What I'm Reading

Saying I love to read would be the understatement of the year. I'm an avid reader and have been since I was a little girl. I'm an only child and while I had no problem playing school and Barbie and coloring by myself, I always preferred reading.

  I became an English teacher, in large part, because I wanted to inspire others to love reading as much as I do. Kinda corny, I know.  But really, with the right book, everyone would love to read.    When I was in high school I was reading so much that I'd often read the same books twice and not realize it until the very end. So I started making a list of all the books I read. It was nice to have a record and it was also a really cool way to keep track of exactly how much I was reading. One year I read 51 books (my all time high) and I was so disappointed that I didn't hit my goal of 52 books--that would have been one book a week.  I vowed to reach that goal at some point in my life.   I didn't really think 2012 was going to be the year I broke my record. I started off strong--I read The Hunger Games Trilogy in less than a week in January. But then I stalled. I read a great book called Child 44. Turns out it was part of a triology and I had a hard time getting through the other 2 books. (It took me nearly a month--and they weren't that long.) They were all excellent books, but none of them were light and airy and quick reads. Never one to give up, or move on without finishing a book, I slogged on and came out the other side.   Sometime this summer I realized that if I continued at the rate I was going at, I'd be able to hit the goal of 52 books. I even made myself a little weekly chart, to remind myself when to start a new book, all in hopes of reaching my goal. And...I did it! Last night I officially finished my 52nd book for 2012!   To some that may sound like a ton of books and to others maybe that's not a lot. For me, it's a lot. I have a life outside of reading: I'm a mom and a wife, I teach college English (which requires plenty of it's own reading) and I do love me some tv and internet time. I'm also a really slow reader (surprising for an English teacher, right?) All of these things definitely take away from my reading time. But, in the end, I accomplished my goal and I'm really proud of myself.