I created my goodreads account 10 years ago, in January 2013.

It went unused for 2 years, when I decided to join a dear friend in the 2015 reading challenge.

My reasons for first participating and my reasons for continuing are different. My perspective towards reading has shifted and transformed throughout the years. I attempted to dissect my mind and provide an overview.

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2015 — 76/52

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2016 — 53/74

I was overly ambitious with my reading challenge.

I determined my goal while looking at the previous year’s result, without considering how much my life had changed. As a result, I worked harder and was less fulfilled.

I didn’t reach my goal, but I was still proud. It was a difficult year.

I read as much as I could.

2016 FAVOURITES:

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, Kim’s Convenience by Ins Choi, When Marnie Was There by Joan G. Robinson

Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan (The Eye of the World, The Great Hunt, A Dragon Reborn, The Shadow Rising), Peggy Sue et les fantômes series by Brussolo (Le jour du chien bleu, Le Sommeil du Démon), A Series of Unforunate Events by Lemony Snicket (all 13 books), The Keys to the Kingdom by Garth Nix (all 7 books)

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2017 — 35/52

I set my goal at 52, unsure how many books I would really read. It was a looser goal than previous years. I was less worried about the amount of books and more about the quality of my experience. I took a break from long series and children’s literature (which I used to boost my numbers the previous year).

I stuck to my assigned readings for some time. I found comfort in stand-alones and discovered graphic novels over the Winter break. They granted respite from the heaviness on my syllabi. Reading became relaxing once more.

I did not reach my goal in 2017, but I was happy.

2017 FAVOURITES:

Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Walled Garden by Michael Dean, SAGA by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples (vol.1 to 6), Elle by Douglas Glover, Hiroshima mon amour by Marguerite Duras, L’existentialisme est un humanisme by Jean-Paul Sartre, The Sound of the World by Heart by Giacomo Keison Bevilacqua, Elantris by Brandon Sanderson

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2018 — 59/52

I set my goal at 52 again. I reread some old favourites, but they failed to make my heart sing. This helped me realize how much I had changed, how much I had grown.

I began to love my assigned readings.

3 spectacular professors (Janine Rogers, Terrence Craig & Mark Lee) shaped my mind into something new. They helped me discover authors and genres I would obsess over. I began jotting down every title that poured from their mouths, not wanting to waste a single drop. Their words still echo through mine and I’m grateful our paths crossed.

2018 FAVOURITES:

Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver, The Lives of a Cell by Lewis Thomas, A Scientific Romance by Ronald Wright, Perfume by Patrick Süskind, The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, Are You My Mother? by Alison Bechdel, Métaphysique des tubes by Amélie Nothomb, La nostalgie heureuse by Amélie Nothomb, Ni d’Ève ni d’Adam by Amélie Nothomb, The Faerie Queene Book 1 by Edmund Spenser, The Chronicles of the Black Company by Glen Cook (book 1 to 5),

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2019 — 71/67

I don’t remember why I picked 67 as a goal, but it worked.

Much like the previous years, a lot of my favourite books were assigned readings. Dr. Craig opened a graphic novel literature class at our university before retiring and Dr. Narayana added herself to the list of professors who shaped my mind. I enjoyed them as much as I could, while it was still possible.

The end of the year was a difficult time, during which I reported my best friend missing to the police. I supported his parents until he was found, but lacked support for myself. I was working night shifts while finishing classes, but my emotions spiralled out of control.

My life was about to change.

2019 FAVOURITES:

Putain by Nelly Arcan, The Word for World is Forest by Ursula K. Le Guin, Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert, Poil de Carotte by Jules Renard, Maiba by Soaba, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Murakami, The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, Claudine à l’école by Colette, Chéri by Colette, La fin de chéri by Colette, The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. & E.B. White

Palestine by Joe Sacco, Minerve by David Turgeon, Hark! A Vagrant by Kate Beaton, Watchmen by Alan Moore, Making Comics by Scott McCloud, The Arab of the Future series by Riad Sattouf (vol. 1 to 3), SAGA by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples (vol. 7 to 9)

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2020 — 120/52

I couldn’t afford to stay on leave forever, so I returned to work before receiving help. The company took advantage of my manic state to schedule me overtime, which worsened my health. I lost all desire to sleep. I became psychotic. I began hallucinating. I clung to reading and writing to make me feel safe. Books were my only medicine.

In September, I read one book every day.

In October, my best friend cut me out of his life. I hope he’s well.

In November, I wrote 50,000 words and won NaNoWriMo for the first time.

In December, I finally got help.

I went to the hospital again, encouraged by friends who had grown concerned. There was no one qualified to handle my condition, but they paid for my transport to the next city. There, I found a therapist & psychiatrist. I began taking medication. I began to feel better.

2020 FAVOURITES:

The Ice Dragon by George R.R. Martin, A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett, A Curious Tale of the In-Between by Lauren DeStefano, The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller, Circe by Madeline Miller, Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guinn,

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf, The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood, LaRose by Louise Erdrich, Radial Symmetry by Katherine Larson, Ikigai by Hector Garcia Puigcerver, The Pillow Book by Sei Shonagon, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari, Peterson Field Guide to Moths of Northeastern North America by David Beadle

Garden In The Sands by Ellie Mitten, Jewel of Gazanté by Mab Morris, Night of a Hundred Moons and Other Poems by Mab Morris, The Guardian by A.T. Guduay

When Women Were Warriors by Catherine M. Wilson (The Warrior’s Path, A Journey of the Heart, A Hero’s Tale), Four Kingdoms series by Jasmine Young (Stormfire), The Earthsea Cycle by Ursula Le Guin (A Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan, The Daughter of Odren)

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2021 — 60/100

It took some time to grow used to life without my best friend. It took even longer to stop blaming myself for the burdens I imposed on him.

I healed, slowly and surely.

We found an apartment where I could have my own office. I involved myself in the writing community and began reading more self-published books. I found new friends and ways to discuss literature.

I didn’t reach my goal, but I was unreasonable in setting it so high.

2021 FAVOURITES:

Norwegian Wood by Haruhi Murakami, Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden, Ashes by Iona Wayland, A Stranger’s Tale by Nataša Xerri, Equal of the Sun by Anita Amirrezvani, Tales from Maliseet Country by Philip S. LeSourd, Defying Maliseet Language Death by Bernard C. Perley, Four Kingdoms series by Jasmine Young (Queen of Diamonds)

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2022 — 5/60

I barely thought about my reading challenge. It was not important.

A similar approach had propelled me to great lengths in previous years, but distress had fled. I had less need for escapism.

I read here and there, without rush or worry.

2022 FAVOURITES:

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir.

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2023 — ?/?

This brings us to this year. How to choose my reading goal?

A year’s worth cannot be determined by the amount of books read alone. Does it really matter, what the number is?

I set the goal at 56 (my favourite number), because it’s a nice number.

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