Reading in 2022

I love New Year’s Day. For me, it’s a time to dream of the wide-open new year’s possibilities and challenges. There will be gardens to plant, parties to plan, and best of all for me, books to read.

Picking a year’s reading

I don’t plan my year’s reading past January. Instead, I start New Year’s day with a possible list of books to read. I usually have around 30 books in reserve that I’ve accumulated through the years at used book shops, thrift stores, and yard sales. It’s incredible to me the great books I can pick up for next to nothing.

This past year, I concentrated on choosing nonfiction books summarized in my upcoming book, Library Lin’s Curated Collection of Superlative Nonfiction, which is due in spring 2022. I have close to thirty of them waiting in a spare bedroom to be chosen.

In January, the first book I read will be Catherine the Great by Robert Massie. I like to select books based on the time of year or my mood. I want to read something based on a cold climate or something set in winter in the first month. So Russia seemed like a good place to begin this year.

Variety is the spice of life

After that, who knows? As you can see from the picture above, I have quite a variety to choose from. And those are just the nonfiction titles.

Some people read one book at a time. I keep four going most of the time. I read from a spiritual book every morning when I first wake up, I read a book on writing or publishing for a break sometime during the day, Then I read nonfiction after the day’s work is done. Finally, I save fiction for an hour or so before going to bed.

I try to make it through at least 20 nonfiction books in a year, but I take my time and slowly read the other books.

How about you? Do you have a reading challenge you participate in? Do you belong to a book club? How do you choose the books you will read in the year ahead?