Today’s post is my end of year reading goals wrap up for 2019! It’s an exciting post to write. I hope you’ve read some great books this year. Whether you’ve read 1, 50 or 100 books, I hope you’ve enjoyed yourself. I know I have!
This year, I decided that my goal would be to read 40 books. This is 10 less than my 2018 goal because I wanted to focus more on reading physical books than audiobooks. I am ending the year having read 50 books (as I also did in 2018), so I well and truly went beyond my 2019 target, which I am more than happy with.
Of the 40, I aimed to read 30 physical/ebooks (with at least 20 read without an audiobook).
This is how I went:
19 physical/ebooks
- 14 solely as physical/ebooks
- 5 physical/ebooks with audiobooks
31 books solely as audiobooks
I did push myself to read more physical books this year, and I’m mostly happy with the outcome, despite being 11 books short. I absolutely believe I could read more than 19 in book form though, so I will focus more on this in 2020.
I enjoy reading and listening to books at the same time, something I would not have thought a while ago. It really stops me from being distracted while reading. Though I wanted to read 20 physical books without audiobooks and only made it to 14, I know I benefit from this dual way of consuming a book (which I did 5 times this year), so I am pleased nonetheless.
I always have an audiobook on the go. My goal was 20, yet I am not surprised the final the number was 11 more than this.
I decided not to set specific goals within my number goal, but there were a few things I wanted to try to achieve.
- Prioritise my reading. I love reading, so this is not overly hard for me, however, I definitely reach for something mindless like YouTube videos or Instagram scrolling instead of a book far too often. I find enjoyment in these other activities, but I enjoy reading so much and, more often than not, get a lot more from it. I did improve in prioritising reading during the year, but I do want to keep trying to pick up a book even more often (Ironically, I spend so much time watching and reading book reviews that I could be using to read!!).
- Read more non fiction. I have read 18 non fiction books this year, which I think is great. I’ve been focusing on historical non fiction and fiction this year because I am currently writing in this genre, so that has often trumped other types of books in terms of priority. Due to the nature of writing historical fiction, I will no doubt read more non fiction next year.
- Pick up more Australian literature. I’ve read 10 Aussie books this year. I had an Australian Writing subject at uni in the second semester, so that definitely helped to top up this list! It also encouraged me to not overlook this area as much as I have. I think with so many book vloggers and bloggers coming from England and America, it’s easy to be caught up in books from those areas, and often the Aussie books (which are great) sadly pass under my radar.
- Continue the Outlander series. I loved the first book, which I listened to as an audiobook, and am very keen to return to the series. I also was enjoying the tv series, but I don’t want to watch more of it before I finish the books. However, I still have not done read the next book, mainly due to being intimated by the length. But this doesn’t really make sense as I know I will enjoy it, and it’s only the same as picking up two books consecutively, so I am really going to try hard to get to it in 2020.
- Read more books on my shelves. Does it count if I buy more books, put them on my shelf, then read them?! No? Hhhrrrmmm, well, I’ll work on this in 2020 too…
Overall, though I did not quite reach some of my 2019 reading goals, I am happy with the outcome. I am looking forward to setting my 2020 goals now!
How did your bookish goals go this year? Did you set any, or do you prefer to be relaxed and open when it comes to reading? I’d love to hear how your reading year was in 2019!
31 audiobooks? Wow! I’ve never made it through 1, I just can’t seem to concentrate on them. You’ve done well with your book consumption however you choose to do it, and I like your goals for the new year. Aussie lit, not read much of that. I wouldn’t mind reading more Japanese lit, too, having read a few and knowing there’s so much more out there that needs to be read and appreciated. Good luck with the reading (and writing) – enjoy it!
Wishing you all the best for a happy 2020
Caz xx
Hi Caz, Lovely to hear from you ☺️ I love audiobooks. I find I get so much from them that I wouldn’t if I read them – e.g. different voices, accents etc that I wouldn’t have in my head otherwise. I also like how you can consume a book while making breaky, getting ready, resting etc. Maybe we should do a buddy read of an Aussie and/or Japanese book sometime ☺️ I hope you have a great NYE and an excellent 2020. I look forward to reading your upcoming posts.
Hi Caz,
Lovely to hear from you ☺️
I love audiobooks. I find I get so much from them that I wouldn’t if I read them – e.g. different voices, accents etc that I wouldn’t have in my head otherwise. I also like how you can consume a book while making breaky, getting ready, resting etc.
Maybe we should do a buddy read of an Aussie and/or Japanese book sometime ☺️
I hope you have a great NYE and an excellent 2020. I look forward to reading your upcoming posts.
Great wrap up! Congrats on achieving so many of your targets for 2019, and I hope 2020 will be a very productive year for you. It’s a nice idea to read along when listening to audiobooks, I’m glad that has helped you a lot, Gem