The Reading Challenge...

Last year I was late to the party, but this year I am ready to go. One of my goals for 2019 (other than trying to write more) is to read more. I had forgotten how much fun reading was.

In the past 10 years, I've read 387 books. That doesn't seem very impressive, but for someone that loathed reading and book reports as a kid, this is a big deal.

I should note that the reason I didn't like reading and book reports was that I dislike being told what to read.

When I lived out west, I was a book junkie. I didn't have much else to do, so I submerged myself in brainless entertaining books like romcoms, humor, and other things that would just entertain me. I wasn't necessarily asking to be enriched.

I read mostly print books, and then I got a Kindle and started reading e-books. I loved the fact that I could just download any book I wanted and boom - start reading. However fun, it was expensive. I did Prime, I did the Kindle club stuff, and I even just straight out bought books. I also did Audible for the long car trips. But, after a while, I realized that my hobby was expensive.


So, I got a library card from the Dodge City library. I would go check out books and try a few new things, and I realized how much fun it was to make a library trip. The smell of old books, and the quiet bliss of browsing for a new adventure. As much as I traveled, it was hard to read sometimes. I used the library quite often, so when I made the move to Lawrence, I decided to visit the library and get a new card.

Best. Thing. Ever.

For a while, I took in the quiet bliss of visiting the library with my tote bag and browsing the beautiful new building that Lawrencians were so proud of. But, it got more difficult to go and many times I'd settle for books rather than really be excited to read. It led to my reading slump. Adding in a more active social life, reading just kind of took a back seat.

This is a beautiful building that has an incredible group of people staffed.

I don't remember when, but I eventually realized that the Lawrence Public Library had a mobile app. Not one to shy away from technology I decided to give Libby a try (that's the app). When they say "there's an app for that" boy, do they mean it! I signed up for Libby and the companion Hoopla, and my book reading is finally out of the slump.

Not only have the apps helped my reading slump, but GoodReads has also helped me. It tracks what I read, and allows me to share thoughts about books, and rate them so others can check that out. They also have the reading challenge, which is something I'm most excited about.

I started the 2018 challenge late but put in all the books I read over the year. I had 27 books and they were all audiobooks thanks to the library app! This year I went low and challenged myself to 10 books. I know, I know, go higher! I want to set achievable goals! Besides, I like going over my goal.

Not only am I challenging myself to "10 books" I'm also going to challenge myself to expand the type of books I read. I still love a great romcom, but I've started getting more into non-fiction and it's actually been quite interesting. So, I'd like to continue that - and I've also made a note to start reading books before I go see movies.

The best part of using the app (Libby isn't limited to Lawrence, several libraries across the country use this app and you can tie your card to it), is it automatically borrows items I've put holds on, and it will automatically return them for me, too. It shoots me an email when a new book I've selected or held is available. It's a little bit like Christmas morning sometimes!

If you'd like to follow along with what I'm reading, look me up on Good Reads or check out the homepage where my Good Reads books will show up with my rating on the right side of the blog.

Happy reading!