Reading Goal: The Complete List

I finished my reading goal! It was a good experience. I feel broader now :) My goal was also handy because it was a way to justify reading time instead of doing something “useful.”

It seems like I got through a lot of goal books in the first couple of months and then slowed down drastically. I was a little surprised by the areas I had trouble with, mainly best sellers and literature. I read a lot of classics when I was young so I didn’t think literature would be a problem. However, it seems like all literature these days is depressing and I strongly prefer uplifting books. I’m not sure why I had trouble with Best Sellers. I also had a bit of trouble with historical fiction. I guess I must not like history for histories sake even though I like it as a backdrop for mysteries and romances.

I was surprised how easy the memoir and informational categories were to fill. I’m not a big non-fiction reader so I figured these would be one of the hardest categories. However, I found a lot more interesting non-fiction than I expected. Though, I didn’t finish any autobiographies/biographies, just memoirs. For the informational books, I tried to stay away from parenting books, since those are the ones I read already, and I at least partially succeeded.

I liked the structure having a book goal gave me so I think I’ll do another one. This time I’ll probably focus on children’s books more. Maybe read all the Newberys I haven’t already or possibly a “great kids books” list. However, I’m going to give myself some time to relax and read whatever strikes my fancy first.

Books I’ve Finished Recently:

  • Fiction Books Jaeger Recommends: Accelerando, by Charles Stross – This one took me a while to get into. I was having trouble caring about both Manfred and Pamela. It wasn’t until Amber came along that things seemed to get interesting.
  • Historical Fiction: Buckingham Palace Gardens: A Charlotte and Thomas Pitt Novel, by Anne Perry – This is actually a historical mystery but I’m counting it as a historical fiction novel as I feel it was historical enough it can count. I enjoyed it quite a bit and think I might add this series to the few historical mysteries I read. I started listening to it but switched toward reading at the end. I think I like the series better as a read than a listen but maybe it just depends.
  • Literature: Three Men in a Boat (to say nothing of the dog), by Jerome K. Jerome – This is probably more “classic” than “literature” but I’m going to count it toward my literature goal. I downloaded it from Project Gutenberg and read it in little bits on my phone when I was standing in line, etc. I’m not sure if this was a good way to read the book or not. It was a very random stream of consciousness-type novel. Two reasons I glad I read it: I finally understood the title choice of To Say Nothing of the Dog, by Connie Willis. I was also greatly amused by several accounts of river rage that seem remarkably similar to today’s road rage.
  • Juvenile Fiction: The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book I: The Mysterious Howling, by Maryrose Wood – Fun book. It felt a bit like The Willoughbys. Kind of old-fashioned-like but obviously modern. The one thing that was annoying is the ending stopped at a cliffhanger.

Summary of Books Read

Best Sellers

Biography, Autobiography, Memoir

Fiction Books Jaeger Recommends

Christian Fiction

Graphic Novels

Historical Fiction

Informational

Juvenile Books

Literature

Mystery

Poetry

  • Ekaterinoslav: One Family’s Passage to America: A Memoir in Verse, by Jane Yolen
  • Love Poems, by Nikki Giovanni

Realistic/General Fiction

Short Story Anthologies

Current Goal Counts:

Category Goal Number Read
Best Sellers 2 2
Biography, Autobiography, Memoir 2 2
Fiction Books Jaeger Recommends 2 2
Christian Fiction 2 2
Graphic Novels 2 2
Historical Fiction 2 2
Informational 2 2
Juvenile Books 12 12
Literature 2 2
Mystery 2 2
Poetry Anthologies 2 2
Realistic Fiction 2 2
Short Story Anthologies 2 2
Total 36 36