Reading is oxygen for me. Books have always been a part of my life as long as I can remember. I even remember getting my first library card. I think I was around five years old and that was when I started reading piles of books.
Fast forward to now and I still have a stack of books waiting to be read, only now I also have a Kindle which is filled with books ready to be read.
I often joke that it's an addiction. I can never walk out of a bookstore empty-handed, even if I have a stack of books to be read. Same goes with the library. My husband laughs and rolls his eyes whenever I come home from book club, arms full of books that get stacked on top of the books that I haven't read yet.
There could be worse things. At least library books are free, right?
Anyway, I use the Goodreads app to track what I read because frankly without it, I'd have a hard time remembering everything I read. At the beginning of each year, you can set a reading challenge goal on the app and for 2024 I set a goal of 48 books, believing that I could manage four books a month.
I'm pleased to say that I surpassed that goal:
Here are the books that I read:
I read so many great books that it's hard to pick my favorite. However, a few notables include the Empyrean series by Rebecca Yarros and the Crowns of Nyaxia series by Carissa Broadbent, along with the Green Creek series by TJ Klune.
The God of the Woods was a page-turning crime thriller that was one of my favorite books of the year. Demon Copperhead is a heavy read, but so well written. These Silent Woods is on the top of the list as well. The Women is a must-read historical fiction about women who served in the Vietnam war. The Tainted Cup is reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes, but set in a dystopia world.
If you like romance, Katherine Center is wonderful and I read a couple of hers this year.
I also read several personal development books, which are always in my book stack.
I even like to read cookbooks! Is that weird? I just love to read the stories that go along with the recipes and look at the beautiful pictures, even though I won't make most of the recipes that are written. Maybe one day.....
"How do you read so much?"
You're probably asking that question because I get that question a lot. I just love reading and when I have free time, I most likely have a book in my lap. I don't watch a lot of TV and so most evenings I'm reading a book while my husband watches sports. I also read a lot on the weekends. Perhaps once my husband is rehabilitated and feels well enough to go on adventures again on the weekends, I'll have less time to read because we'll be riding our bikes, hiking, or traveling, but I'll still make reading a priority.
And I dream of retirement because can you imagine how many books I'll be able to read then? I cannot wait!
