Reading Resolutions 2018

[Allison ༻hikes the bookwoods༺]

Just two weeks left to go and 2018 will be history! I'm happy to have achieved most of the reading goals I set for myself this year.

My goals for 2018 are:

✓ 1. Read 100 books in total

Currently sitting at 114 with a few in progress.

✓ 2. Complete Cross Canada Challenge

I read a book representing each province and territory (through author or setting) and while it was fun, it was also a challenge.

✓ 3. Complete 2018 Bingo Challenge and restrict to Canadian titles

Done like dinner.

✓ 4. Complete Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge

Done like dinner.

X 5. Read one classic and one non fiction book each month (12 classics, 12 non fiction)

Currently sitting at 13 nonfiction and 9 classics. I could maybe push myself to read 3 more classic novels in the coming days, but I lack the motivation.

✓ 6. Read 30% Canadian books

It's been my best CanLit year yet with 43/114 books (38%) by Canadian authors.

X 7. Read 20% person of colour authors

I am saddened not to meet this goal because I really did make an effort. At the end of November, I was at 20% exactly with 22/110 books, but the focus on Christmas books this month is definitely dragging me down.

How are the rest of you doing with your goals?

[Susan]

My goals for 2018 were:

✓ Complete bingo

✓ Read a complete series or set of linked books - I read the five Patrick Melrose novels by Edward St. Aubyn and also read Antigone and Home Fire

✓ Read 25% nonfiction - currently at 30%

✓ Read 5 books in translation - I read books translated from Spanish, Norwegian, German, French, and Ancient Greek

X Read 3 classic books published before 1900 - I've read only two; I keep telling myself I can sneak another one in before the end of the year, but it probably won't happen.

✓ Read 50% or less U.S. authors - currently at 45% (because I live in the U.S., this was a challenge at times, so I'm happy to have done even this well)

To be honest, I felt a bit overburdened by all of these goals this year, so I'm going to try not to have too many reading goals or rules next year. I aim to complete bingo and also read a complete series (I really enjoy that each year, and it helps so much with remembering story lines from one book to the next), but that is it!

[Allison ༻hikes the bookwoods༺]

Susan wrote: "To be honest, I felt a bit overburdened by all of these goals this year, so I'm going to try not to have too many reading goals or rules next year. I aim to complete bingo and also read a complete series (I really enjoy that each year, and it helps so much with remembering story lines from one book to the next), but that is it! "

I hear you. I'm planning to be a bit more relaxed in 2019, but not too relaxed of course!

[Story]

Congratulations for meeting such lofty goals Alison and Susan.

I rarely set reading goals, being a mood reader, but this year I wanted to read 20 books in translation and I exceeded my goal--currently reading my 31st.

My only other goal was to read less in 2018 (because I wanted to do more drawing and painting as well as to learn to embroider) and I wasn't successful with that. A shoulder injury means that it hurts to hold a needle/pen/brush for more than 20 minutes so in the end I've read almost as many books as I did in 2017. Maybe next year?

[Megan]

Great job everyone!
I completed the bingo and cross Canada challenge.
In 2019 I am planning to work on a list from the Edmonton public library and up my non-fiction reads and continue finding great gems in the canlit scene.

[❀ Susan]

I am not going to meet many of my goals but when I set them, i did not realize that i would be running for trustee which ended up being a bit distraction to my reading.

My progress -

1. Read 125 books. - definitely not going to make it here but have enjoyed some great books this year!
2. Complete BINGO 2018 with all Canadian books - not sure that i will get the last 4 books read.
3. Read 5 more from the CBC 100 Books to make you proud - oops!
4. Read at least 1 Margaret Laurence, more Margaret Atwood - not this year
5. Attend Canada Reads again - loved attending this, was my book highlight of the year!!

I have been tracking with a spreadsheet this year and have read:
- 57% Canadian
- 65% fiction 35% non-fiction
- 24% diverse fiction (that I know of)
- 14 audio books and 1 in progress

The one thing that I am MOST proud of is that as of Monday, I will have met 54 authors this year! What started out as a challenge for @Kim to meet 50 authors in the year she turned 50 has been a fun initiative with highlights of meeting Lisa Genova, all the Canada Reads and Giller shortlisted authors, David Chariandy, Tanya Talaga, Kim Thuy and Margaret Atwood! We saw Daniel Silva (my husband's favourite) in a huge event with over 1000 in attendance in a huge synagogue in Toronto and enjoyed book club with author Heather Tucker.

Although it has been an amazing experience, I will not expect to attend as many events in 2019 although I am looking forward to Canada Reads, Michelle Obama and the Grimsby Author series which will include Iain Reid and Esi Edugyan in the spring.

[Anna]

You have some some really interesting goals there and it sounds like you accomplished a big portion of it. That is a great reading year.

I had one main goal this year and that was to read a bit less from American authors. Not that I have a problem with them, but I find they so easily dominate my list and I find authors from other parts of the world offer fresh perspectives on things that I really enjoy. I'm afraid I wasn't that successful as half of my reading was still American. Oh well, there is always 2019.

[Mj]

Congrats to everyone reading Canadian Books!! Whether you surpassed or missed your goals in 2018 isn't important. They're only goals at a point in time after all - rolling goals because life changes often and things happen. The major point is that in this Discussion Group we have many fans of Canadian authors and we are reading Canadian books.

As @ Elinor mentioned in a Spine Cracker Dec 14-20 post this week that featured a Globe and Mail article on Canadian books - we're all bucking the current downward trend!!

Good for us. Keep it up. Thanks @ Elinor for the post.

[Mj]

2018 Reading Goals

Quantity
I will fall short in terms of my goals for quantity of reading. I expect to achieve only 80% of the 24,000 pages I had hoped to read in 2018, as well as only 80% of what I read in 2017. Life threw me a number of curveballs that affected my reading but I am not beating myself up for this shortfall. Fyi, I chose number of pages rather than number of books because I read an eclectic variety of books and the length of my book choices varies widely.

Quality
I was generally pleased with the quality of what I read. Most books were well written, connected with and engaged me and taught me new things or reminded me of important things I had forgotten or only innately suspected.

I read pretty much according to my planned mix of types of books and authors. I was also active in reading and participating in on-line and in-person groups. One of my goals was to write more reviews in 2018 and did so for more than 40% of the books I read. (I also have a number of 2018 book reviews in draft.)

Participation
I participated in a number of Canadian Content Challenges

>completing the 2018 Canadian Bingo Challenge and
>completing the 2018 Cross Canada Challenge.

I also read books and participated in a number of Canadian Content reading and discussion initiatives in 2018 including:

>the 2018 Canada Reads reading & discussion (as well as attending the in-person 5 finalist and author initial launch which was terrific!!)
>the 2018 Scotiabank Giller Prize reading & discussion
>a number of Canadian Monthly Reads and discussions and
> other Weekly and Random Topic Discussions.

I was also an active participant in two in-person book clubs in my community.

% Mix of Books/Authors Achieved with (% Goals in Brackets)

Canadian 71% (30%)
at the expense of outside of Canada and U.S. 11% (30%)
and U.S. 18% (40%) authored books.

Females 63% (50%)

POC 35% (30%)

Indigenous 15% (15%)

LGTBQ 10% (10%)

Debut 19% (10%)

Non-Fiction 35% (23%)

I quite enjoyed reading a larger mix of non-fiction in 2018. Years ago non-fiction was a major part of my reading mix. My only disappointment in achievements to goals is not reading more books by authors outside of Canada and the U.S. I think a global, non-navel gazing focus is important.

In synopsis, I had a wonderful year of reading and look forward to more of the same in 2019!!

[Allison]

Alrighty, looking like my 2018 completed-reads is probably up. So, here's where I ended:

I really had three major goals:

To read all Canada Reads books before attending the debates -
DONE

To read at least 15% authors from outside Canada and America -
Sadly only reached 13%

To dramatically reduce reading American authors for this year -
DONE -- went from 40% in 2017 to 15% in 2018.


Here are my 2018 stats:

(Only) 26 books read -- life got in the way!

71% Canadian authors
15% USA authors
13% outside Canada and America (includes Egypt, Scotland, South Africa and Mexico)

54% female
42% male
4% trans (which is one book)

62% fiction
38% non-fiction

23% non-Caucasian authors

I think next year I'll work harder on reading more authors from outside N. America. I think that needs to be my next big change; I need to do better there for sure.

Otherwise, a great year! Shout out to best book of the lot: Tomboy Survival Guide. I can't say enough good things!

[Alan]

I put on my calendar that I want to finally try the cross-Canada
challenge this year-beginning with Ethel Wilson's Swamp Angel,
starting all the way over on that side of the country. I'll have to see how it goes as I've promised myself this many times in the past.
I hear it's a great book and that she's a wonderful writer.
i'm also going to try Canada Reads nominees depending on what
they present. I really don't want to read a book about water or oil
though. Yay Canada!

[Louise]

So this is what I wrote in January 2018:

My reading goals for 2018 are:

1. Read 104 books (2 per week) I read 125
2. Read one short story per day Proust kept me too busy to do this
3. Read all 7 volumes of Proust DONE!!!!
4. Read 12 translated works (NYRB Classics) I read 8 NYRB Classics but not all were translated works, however I did read 10 translated works

This is what I have actually accomplished:

I read 125 books: 96 works of fiction, 15 memoirs, 13 non-fiction and 1 book of poetry.
64 in audiobook format, 47 in ebook format, and 14 in print/paper.
49 Canadian, 29 US, 25 UK and 22 from other countries.
10 were Indigenous: 8 from Canada and 2 from US
11 in French
10 translated works

Last but not least, I read all 7 volumes (4284 pages) of Marcel Proust's A la recherche du temps perdu. In French. It took me 362 days reading 10-15 pages per day.

Of the "other countries" they include: France, Germany, Austria, Russia, India, Korea, China, Sierra Leone, Kimbabwa, Botswana, Kenya and South Africa. I must include some Latin American literature for 2019.

[Allison]

Wow, Louise, so well done! The Proust goal and achievement is truly incredible -- in french! Seriously impressed.

[Allison ༻hikes the bookwoods༺]

Just tallying up my stats for the year:

I read 120 books in total.
68 audio, 52 read (28 paper, 24 eBook).
43 Canadian, 39 U.S., 25 U.K., and 13 from other countries.
95 white, 23 POC, and 2 with various authors.
63 female, 55 male, and 2 with various authors.

[Allison]

You guys are amazing... you’re talking about 2-3 books/week! I used to be higher than I am now, but never that good. I’m so impressed.

[Allison ༻hikes the bookwoods༺]

Allison wrote: "You guys are amazing... you’re talking about 2-3 books/week! I used to be higher than I am now, but never that good. I’m so impressed."

I would never do it without audio.