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List of Books Read in 2018

Reading Goals for 2018

Instead of making a New Year’s Resolution, I decided to make goals for 2018. Things like changing my contacts as often as I was supposed to and getting a haircut at least twice this year. And, of course, reading more.

Last December (of 2017) I read something about Bill Gates reading 50 books a year. He’s obviously super smart, so I was thinking it’d be good to copy some of his habits. I thought, I could totally do that! And set out to make it my third goal of the year.

Then I sat back and thought about it… I had a 13-month-old baby and was due with another one in March. Probably not the best year to set a monumental goal! So, I scaled it back to 25 books.

Disclosure: Affiliate links provided

Books I Completed in 2018

1. A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro 1/2/18

2. The Last of August by Brittany Cavallaro 1/3/18

These two books are a spin-off of Sherlock Holmes. Charlotte is Holmes’ great-great-great-granddaughter and she meets Watson’s great-great-great grandson. They are more like their famous ancestors than they might imagine.

3. The People vs Alex Cross by James Patterson 1/7/18

4. Bringing Up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman 1/9/18

Mentioned here

5. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling 1/10/18

6. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling 1/14/18

7. A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 1/16/18

Reading the Charlotte Holmes novels (#1 and #2) made me interested in the actual Sherlock Holmes stories – so I borrowed them from my brother!

8. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling 1/21/18

9. The Sign of Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 1/24/18

10. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling 1/27/18

11. Chasing Slow by Erin Loechner February ‘18

Mentioned here

12. Counterfeit Gods by Timothy Keller March ‘18

13. The Alice Network by Kate Quinn March ‘18

14. The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out theWindow and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson April ‘18

15. The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden by Jonas Jonasson April ‘18

16. Belgravia by Julian Fellowes May ‘18

17. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling May ‘18

18. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony D June ‘18

19. Hitman Anders and the Meaning of it All by Jonas Jonasson June ‘18

20. Lessons from Madam Chic by Jennifer Scott July ‘18

21. The Inn at Ocean’s Edge by Colleen Coble July ‘18

22. The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George August ‘18

Review here

23. Cancel the Wedding by Caroly T. Dingman August ‘18

24. At Home with Madam Chic by Jennifer L. Scott Sept ‘18

25. Into the Water by Paula Hawkins Sept ‘18

Review here

Mentioned here

26. The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck October ‘18

Review here

Mentioned here

27. The House at Riverton by Kate Morton October ‘18

Review here

28. Warlight by Michael Ondaatje Nov ‘18

29. Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas Nov ‘18

30. A Column of Fire by Ken Follett Dec ‘18

Review coming soon!

31. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling Dec ‘18

Mentioned here

32. Respect for Christmas by Grace Burrowes Dec ‘18

I haven’t been big into reading romance novels, but I saw a list of Christmas romance novellas and I thought I’d take a chance. I was meaning to read “Christmas-y” books, a novella would be short, and it’s always good to try out new genres!

33. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling Dec ‘18

I squeezed in one last book of the year on our vacation. And because of that, I read the complete Harry Potter series in one calendar year. I’ve probably done that before, but not as an adult also reading 26 other books. If you read these books as a kid, but not as an adult I suggest you pick them up again. I had a different perspective on certain characters, story lines, and situations, but it was also just as wonderful as the first time I read them!

As you can see, I beat my goal and went beyond! Part of that I attribute to be so exhausted chasing a toddler while being 8 and 9 months pregnant. All I wanted to do (and basically all I did do) was sit and read. Now that I have two little ones, we’ll see if I can keep up with my goals!

What helped me reach my goal:

1. Book swap

A group of my friends meet about every two months to recommend and swap books. It’s the greatest encouragement to read because you have to give the book back!

2. Reading while nursing (and nursing all the time)

3. Kindle (so I could read while nursing in the middle of the night)

4. Having a goal

Another reason I think I read so much during January was that setting my goal made me super motivated to try to reach it.

Another goal that emerged during the year was reading all the Harry Potter books – another great decision!

Reading Goals for 2019

If you read this post about setting goals for the new year, then you know that my goal for 2019 was 35 books. But that was before I reached 33 books in 2018! So, I’m changing my goal to 40 books in 2019, and I’m paying specific focus on completing nonfiction books. Especially the ones that caught my eye during the Nonfiction November link ups like here and here.

Grab your own free goal setting sheet and tracker here!

How did you do with your reading goals for 2018? What are your new goals for this year?

Happy Reading!

Hannah