2025 Reading Challenge discussion

Welcome, new members! Please stop in and introduce yourselves. We're looking forward to getting to know you.

If you don't know where to start, feel free to answer these questions:
- Where are you from?
- What kinds of books do you like to read?
- How did you find our group?
- What's your reading goal?

Hello to you all!

I'm Michelle and I joined this group yesterday. I'm from the Netherlands, studying in Belgium. I really like to read and used to do it a lot, but over the last couple of years I started to read less, mostly because I have/make less time to do so. I like to read thrillers, mysteries and fantasies mostly.

I found this group by just looking at groups that are reading groups with challenges and stuff. This was the first group that I found and it looks good :). My reading goal for 2019 is to read at least 25 books, a little more than a book every two weeks. This should be doable, but I'll see :). Maybe it'll get more when I decide to participate in challenges.

Hi! My name is Kate and I’m from the US. Reading has been most loved hobby for as long as I can remember. I’ve only picked it back up again after having to focus on reading educational pieces for work over the past year. I found this group as I was looking for ways to set a goal/challenge myself for reading this upcoming year. My goal is to read at least 25 books!

Welcome to the group Michelle and Katie, we are happy to have you here. Good luck with your reading goals for 2019!

I feel embarrassed, but I have to ask this question because I cannot find the place to sign up for my challenge for 2019. I get directed to the announcements but not place to actually sign up. Can anyone clarify this for me and perhaps give me the location?

Hello,
My name is Sarah I am 22 and from New Zealand!
I absolutely love reading and next year I want to read more, read more diverse and get my tbr pile down! Thats how I found the group by searching up TBR reading challenge!

Hi, my name is Reyna and I’m 20 years old. I’ve never formally introduced myself so here I go. I’m a university student in the U.S, my favorite genre is Young Adult(I know I’m “basic” even though it’s not). Within YA, I love paranormal and romance. I’m December, I hope to finish the last two books on the To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before and the Harry Potter Series, at least to Book 3. Overall, in 2018, I want to hit my 20 book mark and hit 40 in 2019!

Darlene wrote: "I feel embarrassed, but I have to ask this question because I cannot find the place to sign up for my challenge for 2019. I get directed to the announcements but not place to actually sign up. Can ..."

Hi Darlene welcome to the group! What exactly are you looking to do?
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Try that link if you have more questions then ask them here

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

As far as setting a goal for 2019 you have to wait. You should also get a message from our committee soon. Hope this helps =)

Sarah wrote: "Hello,
My name is Sarah I am 22 and from New Zealand!
I absolutely love reading and next year I want to read more, read more diverse and get my tbr pile down! Thats how I found the group by searchi..."

Hi Sarah so glad your search lead you to us. I think you will love our new yearly challenge #OwnVoices link here https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... Look and see if you like it, Welcome again.

Reyna wrote: "Hi, my name is Reyna and I’m 20 years old. I’ve never formally introduced myself so here I go. I’m a university student in the U.S, my favorite genre is Young Adult(I know I’m “basic” even though i..."

hi hi Reyna welcome. I love your unique name =) I hope you reach 20 smoothly and wish you luck with 40 please look around and join the fun.

I am Ron Wroblewski. I have been an avid reader all my life, reading 100+ books a year. I own over 2200 books of which 800 I have yet to read. I read from 3 areas: 1. those books I own that I have yet to read, 2. books on the compare list of several of my friends here on goodreads, and 3. the books listed on the compatibility list. I enjoy reading and discussing with those who will also read the same books. I live in an RV now and my wife and I travel all over the country. I give away books on paperbackswap.com and also to several goodreads friends plus others who are interested in reading them.

Ron wrote: "I am Ron Wroblewski. I have been an avid reader all my life, reading 100+ books a year. I own over 2200 books of which 800 I have yet to read. I read from 3 areas: 1. those books I own that I have ..."

Hi Ron welcome to the group! So happy to have you here. While I am impressed. Do you have a favorite book or author? It sounds like you and your wife lead a great life I hope you have a great time here with us.

Hi- I am Alex from the Black Hills of South Dakota by Mt Rushmore and a lifetime reader of the magic that is in books. I can remember my Mother actually having to shake me when I was 7 years old to come to the dinner table because I was so engrossed in Tom Sawyer that I could not hear her telling me that supper was being served.
I read all genres but tend to go for historical and my goal is 40 books a year and to have fun buddy reading.

Hi,
I am Nerissa and I hail from Shillong, Meghalaya- a small yet scenic place in the north-eastern part of India. I have been an avid reader for as long as I can remember. I love collecting books and re-reading the ones I absolutely love. One of my all time favourites is Jefferey Archer.
I found this group by just searching for reading challenge groups and it looks wonderful.

Sadly my reading pace has declined since I started working and traveling, but I do try to get in a chapter or two a day.

I read almost all genres but I tend to lean to suspense thrillers. My goal for 2019 is 25 books.

Thanks!

Blagica wrote: "Darlene wrote: "I feel embarrassed, but I have to ask this question because I cannot find the place to sign up for my challenge for 2019. I get directed to the announcements but not place to actual..."

Hi, Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. I'll look at the link. I just thought everyone was saying what their 2019 reading goals are that I have missed something along the way.

Thanks again!

Hi all, I'm Karen from Grand Prairie, Texas (so okay... HOWDY!)

I intend to retire at the end of this month/year (well, officially my last day is Friday, January 4 - it's on the internet now so it's going to happen, right?) and want to read a lot more at least for a while. My goal this coming year is to read some of the books I've stored up and get them into the hands of another reader. I've called my personal challenge "Let's Circulate!"

I'm optimistically going to try and read 200 books in 2019 ... and clean house. Literally. I have a saved up quite a quantity of books over the years and I vow to read the ones I've got on hand and pass them along to a new reader to enjoy, and OUT of my house.

*I'm editing this message after quite a few of you have posted. I love that we are all from different places and hope that you will all share the titles of books by authors that are from your area.

Welcome to you all so happy to have you join us looking forward to reading with you in the coming year.

So, I didn't let everyone know that I have gone over my 200 book goal for 2018! Next year looks busy but I'm holding to my 200 book goal for 2019. :D

Welcome everyone to our group! We are so glad to have you. Be sure to check out all our Announcements to keep up with all the things coming up in the new year.

Hi, I am Abdiwali from Edmonton, Canada. I recently joined this group to ignite a new hobby of reading and practice writing out my thoughts in a constructive way. I hope to meet like minded individuals who enjoy nonfiction, science and current events in the world.

I am looking forward to the readings and discussions.

Abdiwali wrote: "Hi, I am Abdiwali from Edmonton, Canada. I recently joined this group to ignite a new hobby of reading and practice writing out my thoughts in a constructive way. I hope to meet like minded individ..."

Hello Abdiwali - looking forward to see what you're reading and hear your recommendations.

Hi everyone! My name is Anna and I live in England. I have been an on/off reader over the past few years and really want to be more on than off! I love most genres, especially Crime/Thriller and look forward to participating in the challenges and getting to know you all.

Alexw wrote: "Hi- I am Alex from the Black Hills of South Dakota by Mt Rushmore and a lifetime reader of the magic that is in books. I can remember my Mother actually having to shake me when I was 7 years old to..."

Hi Alexw, and welcome to the group! I have family in Rapid City, Mitchell and Pierre. My daughter and I live in Long Beach, CA but try to get back to the family farm every once in a while. She's 15 now but has fond memories of going to Bear Country USA when she was only five or six and watching the bears walk next to our car.

Hi I am Dawn, from the UK. I am looking forward to joining in some of the challenges next year. I don’t currently have much spare time for reading but am hoping to take early retirement in the spring. I am looking forward to spending summer in the garden with a book and a cold drink.

I love how the New Year brings new wonderful faces. Welcome to each and everyone of you. I look forward to seeing what you all read.

My name is Leslie and I am returning to goodreads after a long hiatus from reading. I've recently rediscovered our local library and have been enjoying finding new authors to read through their surprise "grab bag" program.

Joining the reading challenge in 2019 will encourage me to keep exploring new authors and genres. I love the idea of the group reads and buddy reads as well.

I've set a bit of a stretch goal for myself...read one book for each year I've been alive. I'm also an avid hockey fan with season tickets to our local junior team as well as a subscription to our dinner theatre group. With my new reading goals, 2019 should be a very busy and rewarding year.

Hi All: I am Lorie and I live in Wisconsin. I have been using Goodreads as a platform to research and track book reading for a long time, but half of last year and, NOW, all of this years I hope to use it to set myself reading goals and push myself to try new books through the challenge themes.

Let me know if there are any special etiquette things I should know about groups. . .I don't want to be butting in on things.

Hi ya'll I'm Gem. I've been a member of this group for several years now and every year I intend on participating in challenges and overcommit, I don't finish and then beat up on myself. So this year I'm going to commit to less.

- Where are you from?
I'm originally from Miami, Florida but now living in Phoenix, Arizona with my son, dil, and twin 5-year-old grandbabies who I help to mind when their parents are working.

- What kinds of books do you like to read?
I have a very eclectic taste in books but my favorite genres are Southern Lit, Mystery, and True Crime.

- How did you find our group?
I don't remember but it was early in the year of 2016.

- What's your reading goal?
This year it's 52 books. If I hit that goal, I'll up it some and try for more.

Welcome everyone! Hope you'll all have a great reading year in 2019. :)

Hi! I’m Hannah and I’m from the US. I’ve been a reader my whole life but tend to hunker down with books especially in the winter. I go through phases of genres of books that I’m into and right now I’m in a nonfiction and historical fiction phase. Although my tbr list is already quite long, I love hearing what everyone else is reading and enjoying and adding to my own list.

Hannah wrote: "Hi! I’m Hannah and I’m from the US. I’ve been a reader my whole life but tend to hunker down with books especially in the winter. I go through phases of genres of books that I’m into and right now ..."

Hi Hannah so nice to have you join us. I completely agree with you about going through reading phases. I think you will find that everyone here is friendly and willing to give recommendations. Welcome again and happy page turning.

Sandy wrote: "Hi there! I'm Sandy. I just joined yesterday. Recently, I have been reading a lot of 19th and early 20th-century novels and also dabbling in some more contemporary things.

This group has lots of ..."

Hi Sandy welcome! I am so glad you already feel welcome. There's lots to do here but all that is required is having fun. Have a blast finishing 2018 and best of luck with 2019.

Hello!

- Where are you from?
My name is Mia and I'm from Malaysia. I'm pretty new to goodreads and slowly learning my way around.

- What kinds of books do you like to read?
I tend to read romance/YA or dystopian books


- How did you find our group?
I used to be an avid reader but motherhood/ppd somehow put me in a reading slump. I was looking up challenges to motivate me and found this very interesting group.

- What's your reading goal?
I want to aim big but I will start with 20 books.

Hi Mia welcome! Goodreads takes some time so just take your time and have fun with it. I am sure that you will find friends and motivation here we are a great group of people. I will say that as long as you are having fun it wont matter how many you read. Welcome again and happy reading.

Hello, I'm Hannah and I'm from Nigeria! I love reading YA fantasy books but I also enjoy thrillers and mysteries. I was searching for reading groups when I found this group and I love what you guys are doing here. Thank you.

Hannah wrote: "Hello, I'm Hannah and I'm from Nigeria! I love reading YA fantasy books but I also enjoy thrillers and mysteries. I was searching for reading groups when I found this group and I love what you guys..."

hi Hannah I am so glad to hear you love what we are doing because we love happy members! I look forward to seeing you join the fun and reading!

Hi Rebecca welcome to our group! You are going to have so much fun here. There are challenges to keep you motivated and focused and having fun. Please look around and let us know if you need anything. Welcome again and happy reading.

Hi everyone :D My name is Cas, from Germany. My main book genres are Fantasy, SciFi and LGBT+ (romance) but I've recently started branching out into other genres, especially psychology, social justice, history and biography.
I found this group through the Goodreads group finder thingy.
2019 is going to be a year with a lot of change and a lot of new challenges arising and I want to make sure that I stick with my goal of reading more and don't just abandon it when shit hits the proverbial fan^^"

My goal for 2019 is at least 12 books that have been on my TBR pile for 1+ year and hopefully 12 other books. So 24 overall. This year I only managed 12 + will possibly finish 2-3 before the year ends so... we'll see :D

Hello all, excited to have found such a fun and inspiring group of fellow readers! My name is Brittany, I currently live in Northern California, recently located from Houston, TX and grew up in Iowa.

I’m a stay at home mom, homeschooler and self employed artist; so, much of my time is spent on those activities. Reading is a nice break and excuse to sit down and recenter for a bit.

I tend to reach for science fiction, fantasy and some historical fiction, both young adult and not. I am making it a goal to step outside my comfort zone in my reading picks for 2019 and trying my hand at a few challenges. I exceeded my goal of 30 books in 2018, but with a busy schedule I don’t want to get too crazy so I am shooting for 35 in 2019!

Hi everyone! My name's Morgan and I live in Ontario, Canada. I've been working with books for years - from bookstores to teaching elementary school to being a school librarian. I love all kinds of books - general fiction, historical fiction, fantasy, YA, picture books, and middle grade readers with some classics thrown in.

I have so enjoyed doing a reading challenge this year for the first time as it really expanded my reading choices as well as got me really reading again for the first time in a few years. I had set my goal at 50 for 2018 but surpassed it by quite a bit so I am aiming for 250 in 2019.

Looking forward to reading along with you in the coming year!

Morgan

Welcome everyone to our group! We are so glad to have you, and we hope that you find something that you will enjoy!

Hey everyone! I'm Paige and I'm from England. I really enjoy reading historical fic, YA, murder mystery and thriller. I don't think I have ever read a fantasy novel so I would really love to pick one up. For 2019 my reading goal will be 12 books but I'd love to read more. This will be the first year of me actually keeping track on Goodreads.

I'm really looking forward to being involved in this group!

Hi, new to this group. Discovered challenges (except for # of books) last year - and found one of my favourite books that way — "midnight in the garden of good and evil". Without the challenge, I would never have started it...
I like lots of different books, but usually, I read "easy" books, as that gives me most R&R. In 2018 I read 200+ books, but my guess is I won't manage that next year.
But I do the Around the year in 52 books, Popsugar and Bookriot challenges (my plans contain no duplicates - but that's just my plans).
I also (and that is a more significant challenge than 200 "easy" books or any other one) want to read 12 business/self-help books and 12 books related to my work (ICT).
I hope to have great discussions here!

Hey all! My name is Kari and I am from the United States. I claim the Upper Midwest as my home. I really enjoy fantasy novels but will pick up all kinds of books. In 2018 I read over 100 books. I found this group just now and decided to try something new this year. My challenge for myself is to read over 25 books that are not audiobooks or ebooks. I love a physical book and need to get away from screen time.
Hope everybody finds some great books to read!

Welcome to you all happy to have you. I am so happy to see so many new faces join our group here. There is so many new things to do. I hope that you guys have a blast here. If you have questions or need help please let us know.

I'm Kelli and I've moved around a lot but now I'm living in the Pacific Northwest :)
I like to read fantasy, paranormal/supernatural, non-military space stories (lol), thriller/mystery, and anything with LGBTQ themes or characters. I'm new-ish to goodreads and I'm interested in meeting new people.

My 2019 goal is 55 actual-books. I tend to read a lot of non-published stories and I'm never sure where they fit into reading goals, so I hope to track those as well.

Hi Everyone, I’m Georgia.

I’ve joined this group because since I got my iPad I’ve almost completely stopped reading and I want to reverse the trend. I’m going to read anything and everything to try to turn this around! Looking forward to a bookier 2019!

My goal is going to be a book a month, to start easy. I’ll see where that takes me :)

Daniel wrote: "Hello folks, I'm Dan and I've been looking for a group on Goodreads to help me find new authors and books to read. Hopefully, this will be the place. :)
I am from Sacramento, CA and read a bit of e..."

Hi Dan welcome! We have tons of challenges and things to keep you busy in the coming year. I think it will help you find new books and authors. If that doesnt do the trick then our members are really good about recommendations. I hope 50 books is a blast for you and wish you all the best of luck.

Kelli wrote: "I'm Kelli and I've moved around a lot but now I'm living in the Pacific Northwest :)
I like to read fantasy, paranormal/supernatural, non-military space stories (lol), thriller/mystery, and anythin..."

Hi Kelli welcome I think you will fit in great here. I think 55 is a great goal and you will do great. There are many challenges up for next year that I think you will have a blast with that will help you reach your goal. welcome again and happy reading.

in_essence wrote: "Hi Everyone, I’m Georgia.

I’ve joined this group because since I got my iPad I’ve almost completely stopped reading and I want to reverse the trend. I’m going to read anything and everything to t..."

Welcome! Have you tried getting a nook or kindle app on your ipad to help reverse the trend or just reading an old favorite? I can't wait to see what kind of reading year you have.