THE UNIVERSE by Beth Revis, and BAD TASTE IN BOYS by zombie queen, Carrie Harris.
What about you? What are your reading goals for 2011? Your must-reads for this year?
I definitely want to read more this year. I'm shooting for at least 2-3 books each month, and maybe even more in the summer since I won't be working. :)
ReplyDeletePam--that's a great idea. I read a bunch of books over Christmas break, so I can try to schedule more books over vacation time.
ReplyDeleteKristi, you should sign up for goodreads. Its the only way I remember how many, and what I've read.
ReplyDeleteMy first read in 2011 is THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB by Elizabeth Eulberg. I read NIGHTSHADE last year (the ARC)and it was amazing! RED MOON by Ivy Devlin is also very good, and pretty short.
Lacey--I think I signed up on Goodreads a long time ago, but haven't been back since so that's a fabulous idea. Also, I'm definitely going to have to have shorter books mixed in w/ longer ones in order to reach my goal! I'll have to check out RED MOON. :)
ReplyDeleteCorrection, it's LOW RED MOON by Ivy Devlin (aka Elizabeth Scott). :-)
ReplyDeleteI love that concept, read more in 2011 than 2010. That is a goal I can set! Possession and Across The Universe are at the top of my reading list this year too. So is Popular by Alissa Grosso. It's a great year for a reading goal!
ReplyDeleteHeather-yeah, I try to make the goals doable. I'll have to look into Popular too. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm one of those people who keep track of how many books they read every year. I keep a record of title, author, date read, how many stars I rate it, and a brief summary of why I did or didn't like it. I also keep track of how many male vs. female authors I read and how many books in each genre. It's handy to have a list to refer to when I'm trying to remember something about a book. Plus, I always find it fun to look back over my "stats" from year to year.
ReplyDeleteAll I can say is "WOW." Maybe I'll be that organized in my next life. :)
ReplyDeleteI've recently signed up for Goodreads - it's set out quite well :) Can I be naughty and recommend my own book? I actually just got my first Amazon review and it's 5 stars - I cried *grin*
ReplyDeleteI do agree that the more you read the better you write but I do find that I can't read while I'm in the 'intense' stage of writing as I can pick up another writers 'voice' too easily - ever found this?
The Arrival, on Amazon NOW!
www.damselinadirtydress.com
Nicole-congrats on your 5-star review. That's awesome!
ReplyDeleteI still read when I'm doing intense drafting, but in a different genre than what I'm writing. When I wrote my recent YA ms, I read a lot of non-fiction (although some of it was research for my ms).
Excellent goal. Very similar to mine this year!
ReplyDeleteI like to spend time reading, and I need to do more each year to know what else is out there in YA, but frankly, I have to have time to write, too. Even reading 50 books a year would be too much for me.
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