I’m absolutely rubbish at staying on top of goals. I tried last year and then the library went dark, so I blithely ignored the list and went skipping to books I could easily acquire. But this year I want to shake up my normal willy-nilly approach to reading. So let’s set some goals, shall we?
The Manageable Goals:
Finish rereading Harry Potter. I have four books left and I’ve sorta been doing them one a month, so this is definitely doable.
Read more classics. I don’t have a set number but I know I will do more than one, so that goal is in the bag. Books I’m considering include: To Kill A Mockingbird, Wuthering Heights, The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo and if I’m feeling ambitious, War and Peace/Anna Karenina. Some classic authors I want to read more of are John Steinbeck, P. G. Wodehouse, Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie and I’d like to give Jane Austen another chance.
Finish the Benjamin Weaver series by David Liss and Conquerors’ Trilogy by Timothy Zahn. I only have two books left on each, so if I can scoot over to the library, it’ll happen.
Read The Disappearance of Winter’s Daughter by Michael J. Sullivan. I want to get caught up on this series.
The “It Could Happen” Goals:
Read the new Red Rising book by Pierce Brown. I assume it’s being released this year and if it is, I will try to get an ARC or be first in line for a library copy.
Reread Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft and continue the series. I really liked this book and I want to hear the rest of the story.
Try the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson. Everyone seems to love this guy, which I find suspicious. I tried one of his books and couldn’t stand it, but in the spirit of fairness, I want to give him another chance.
Start the Liveship Traders trilogy by Robin Hobb. I enjoyed the first trilogy in her Realm of the Elderlings series and I hear it only gets better.
The “It’s Unlikely to Happen But Let’s Aim High” Goals:
If Sanderson fails, I want to try Patrick Rothfuss, George R. R. Martin or Joe Abercrombie. I haven’t read anything by them, mainly because I’m not ready to dive into a whole new world when I still have several unfinished ones. But if Sanderson crashes and burns, one of these guys will take his place.
Reread The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien. It’s been well over a decade since I listened to the audiobooks and I am a different person now, so it’d be interesting to see how I feel about it.
Try The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan/Brandon Sanderson. I heard a great description that went along the lines of, “The best part of finishing the series is being able to complain about it.” That sounds right up my alley; but the length of the series is off putting and based on what I know of it, it’s fairly unlikely I’d want to read all the books.
In all likelihood I’m going to read many books that don’t fit these goals and I’ll probably start Sanderson, switch to Abercrombie and then just end up reading more Terry Pratchett and a historical fiction series. But it’s not about strictly adhering to this list, it’s about finding new and exciting books. I’ll check back in twelve months and see how I fared.
What are your reading goals?