A new (book) state of mind

Reading how many books?!

In 2017, I set a lofty goal for myself: to read 50 books in 365 days.

Since I’m studying humanities and spend a lot of time reading for classes, I decided to count any books I read for school and work. Sometimes it felt like cheating, but usually, it felt exactly the way finishing a book is supposed to feel: like a piece of me got stuck behind, held captive by the pages for the rest of eternity. With every book I read, I marked down a place in time where I existed.

And one day I’ll open up those books again, perhaps for the first time in decades, and I’ll be transported back to 2017.

The year I failed to reach my goal of 50 books.

Although I really pushed hard at the finish line, reading four books in the last week of the year alone, I fell short at only 33 completed books by December 31.

A new thought process

This year, I am seeking out the same goal, but with a whole new mindset and a whole new plan for accountability.

Beginning now, with this blog post, I will log, review, and comment on every book that I read in 2018. I’m already at four, which means that in coming days there will probably be a singular post about those (because, well, they’re in the same series). I can’t wait to begin this new blogging journey. [Author’s note: this plan worked. See the recap here.)

It’s going to be beautiful, because it will hold me accountable in more ways than one: for months now, Our Inspired Hearts has been lurking in the back of my mind, reminding me how much I wanted to establish a reliable schedule for posting. And, also, I really want to read 50 books this year. What better way than to share my progress with the World Wide Web?

So friends, I hope you will join me in the journey. I hope that this will blossom and transform into something way bigger than this little blog on the back roads of the ‘net, and I hope you’ll be inspired to pick up new books, and I hope you’ll share your favorites with me so that I can continue to grow. I don’t want to be stuck in the same-ole-same-ole of books; there are so many out there just waiting to be read, and I want to break free of my typical genre/literary style.

So leave me a comment below or just join in silently until something you simply must share comes to mind.

Recap of last year’s success

Before I begin my official list of books for 2018, here is what I read in 2017 (in order of completion):

1. Constructive Wallowing by Tina Gilbertson
2. Accidental Saints by Nadia Bolz-Weber
3. Globalization: A Short History by Jurgen Osterhammel (Class book)
4. Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
5. The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie
6. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (Class book)
7. Train to Pakistan by Khushwant Singh (Class book)
8. The Mirror Crack’d by Agatha Christie
9. At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks (I literally did not remember reading this book at first; it was awful, honestly.)
10. Summer People by Elin Hilderbrand
11. The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
12. Jesus Feminist by Sarah Bessey
13. CORE by Danette Baird (This is an in-progress work, but I read it, so hey, it counts. This was also for my job.)
14. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
15. Towards Zero by Agatha Christie
16. Tandem Living by Krishana Kraft
17. The Broken Way by Ann Voskamp
18. Love, Ruby Lavender by Deborah Wiles
19. Each Little Bird that Sings by Deborah Wiles
20. The Rumor by Elin Hilderbrand
21. The Promise by Danielle Steel
22. The Rule of Benedict (Wow, what a shift from the previous books…this was for class.)
23. Water From a Deep Well by Gerald Sittser (Class book)
24. Blue Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews
25. You Are What You Love by James K.A. Smith (Class book)
26. Skipping Christmas by John Grisham
27. Unexpected Gifts by Elena Aitken
28. Once Upon a Royal Christmas by Robin Bielman
29. Confessions by Augustine (I think this one ended up being listed out of order; I finished it several books earlier. Also a class book.)
30. Abundance Now by Lisa Nichols (One of my favorites! I love a good self-help!)
31. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
32. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
33. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Can you guess the first four books I read in 2018?

If you want to hear more about anything I read in 2017, let me know!

Talk soon!

Nikki