But here's the thing: I don't believe in New Year's resolutions.
The concept behind them is great, but they backfire. They put into our minds that, the moment we falter, the whole thing's a bust, and now we have to wait until next year to try again.
But we don't!
It doesn't have to be the first day of a new year to make a change. It doesn't have to be the first day of a new month. It doesn't even have to be the first minute of a new hour. And I want to get out of the trap of thinking that way.
I do, however, believe in goals! So those, I have lots of, especially when it comes to reading.
So get your TBRs ready because this is going to be a book-filled post!
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at The Broke and the Bookish. This week’s topic is:
Top Ten Bookish Goals for the New Year
10. Read At Least 100 Books
In 2015: I read over 160.
In 2016: I’ve made my goal lower because I think my non-bookish life might be busier this year.
On the 2016 TRB:
9. Expand My Repertoire of Supernatural/Paranormal Creature Reads
In 2015: I managed to read about vampires, incubi, shifters, ghosts, witches, demons, angels, faeries, merpeople, dragons, reapers, a phoenix, and even, vaguely, hellhounds as main characters plus more creatures as side characters. (I also read one book about djinn, but it was so bad that it doesn’t count.)
In 2016: In addition to the usual, I want to try some books about less common creatures, such as sirens, djinn/genies, selkies, kelpies, harpies, banshees, trolls, unicorns, goblins, and gargoyles.
On the 2016 TBR:
8. Try Some Books About Aliens
In 2015: Can you believe I’ve never read about aliens? (At least not that I know of.)
In 2016: I won’t know if I like alien books until I try them!
On the 2016 TBR:
7. Read More Retellings
In 2015: I read one Alice in Wonderland, one Nutcracker, and two Little Mermaid-ish retellings.
In 2016: I want more! And some different stories, in addition to the two mentioned above, such as Rapunzel, Peter Pan, Hansel and Gretel, The Princess and the Pea, Hades and Persephone, Medusa, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Beauty and the Beast, Little Red Riding Hood, Aladdin, Snow White, The Pied Piper…
On the 2016 TBR:
6. Learn More About Lore, Mythology, Fairy Tales, and the Origins of Supernatural Creatures
Yeah I read about them in books, but I want more. I want to know the original lore. I want to know about the creatures from different cultures. I want to read more of the original fairytales that are so widely retold nowadays. I want to learn more about Greek mythology. I want knowledge!
5. Read Some Classics
In 2015: I read a grand total of none! I’m so cultured, guys.
In 2016: I don’t tend to like classics, so I don’t plan to read a lot, but there are a few specific ones I’ve become interested in (mostly because of my sudden interest in retellings). And I’m looking forward to re-reading Peter Pan even though I just read it a couple years ago.
On the 2016 TBR:
4. Read More Graphic Novels
In 2015: I read Saga Volumes 1-5.
In 2016: I’ve just recently taken an interest in graphic novels and would like to try some different ones. I like pretty pictures.
On the 2016 TBR:
3. My Own Personal Dan dos Santos Book Cover Challenge
In 2015: I get these kind of mini obsessions sometimes, and my this is my current one 😛
In 2016: I want to read (and own) at least the first book in each series (and standalones, obviously) he’s done the cover art for. Since they’re mostly urban fantasy, it’s a perfect fit. But I won’t complete this one in one year, mostly because I can’t afford it lol.
On the 2016 TBR:
2. Read More Circus Books!
In 2015: Unfortunately I only read one I can really call a circus book in 2015. (Why only one?! I have brought dishonor on my whole family and my cow!)
In 2016: SO MANY. THAT IS MY GOAL. AND I AM SO EXCITED. CAN YOU TELL BY THE CAPSLOCK?!
On the 2016 TBR:
1. Make More Reader/Writer/Blogger Friends!
I’m terrible at making friends online. I have no idea what I’m doing when it comes to online etiquette and social norms. But I love meeting and getting to know other people, so I’m putting in more of an effort to reach out and connect with others, and please do feel free to do the same and comment or contact or friend me! (And hello *waves* to the blogger friends I have made already because you’re awesome for being friendly despite me being an awkward, lost little blogger!)
Fun goals for sure! Alien books aren’t so hard to find once you go looking for them. Thanks for stopping by my TTT
Thanks! I’ve got a few alien books on my Kindle, and I’m sure there are lots more out there, so I should be able to find something I like 🙂
What fantastic bookish goals! I hope you achieve them. 🙂
Thanks!
So many amazing and pretty books here! I definitely want to read more fairytale retellings, I’m loving them lately. And ugh, I really need to read more classics! Definitely a big YES to making more blogger friends, I met so many amazing people (yourself included of course!) in the last couple of months! 😀
I didn’t used to care for fairy tale retellings but I’m suddenly so into them! I feel like we all say we need to read more classics though and never do, haha. But seriously, one of the best things about blogging so far has been the amazing people!
Oh I absolutely love your list!
I could definitely get on board with some of these. I haven’t read a book with aliens for about ten years, and even then it was the very high-brow and intimidating Xenogenesis series by Octavia Butler.
Thanks! And yikes, that does sound intimidating. I think I’m more the “Oh look, a hot alien is living next door, I think I shall go fall in love with him” type lol. But I also have some alien post-apocalyptic/dystopian type books, so I guess I’ll find out soon enough!
I was going through my trying-to-look-more-intelligent phase haha. It was a good enough series, but I’m glad I grew out of it.
Haha I love it. But I’m glad you grew out of it too because reading is so much more fun when you don’t care what people think!
Wow, great list! We have quite a few similarities – I also love circuses in my fiction, so you’ve given me some great books to add to my TBR for this year. I think I only read one circus-themed book last year (The Night Circus). I also have difficulty picking up classics. I add them to my TBR with the best of intentions, but they often end up disappearing in the pile of newly released books I want to read. I hope to read 100 books this year as well! I read that many last year so I’m hoping to achieve that goal again.
If you’re interested in learning more about mythology, I would highly recommend The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Fairies by Anna Franklin. It’s a gorgeous book with details on supernatural creatures (not just fairies) from lots of cultures across the world.
Happy reading (and blogging!) in 2016!
My TTT
If you want more circus books, I’ve got a whole list of ’em! I guess I didn’t realize until recently that they really existed, so I’ve declared this the year of circus books. I feel like the classics will probably… not end up getting read, haha. I do have more motivation now though since I like to read originals before reading their retellings, and I have been meaning to read Dracula FOREVER because I feel like a terrible vampire fan.
That book you recommended looks PERFECT! Finding fairy tales is easy, but I don’t even know where to start when it comes to lore and mythology, so I’m going to see if I can find that book for a good price somewhere 🙂
Happy reading and blogging in the new year to you too!
What a wonderful list. I love the one about reading Dan dos Santo book cover books. He art is so wonderful. I just picked up the first to “izombie” graphic novels from the library this past week and look forward to reading them. Of all your goals, I can say I have read alien books and really don’t care for them. That may change in the future because I used to find that I didn’t enjoy “fairy/fae” books much and this past year, I managed to find some good ones, so maybe aliens will eventually redeem themselves.
Ugh I love his art so much! Hoopla (where I rent books online from the library) has the iZombie series, so I am looking forward to those too. I’m not exactly SUPER excited about reading alien books, but I figure they deserve a shot since I love reading about most other non-human creatures. And sometimes it really does make a difference *what* book you read as to whether you like the genre or creature or whatever, so I’m glad you found some fae books you like 🙂
Great goals Kristen!
Since you want to read books about aliens I recommend the Red Rising Series [best voice I ever read!] and the Lunar Chronicles Series [this one also counts as a retelling of fairy tales! I still have to finish it but it seems great so far]
Since you want to read books about less common creatures and learn more about mythology and the origins of supernatural Creatures I recommend the Lords of the Underworld Series! It covers pretty much every creature, myth and legend you can think of!
Happy Reading 🙂
Thanks for the recommendations! I know I’ve heard about the Red Rising Series but knowing it has a voice you loved has me more interested. I just get this feeling that the Lunar Chronicles is not really for me even though it does seem to fit all a lot of my criteria, but it’s a possibility that I’ll try it. I clicked on your link to the Lords of Underworld though, and it turns out I already have it on my Goodreads TBR (I have so many books on my TBR that I don’t even remember what’s on there half the time lol), AND I just checked and saw they have some of the ebooks at my library! So yay, I’ll bump it up 🙂
You’ve got a nice mix of books! Oh and I’m sure you’ll LOVE Fables. I haven’t finished it but it’s great! And Bill Willingham is such a charmer! 😀
They have Fables on Hoopla, so I’m all set to read it this year! That’s where I stumbled onto it, so I’ve never even heard anything about it. Good to know you can vouch for it 😀
What fun bookish goals, Kristen. I like having goals rather than resolutions as well. Resolutions are like the snooze button on an alarm clock…a setup for failure. 😉 You have some great looking books listed here – a few on my tbr, like Summoned, and a few I’ve read, like The Night Circus (good book!). I look forward to watching you work towards your goals this year. Happy 2016! 😀
Oh, and might I suggest Jennifer L Armentrout’s Lux series for a taste of aliens? 😉
I’m glad someone else agrees with my assessment of resolutions 🙂 Summoned is one of the books I’m actually most looking forward to right now, so I’ll probably read it soon. And I will DEFINITELY finally read The Night Circus this year lol.
I actually do have the first Lux book on my Kindle! I just have to see if I can get the rest of the series from the library or something since they’re all $6-7 just for the ebooks. I do appreciate the rec though, so I’ll keep an eye out!
Making your goals so specific and thought out will most likely help you achieve them. Plus, now you have something to refer to if you need to remember, or motivation. Lots of good looking books planned. The Night Circus was pretty good, and I read Through the Looking Glass and Dracula. I love Dracula, but TtLG wasn’t as good to me as Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Happy New Year!
Oops, I thought Through the Looking Glass was the first book! I’m glad you happened to mention that so that I didn’t end up confused. The Night Circus and Dracula have both been on my list for a while, so I’m trying very hard to make sure I finally read those this year lol. You’re right though, my list is already helping because I’m horribly indecisive, but these goals are helping narrow down my choices while still giving me the freedom to mood read. Thanks, same to you 🙂
Good luck with all of your 2016 resolutions!
Thank you!
My goals are very vague for the year but clearing my kindle of books is high on this list and organising my physical books too is on there.
I am a huge sci-fi fan so yay for alien books – Jennifer L Armentrout’s Lux series is a great series!
I am working my way through Saga just now but before I read them I read Nimona which is brilliant too!
Good luck!
Organization has become non-existent to me as of late lol, so that should probably be one of my goals too. I actually do have the first Lux book on my kindle and have been told it’s good, so I’m going to try and get to that one this year 🙂 I’m not really sure Nimona is for me, though lots of other Saga fans have liked, so I don’t know. But Saga is so much fun! Good luck to you too on your goals!