The Leaning Tower of Books
Ambitious Reading Goals
One of my “goals” for this year is to make a dent on all the unread books that have been complaining of being abandoned on my shelves. There’s a lot of them. Because I apparently am lured by the siren of beautiful books and good stories.
At the beginning of the winter months, I had the “grand” idea of trying to read thirteen books between the day that winter started and the day spring began. Now, that might sound like a feasible idea, depending on your schedule and reading speed. Until. (Ah, there’s the “until”.) Until, you realized that I decided to go crazy and try to read a delightful assortment of chunky books and some lighter reads.
I say “delightful” because I love thick, meaty books. There’s something about the weight and promise of a potentially good story that takes time to get through. It’s like spending a holiday with friends.
So, what exactly were these books I tried to read in the winter months? Well, let me share the agents of my insanity.
The Illiad (640 pages) *
The Odyssey (515 pages) *
Winter’s Maiden by Morgan L. Busse (288 pages)
The Enchanted Sonata by Heather Dixon Wallwork (386 pages)
Children of Wrath by C.J. Brightley (480 pages)
A Curse for Christmas by Anna Christine (103 pages)
Empire of Blood by Olivia Cornwell (378 pages) *
Siege of Gold by Olivia Cornwell (387 pages) *
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett (230 pages)
Flashpoint by C.M. Banschbach (196 pages)
The Shattered Ones by Brigitte Cromey (317 pages)
Guardian by Kate Korsak (463 pages)
The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (128 pages)
Oh yes. I forgot. There were also a few additional book club reads so let’s add those.
Book club reads:
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (283 pages)
The Windward King by K.T. Ivanrest (378 pages)
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (249 pages)
So, in actuality, I tried to read sixteen books this past winter.
I read thirteen of these. The ones I didn’t get to are bolded and have an asterisk (*) mark next to them.
So, did I succeed?
Depends on your definition of success.
If by success, you mean, “did I read all the books that I set out to read in the winter months?” Well, then no. I failed.
But if, by success, you mean, “I gave it my best shot and discovered new favorites”? Well, then yes.
However you mean it, I am counting it as a win. And I learned something. (I hope.)
Lesson to self: Don’t try to bite an elephant when your mouth is only big enough to bite macaroon. (Yeah. I know that was a weird metaphor. Welcome to my brain.)