Our 2016 Reading Goals

For avid readers, the New Year means new reading and book-related goals- and we are no exception!

In addition to listing out our reading and book-related goals for 2016, we’ve decided to do something a little interesting- at the end of each of our lists, we will be putting down our reading challenges for each other. So, without further ado…

Charlotte’s 2016 Reading Goals

One of my big goals for 2015 was to read more. Another was to get better at habits, following through, not procrastinating, etc. SO with those things in mind – I actually achieved the reading goal. I think it might be the first time ever that the number of goals I achieved is greater than the number of goals I fell short of achieving!!!

Preeeetty cool.

I read 34 books last year. I want to get to a place where I’m reading between 40 and 50 books every year (like, as a lifelong habit regardless of where I’m at in life – I want it to be one of those things that just is, even when I’m swamped with work or relationships or kids). We’ll see! But this year I agreed to do a 60 book challenge. LOLOL. I 50% have faith in myself, 50% am laughing. Like last year, though, I’m not swimming in a pool of obligations, so if I’m ever going to read that many books, this would be a good year to attempt it.

I do have a few specific reading goals:

1.    Again, read 60 books. Plays count. Short stories count if they’re in a collection. My friend Dana and I came up with these parameters. We’ll have to also be each other’s cheerleaders because reading 60 books is a lot.

2.    I WILL FINISH Pride and Prejudice. …….It might finish me, too. I was reading it in late December, but I’ve put it down for the time being. I’m distracted lately so I think I’ll do better with a non-classic at the moment.

3.    Read The Divine Comedy. This is on my list of books to finish in my twenties AND Pope Francis has recommended that Catholics (or anyone! Yay everyone! <3) read the three books during this Holy Year of Mercy. So this is the year to cross these masterpieces off my list (I’ve read and loved Inferno- very much looking forward to the others).

4.    Review at least half of the books I read. One of my personal writing goals is to post at least 45 reviews, but some of those will be for books I’ve read in the past. But I’m really into writing reviews right after reading books because I’ve noticed it’s made me a more critical and mindful reader, and I’m really enjoying that. So I’d like to review a lot of the books I read this year (ties back into my new lifestyle mode of not procrastinating, dammit!).

5.    Read at least five Catholic books. I do much better with life in general when I’m reading religious stuff, plus I think it makes me a better person.

6.    Read more funny non-fiction. My life feels overwhelming at times, seeping right into my personality and my activities and everything. I need to have more fun. Laughter is the best medicine and I think me needs some.

And now for my challenge to Liz! Liz is basically family at this point but I still throw her shade because her ass hasn’t read Harry Potter. I’ve been peer-pressuring her to read Harry Potter for as long as we’ve been friends, and THIS B STILL HAS NOT. I feel my blood pressure rising just thinking about this bogustry. As soon as we decided we’d give each other one challenge for 2016, Liz knew I was going to challenge her to read Harry Potter. Wrong she was not. It’s time. Liz, hop on the Hogwarts Express. Welcome to Hoggy Warty Hogwarts.

Liz’s 2016 Reading Goals

Like Charlotte, for 2015 one of my goals was to read more. I’ve always been a pretty consistent reader, but between balancing work, school, and internships for years when I was in college, I fell out of the habit of seeking reading as a hobby. Now that I have a stable job, 2015 was the year I kind of fell in love with reading again (not that I ever fell out of love with it, but I was able to pick it up as a regular hobby again).

In 2015 I also started to become a more critical reader, which I like a lot, and I want to hone in on these skills in 2016.

Now that I’ve started reading more, one of my top priority goals for this year is to diversify the kinds of books I read. I want to ~learn~ things.

My specific goals are:

1.    I’d like to read at least 20 books this year, so on average 1.5 to 2 books per month. I have to confess…this was my goal last year too. I got pretty close! I got to 16! And some of those books were massive! (*cough* 1Q84 *cough*). So, this year I’d like to actually hit my 20. Charlotte and I differ in opinion when it comes to massive reading goals. I don’t care as much about numerical goals as other readers because to me it’s more important to really understand and absorb what I am reading. If I am rushing to read just to hit a numerical goal and consequently fewer books really stick with me, is it worth having that goal? 20 seems like a reasonable goal given all of the various things I have going on in my life. This year I will do it!

2.    I want to write more book reviews. While I did review a good chunk of the books I read in 2015, I want to get better about writing reviews shortly after I’ve finished reading. When I wait too long to write a review, I feel like my review ends up being lower in quality. This year I want to give myself no more than 2 days after I finish reading to write my reviews.

3.     I want to read more non-fiction books. I have so many. SO. MANY. Just sitting on my bookshelves that I haven’t read. I’m guilty of seeing a non-fiction book in a store and being like “ooh this would be GREAT for my environmental science and policy collection”….and then never actually reading it. Well, not this year! I’m going to start digging into some of the non-fiction I own.

4.    I want to complete a reading challenge. This will force me to diversify the kinds of books I usually gravitate towards. I’m committed to doing this challenge.

5.    Of the non-fiction genre, I specifically want to read more books on political theory.

And now, for my challenge for Charlotte. Since Charlotte’s such an avid reader, and since she’s challenged me to read the entire HP series (which I look forward to doing!), I am challenging Charlotte to read at least three out of the five books I listed as my favorites for 2015. This means Charlotte doesn’t have to read Murakami…but she should. She should read Murakami.  

And that’s a wrap for us! We will fill you in on our progress along the way!

Char & Liz

Our Favorite Reads of 2015

After seeing a slew of articles circulating the interwebs titled "The Best Books of 2015," etc., we knew that we needed to do our own. We've had quite a productive reading year! Charlotte read over 30 books, and Liz read 16! We've read some really crap books, but, more importantly, we've read some truly excellent books that will stay with us for years to come. Here's each of our top five for 2015!

Charlotte's Top 5 Books of 2015

5. The Underland Chronicles by Suzanne Collins

Okay, okay. This is technically five books. I’ve reviewed three of them so far: one, two, and three. They weren’t the most spectacular books I’ve ever read, but they left a mark. I can always dig a book about rebellion, about ending oppression, about equal rights. I enjoyed this myself, and I know it’s something I can share with the tiny humans in my life: siblings, nieces and nephews, my own kids one day. Books that teach kids about these things make me happy. 

4. The Martian by Andy Weir

Now, this was a damn good book. An astronaut gets stranded on Mars after his crew mistakenly thought he was dead. It’s a story of survival and resilience and the worth of human life. Without giving much away, I’ll say that our protagonist must try and stay alive and his team, as well as hundreds or thousands of people on earth, need to figure out if there’s any way to save him.

I loved this book a lot. It was thrilling yet smart. There are some books I just devour, but they don’t make me think much. This book is jam packed with science and logic but is written in such a way that those of us without degrees in rocket science can still understand it. It’s a real adventure. It’s one of my favorites for the year because it kept my adrenaline pumping; I couldn’t put it down.

3. Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling

I wouldn’t necessarily call this a crucial book, but if you’re looking for something from a female role model who doesn’t fuck around, this is a great place to start. I loved it because it was hilarious, but I also gleaned some insight from Kaling’s experiences. Her first book was also terrific, but this offered a more grown up attitude while maintaining fast paced humor. I’ve been a fan of Mindy Kaling for a while, and I hope she never stops writing books. This book is top five for the many, many laughs as well as the insights. Highly recommend. (And I reviewed it here.)

2. Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin

I haven’t reviewed this book yet, but I did write a few things about it in this post.

Gretchen Rubin is my favorite author for this genre. She combines research, history, and experience to form really great advice to change habits. This book left me feeling more optimistic about my chances to actually improve and gave advice that was actually possible to implement.

And finally, my best book of the year:

1. The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra

Just, let’s not get me started on this book again. It’s phenomenal. The writing is unbelievably good, the stories are terrific. I couldn’t put it down. The writing will just blow you away. I reviewed it here and I talked about it a bit more on my personal blog right here.

Liz's Top 5 Books of 2015

When Charlotte and I were discussing this post the first thing she said to me was “so your entire list will be Murakami.” HAHA, CHAR. VERY FUNNY. While she’s spot on, 2015 became the year I discovered Murakami and he became one of my favorite authors, my top 5 is not all Murakami. This list is compiled of the books I read this year that will be the books that stick with me for years to come- the ones I’ll bring up in conversation (and constantly recommend), the ones I’ll think of when I’m reading a different book that shares a similar element, and the ones that drew intense feelings and thoughts from within me.

5) Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Jane Eyre was a pleasant surprise (I was wary given my bad history with other novels of the same period). While I haven’t seen any film depictions of the novel, I assume they focus almost wholly on Jane’s relationship with Rochester, but Jane Eyre is not a romance novel. Jane Eyre is a survivor, a woman that bucks the norms of her time, strong willed, intelligent, and honest. Jane Eyre is entitled after the main character because it’s about her life, and her life is more than just the man she ends up falling in love with. It is about the abusive household she was raised in and survived through, how she came into her own at a strict and unforgiving boarding school and the important relationships she built while there, how she questioned women’s preordained roles in society and challenged them on the basis that women have the same wants and skills as men, and finally, how she found true love despite trying circumstances that would ordinarily keep two people apart.

From the beautiful writing to the themes that still hold true today, Jane Eyre as a novel, and as a character, will stick with me for years to come.

4) 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

I was torn between including 1Q84 and Kafka on the Shore for this list. As I’ve written before, Kafka on the Shore is the Murakami novel that pieced together the puzzle for me- it’s the novel that made me finally feel like I was starting to truly understand what Murakami is all about. But it’s 1Q84 that has made my list because it’s the first Murakami novel I read. As I’ve continued to read Murakami novels, and even works by others, 1Q84 frequently comes to mind. 1Q84 was, in some ways, a challenging novel as an introduction to Murakami’s works, but as I’ve continued to read his novels, I gain a better understanding of 1Q84 as I reflect on it.

1Q84 is a combination of a dystopian, sci-fi, fantasy, and love story all wrapped into one novel. The story follows Aomame and Tengo as they navigate some kind of parallel universe, which Aomame calls 1Q84. As they try to figure out this strange new world, Aomame’s and Tengo’s paths eventually come closer and closer together. Aomame has become one of my favorite female literary characters, and as I’ve read more of Murakami’s novels, I would argue that Aomame is the strongest female character he has ever written.

1Q84 is complex, fantastical, confusing, and both heartbreaking and beautiful, which is why it makes my top five of 2015.

3) The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

If I could only choose one word to describe The Handmaid’s Tale it would be “terrifying.” Published in 1985, this dystopian novel is frighteningly relevant to today. In the future, a supposed terrorist attack takes place (blamed on Islamic extremists) that ends up killing the President of the United States and most of congress. This gives the opportunity for a religious extremist group, the “Sons of Jacob,” to put forth a revolution and take over the government. This new world strips women of all human rights and creates new class divisions. The story is shared by the protagonist, Offred, a handmaid that was assigned to the household of Fred (thus her name, Offred). Due to declining birth rates, Handmaids are assigned to upper class households for  reproductive purposes.

Through flashbacks of Offred’s life prior to and after the revolution, we are introduced to a world of rampant pollution, sexism, and religious extremism. This book is one of my favorite reads of 2015 because, especially given the dialogue that has taken place during this presidential election season, it’s themes of environmental degradation, the desire of men to control women’s lives and bodies, and class warfare are more important to understand than ever. Atwood’s novel is not a cautionary tale about our future- it’s a warning about the present.

Nolite te bastardes carborundorum. Don’t let the bastards bring you down.

2) A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki

For those of you who are familiar with Doctor Who, you probably will recall one of the Doctor’s famous lines about the nature of time: “Time isn’t a straight line...time is more like wibbly wobbly...stuff.” A Tale for the Time Being is a superb novel that will make you question the nature of time and how we are all connected.

This novel is told through the narrative of Nao, a teenager who was born in California that is forced to move to Japan, where her family is originally from, when her father loses his job, and Ruth, a Japanese-American writer who lives on a small island off the coast of British Columbia. Nao’s story is told through her diary, and Ruth’s story is told as she is reading Nao’s diary, which she finds one day on the beach. As an American, Nao is treated by her peers as a foreigner, and consequently she is relentlessly bullied while she is in Japan. Her father struggles to find a job and is thrown into a deep depression. After he tries to commit suicide numerous times, Nao’s own mental health is greatly impacted. Ruth finds Nao’s diary while she is in the middle of severe writer’s block. Nao's diary takes Ruth on a crucial journey to possibly save Nao, while also saving herself. While Ruth and Nao's stories are on different timelines, the two are connected both literally and figuratively in ways that, at times, will boggle your mind.

Thrilling, thought-provoking, and emotional- this novel will stand the test of time for me.

1) Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

Norwegian Wood, which I recently reviewed at length, is my favorite book of the year. Beautifully written, touching, and relatable, I could hardly put this book down. Murakami’s insightful words on death and the importance of love leave a lasting impression. As someone who has experienced death, when I read Toru’s thoughts as he was trying to understand death himself, I thought “yes, exactly, this is precisely what this is like.” This book is not only a favorite for this year, but possibly one of my all-time favorites because when I recall this novel, all the feelings it gave me come flooding back.

Liz & Char