Reading Challenge 2016 Conclusion

So 2016 on the blog didn’t go as well as I’d hoped.   Attending a blogging conference completely killed my drive instead of inspiring me to achieve more, but I want to celebrate successes, and perhaps go on to achieve other things in 2017.

I last visited the Goodreads 2016 reading challenge in March when I’d read 4 books in 2 months.   Things slowed from then, and I reevaluated what I actually WANTED to read rather than what I felt I should.   One of the books took a long time as I didn’t really enjoy it (The House at the Edge of the World), but I managed to get 12 books read and I’m really happy.

  1. An unfinished book – Helen Fielding – Mad About the Boy
  2. A new author to me – Kate Thompson – Secrets of the Singer Girls
  3. A celebrity autobiography – Mary Portas – Shop Girl
  4. A book written by/about a historical figure – Lord Baden-Powell – The Wolf that Never Sleeps
  5. A children’s book – Jacqueline Wilson – Best Friends
  6. A book club read – Julia Rochester – The House at the Edge of the World
  7. Sophie Kinsella – The Undomesticated Goddess
  8. Amanda Egan – Kissing Frogs and Dogs
  9. Amanda Egan – Catnaps and Flapjacks
  10. Jenny Colgan – Christmas at the Little Beach Street Bakery
  11. Margaret Forster – My Life in Houses
  12. A book adapted into a film – Helen Fielding – Bridget Jones’s Baby: The DiariesThe categories of books I didn’t read were a classic read, a book recommended by a librarian, an award winning book, a book I should have read at school, and a Goodreads recommendation.   I guess Chick Lit is my thing.   A bit of easy reading escapism from all the demands on my day.

    My favourite reads were My Life in Houses (my brother went to primary school with one of Margaret Forster’s children and I remember going to their house to pick him up after a birthday party), Bridget Jones’s Baby (I still haven’t seen the film), and Christmas at the Little Beach Street Bakery.   I also enjoyed The Wolf that Never Sleeps, although it wasn’t very well written.   The Guiding/Scouting history was very interesting, although I preferred Olave Baden-Powell’s autobiography, Window on my Heart.

    I will be doing the challenge again in 2017 as reading is something that gets me away from the TV and laptop.   Perhaps I’ll hoover up some of the categories I didn’t get around to in 2016, or perhaps I’ll just choose books I’ll enjoy.   Whatever happens, I’ll be reading and that’s the important thing.

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