My Year In Books
Everyone else is doing their year-end lists, so I might as well too. I’ve seen lists where someone has read 35 books and another over 50. I was talking to a friend the other night, and they said they’ve read 38.
Me? Well, I’ve read two. OK, actually, I finished one and am working on a second. The list is as follows:
- Hip-Hop is History by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
- Atomic Habits by James Clear
That’s it, that’s the list.
I’ve never been an avid reader. Not since high school when it was required of me. I’ve historically had trouble settling in for things like reading or watching movies. My mind wonders, I get twitchy, and I want to reach for my phone. I make excuses or get distracted by TV. Anything to not sit and read.
But when I do read, I tend to enjoy it. I feel like I need to do more of it. I regret not doing more.
Will I ever be the type to read 35 books in a year? Who knows? But I want to try to at least be actively reading. I want to learn and be enlightened. I tend to read non-fiction due to this reason.
So, the goal is to finish Atomic Habits then move on to the next book. There’s a list I have stored mentally of what’s next, but nothing is set in stone yet. I have friends who read, so I’m using them as motivation to do the same. None of this is a competition, however.
I’ll say this much. I’m sure I can read at least three books next year. Hey, we have to start somewhere.
So, how am I going to do this? Keeping my Kindle with me at all times is a start. Yeah, yeah, I know, Amazon… but it’s what I have and it fits in my sling bag better than a full-sized book. I’m also thinking about setting time aside after I journal at night, which would be a way to not scroll on my phone right before bed. Let’s see what informative reading does to my dreams.
It really is about a mental reset. It’s one of those seemingly normal things for others that’s never been normal for me. But, if I can make that reset and kill some downtime in a positive way, then that’s good, right? So, here’s to three…. maybe four books. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.