Reading Challenge...Are You Up For It?

This time last year, I was fairly new to Twitter and Goodreads and saw many posts of people committing to a reading challenge for the new year.  Having been in a bit of a reading slump myself, I figured I'd give it a shot and set my Goodreads goal for 211 books for the year.  That number would include the picture books I read to my early elementary classes along with any other books I'd read along the way.

Well, I'm happy to say that I met my goal quite a few months ago.  And I've actually had to up it twice since meeting the goal because I met the new goals, too!  During the reading challenge, I found myself picking up books I've always wanted to read, but just never had the time to.  Having two young boys of my own at home also allowed me to get picture books that we could share together.  We have had many fun adventures at the Lawton Memorial Library during the challenge where it was fun for me as a mom to watch my boys pick out the books they wanted to read from the shelves.

Over Christmas Break, it has been fun to get involved in The Nerdy Book Club via Twitter and keep track of all the great books that people have been reading over break and raving about.  Speaking of the Nerdy Book Club, some of the members are getting involved in new reading challenges for the year including #nerdcott and #nerdbery.  What are these challenges, you ask?  Well, members are challenging themselves to read all the Caldecott winners (#nerdcott) and  Newbery winners (#nerdbery).  Both challenges prove to be stress-free, allowing members to complete the challenges in 1, 2 or 3 years.  Whatever works best for the reader.  I will be participating in #nerdcott so that I can share the books with my boys, too.  I'm looking forward to see how picture books have evolved over the years since the Caldecott was first awarded.

So, I challenge you to get involved in a reading challenge of your own.  It's amazing what great books you discover along the way!

Happy reading in 2012!