Goals for Reading in 2016

My overarching reading goal for 2016 is the same as 2015: Read 40 books. I read 41 last year, so I’m beginning the year confident.

But I’d like to add a few goals to my reading life in 2016. I’d like to propose a few category/genre “requirements.” I am most drawn to fiction—and “most drawn” is an extreme understatement. 90+% of my reading is what might is labeled “literary fiction.” Therefore, I’d like to push myself, slightly, out of my comfort zone. That being said, these goals are to be important suggestions to keep in mind. In the end, only my “read 40 books” shall have strong hold on my reading habits.

Some of these categories/genres overlap, which is intentional. If you add up each “requirement” the sum would be large; but the result is not the case if you consider overlaps.

Goal #1: Read THREE prizewinners from last year. The Pulitzer for fiction (All the Light We Cannot See) and the National Book Award (Adam Johnson’s Fortune Smiles: Stories) seem shoe-ins for me; but what should the third award be? Maybe Nobel Prize in Literature winner; maybe PEN/Faulkner winner in literature.

Goal #2: Read TWO books from 2016. I hardly ever read books in their year of publication. Last year, the only 2015 book I read was Go Set a Watchman. Listening to my literary podcasts will give me tons of choices.

Goal #3: Read at least FIVE non-fiction books.

Goal #4: Read at least TWO books of poetry.

Goal #5: Read at least THREE spiritual books.

Goal #6: Read TWO “classics”—one must be pre-1900.

Goal #7: Read TWO science-fiction or fantasy books.

Goal #8: Read at least ONE book of strictly philosophy or theology.

Goal #9: Read ONE book of American history.

Goal #10: Read at least TWO books from my bookshelves.

P.S. Goal #11: Read FIVE books from five new authors from "Image's Top 25 Contemporary Writers of Faith" List, found here

Reading in 2015: A Year in Review

2015 was full of ups and downs. It began with great gusto and promise. I read a number of books I really loved, and after a few months I felt I already had a number of my favorites of the year. Then I hit a rough spot, and I read quite a lot of books in a row I didn't form any attachment to and didn't rate at 5 stars on Goodreads. (I'm a high rater.) Then I ended the year with some strong books. This pattern offered me difficulty when attempting to vote for my top 5 books of the year. I was left only with two definite choices, but the next level was full of choices. So there's quite a lot of books under my heading "other notables books."

My reread of Tolkien's trilogy was beyond exhilarating. This time around, the basic action---the battles, etc.---didn't interest me much, but the quiet moments were full of depth and personal meaning. In short, I think I enjoyed the book more this time than any other time.

Annie Dillard's Pilgrim at Tinker Creek was one of the best pieces of nonfiction I've ever read. I think it easily makes my top ten books of all time. The prose, the philosophical musings, the imagery: entrancing.

I ended the year with 41 books read, exceeding my goal by 1. More importantly, 2015 stopped my trending reading decline, going from 55 to 40 to 33. In fact, 41 puts me at more books read (in recent history, at least) than any year but my monster 2012 year. I am more than pleased with my reading habits over the past 12 months. 

Here are my top 5 books of the year. They are sort of in order:

The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, Annie Dillard

My Antonia, Willa Cather

A Soldier of the Great War, Mark Helpin

The Prime of Miss Brodie, Muriel Sparks

Other Notable Reads (in no particular order):

A Canticle for Lebowitz, Henry Miller Jr. 

Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert

Outside Enderby, Anthony Burgess

Death Comes for the Deconstructionist, Daniel Taylor

Father, Brother, Keeper, Nathan Pool

In the Garden of the North American Martyrs, Tobias Wolff

Civilwarland in decline, George Saunders

The Edge of Sadness, Edwin O'Connor

Dirk Gently's Detective Agency, Douglas Adams

Last, here are some interesting stats on my "reading year." I broke down my 41 books by looking at 4 categories: gender of writer, length of book, genre of book, and religion of writer. The last category is a bit tenuous: I went with what I knew, and put "other" down if I didn't know. Also, for someone to classify as a Catholic or Christian writer, I need to know they were practicing and orthodox---not perfect, just actually affiliated with a religious dogma.

Gender of author: 76% male; 24% female
Length of book: 34% short; 61% medium; 5% long
Religion of author: 44% Catholic; 12% Christian; 44% other
Genre: 39% novel; 5% novella; 10% science-fiction; 7% fantasy; 22% short stories; 2% poetry; 2% young adult; 12% non-fiction

CivilWarLand in bad decline: George Saunders

(41)

Outside Enderby: Anthony Burgess

(40!)