I am rarely a goal setter, which might make not scoring less of a surprise, but for books I have always just read. Just read whatever came my way. Sometimes I find an author and I read everything they publish, sometimes it is impulse just catches my eye, sometimes it is a bargain second hand or from a clearance store. This was alongside all the library books.
That is my past. Mental health crisis then losing my job then my housing then my Father all in the space of 2 yrs. changed everything. I switched from physical to digital out of necessity I narrowed my reading to what I could afford. Library ebooks were not quite a thing yet. Plus libraries can be difficult with no fixed address. Moving back to Wales became a lifeline and a duty to care for Mum with Dad's passing. Reading always was there but the rise in SM & my isolation at home meant my reading often became dictated by who I followed their recommendations etc. one author led me to another, one publisher opens doors to similar publishers. I can say I read more narrowly in genre but hear from so many more diverse voices than ever before.
I rarely have a DNF, but must say this year has tested my reading ability with technical issues loss of hardware and creeping pervasive lethargy has seen 2024 as a slow reading year.
I still have no goal, but do feel I score more frequently than not in the books I read.
Apologies for a long reply but not for the first time your sharing sparks a response.
I've never heard of a goal of reading fewer books. I hope to someday read so many books that I give myself such a goal (I'm still climbing book-mountain).
Yeah the election fucked me up too (still is).
I also hate my smart phone. I'm constantly thinking about how sick it makes us all.
I've been fantasizing about getting a dumb phone. Is it even possible? It's hard to give up things like GPS for driving, which I need my dumb-smart phone for...
I tell myself I'm going to read X number of books in the coming year, but then I stop keeping track. I was going to read 50 in 2024, and I have no idea if I read 30 or 50 or 75. I could see how many books I've borrowed from the library, but that won't account for the ones I read on my iPad (and those don't tell me whether I read them in 2024, 2023, or some other time). I have found that my memory - pretty bad at the best of times - is worse if I'm trying to dash through books to meet a self-imposed, completely arbitrary target. There have been times when I would finish a book and a day or two later, having started on a new one, I couldn't remember how the first one ended. So for 2025 for me, no targets, no tracking, just reading.
I am rarely a goal setter, which might make not scoring less of a surprise, but for books I have always just read. Just read whatever came my way. Sometimes I find an author and I read everything they publish, sometimes it is impulse just catches my eye, sometimes it is a bargain second hand or from a clearance store. This was alongside all the library books.
That is my past. Mental health crisis then losing my job then my housing then my Father all in the space of 2 yrs. changed everything. I switched from physical to digital out of necessity I narrowed my reading to what I could afford. Library ebooks were not quite a thing yet. Plus libraries can be difficult with no fixed address. Moving back to Wales became a lifeline and a duty to care for Mum with Dad's passing. Reading always was there but the rise in SM & my isolation at home meant my reading often became dictated by who I followed their recommendations etc. one author led me to another, one publisher opens doors to similar publishers. I can say I read more narrowly in genre but hear from so many more diverse voices than ever before.
I rarely have a DNF, but must say this year has tested my reading ability with technical issues loss of hardware and creeping pervasive lethargy has seen 2024 as a slow reading year.
I still have no goal, but do feel I score more frequently than not in the books I read.
Apologies for a long reply but not for the first time your sharing sparks a response.
I've never heard of a goal of reading fewer books. I hope to someday read so many books that I give myself such a goal (I'm still climbing book-mountain).
Yeah the election fucked me up too (still is).
I also hate my smart phone. I'm constantly thinking about how sick it makes us all.
I've been fantasizing about getting a dumb phone. Is it even possible? It's hard to give up things like GPS for driving, which I need my dumb-smart phone for...
I tell myself I'm going to read X number of books in the coming year, but then I stop keeping track. I was going to read 50 in 2024, and I have no idea if I read 30 or 50 or 75. I could see how many books I've borrowed from the library, but that won't account for the ones I read on my iPad (and those don't tell me whether I read them in 2024, 2023, or some other time). I have found that my memory - pretty bad at the best of times - is worse if I'm trying to dash through books to meet a self-imposed, completely arbitrary target. There have been times when I would finish a book and a day or two later, having started on a new one, I couldn't remember how the first one ended. So for 2025 for me, no targets, no tracking, just reading.