12 BOOKS & 12 MONTHS

Even though I have always had a love for reading, I feel like I've slacked off lately. And by lately I mean in the past five years. I have read some books in the past five years but not nearly as many as I would have liked to. My stragey before was to pick an author I liked and read everything they had ever written. It only works for very prolific authors that write in a style I like. I ran out quickly.


So the other day I set a goal for myself. Granted, this is no lofty goal but a goal I can easily achieve. I will read 12 books in the next 12 months. If you're good a math, you can see that is a book a month.


I set this goal in order to read more, think more and piddle around less. (piddle means watch tv) And since I know I can accomplish it without too much stress, I really hope for it to become a habit for the rest of my life.


I went ahead and made a list of books I want to read. I did this so that I would have adequate advance notice to get the book I want sent to my library.


One made the list because it's been on my night stand for a couple of months and I haven't cracked it, another because I just loved the author's first book. The rest are straight off the Pulitzer Prize list for fiction. Some are finalists and some are the winners. I am starting with the most current ones and working backwards. The reason I picked Pulitzer Prize winners or close to it is because I have loved every Pulitzer Prize winning book I have ever read. I find that it doesn't matter what the book is about as long as the writer is good.

I am going to leave you with my list, if you're interested. I probably won't read then in this order although I did start The Good Earth Sunday night. I'll keep you updated on my sidebar. I hope that this will inspire those of you that have gotten in the same bad habits that I have. Feel free to share your list with me or just a great book you've loved.

1. A Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
2. All Souls by Christine Schutt
3. Tinkers by Paul Harding
4. Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson
5. The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich
6. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
7. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen
8. Love in Infant Monkeys by Lydia Millet
9. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
10. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz
11. In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin
12. March by Geraldine Brooks