2025 Reading Challenge discussion

🛰🛰🛰The mission is simple... read at least 50 books before 2021 is over. 🛰🛰🛰

Last year was my first year as a member of this group and I made a lot of amazing achievements that I hope to replicate in 2021. I've joined a few yearly challenges for the group and plan to join a couple monthly and quarterly challenges along the way. Follow me along on my reading journey through 2021!

5...4...3...2...1...LIFTOFF

Current number of books completed: 56
Current number of pages read: 24,169


Book List:

✅1. The Wake of the Lorelei Lee: Being an Account of the Adventures of Jacky Faber, on her Way to Botany Bay by L.A. Meyer // 554 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅2. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott // 777 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅3. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix // 870 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅4. The Gunslinger by Stephen King // 315 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅5. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis // 206 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅6. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel // 333 pages ⭐️⭐️
✅7. The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King // 464 pages⭐️⭐️
✅8. Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis // 240 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅9. The Waste Lands by Stephen King // 720 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅10. The Night Circus by Erin Morgernstern // 516 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅11. Wizard and Glass by Stephen King // 1,016 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅12. Charlie the Choo-Choo by Beryl Evans (Stephen King) // 24 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅13. Insomnia by Stephen King // 902 pages
✅14. The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls by Anissa Gray // 304 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅15. The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King // 309 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅16. The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow // 374 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅17. Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King // 931 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅18. Song of Susannah by Stephen King // 544 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅19 (how fitting). The Dark Tower by Stephen King // 1050 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅20. Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon 1 by Naoko Takeuchi // 240 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅21. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia // 301 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅22. Into the Gray by Margaret Killjoy // 22 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
23. Dracula by Bram Stoker // 399 pages
✅24. The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub // 656 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅25. Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub // 659 pages ⭐️⭐️
✅26. Dexter #5 by Jeff Lindsay // 120 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅28. House of M: Civil War by Christos Gage // 120 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅29. Suicide Squad, Volume 1: Kicked in the Teeth by Adam Glass // 160 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅30. Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski // 420 pages ⭐️⭐️
✅31. The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner // 301 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅32. The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger - The Battle of Tull by Marvel // 136 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅33. Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King // 437 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Academic:

✅1. Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson // 192 pages
✅2. Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande // 282 pages
✅3. Lifespan Development: Lives in Context by Tara L. Kuther // 720 pages
✅4. Groups: A Counseling Specialty by Samuel T. Gladding // 544 pages
✅5. Group Counseling: Strategies and Skills by Edward E. Jacobs, et al. // 480 pages
✅6. Handbook of Clinical Psychopharmacology for Therapists by John D. Preston, et al. // 326 pages
✅7. Treating Those with Mental Disorders: A Comprehensive Approach to Case Conceptualization and Treatment by Victoria E. Kress, et al. // 576 pages
✅8. DSM-5 by APA // 991 pages
✅9. Trauma, PTSD, Grief & Loss: The 10 Core Competencies for Evidence-Based Treatment by Mike Dubi, Patrick Powell, Eric Gentry // 202 pages
✅10. Crisis Intervention Strategies by Richard K. James and Burl E. Gilliland // 752 pages
✅11. Assessment Procedures for Counselors and Helping Professionals by Carl J. Sheperis, Robert J. Drummond, and Karyn D. Jones // 464 pages
✅12. Essentials of Career Focused Counseling: Integrating Theory, Practice, and Neuroscience by Chad Luke // 292 pages
✅13. Career Counseling by Mark L. Savickas // 194 pages
✅14. Clinical Handbook of Psychological Disorders: A Step-by-Step Treatment Manual by David H. Barlow // 768 pages
✅15. Psychopathology: Foundations for a Contemporary Understanding by James E. Maddux // 500 pages
✅15. Doing Play Therapy: From Building the Relationship to Facilitating Change
by Terry Kottman, Kristin K. Meany-Walen // 394 pages
✅16. Dibs in Search of Self by Virginia M. Axline // 224 pages

TBR Jar List: I only signed up to read 10 of these but I'm putting the whole list on here so it's easier for me to find when I want to choose a new one 😊

1. Battle Royale by Koushun Takami // 617 pages
✅2. Black Butler by Yana Toboso // 192 pages
3. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas // 1312 pages
4. Creepshow by Stephen King // 66 pages
5. The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King // 264 pages
6. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky // 671 pages -->DNF for now
7. 僕のヒーローアカデミア 26 Boku no Hero Academia 26 by Kohei Horikoshi // 200 pages
8. If It Bleeds by Stephen King // 447 pages
9. Not Without Laughter by Langston Hughes // 299 pages
✅10. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott // 777 pages
11. Gingerbread by Helen Oyeyemi // 372 pages
12. The Institute by Stephen King // 561 pages
13. The Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams // 371 pages
✅14. If I Stay by Gayle Forman // 261 pages ⭐️⭐️
✅15. Fifty Shades Darker by E.L. James // 532 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
16. 1984 by George Orwell // 237 pages
17. A Green and Ancient Light by Frederic S. Durbin // 320 pages
18. Nowhere to Call Home by Cynthia C. DeFelice // 208 pages
19. The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien // 527 pages
20. The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born by Peter David // 240 pages
21. Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King // 437 pages
22. Moby-Dick or, the Whale by Herman Melville // 654 pages
✅23. The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin // 437 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️
24. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson // 182 pages
25. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs // 352 pages
26. Skeleton Crew by Stephen King // 672 pages
27. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood // 314 pages
✅28. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them // 280 pages
29. My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite // 226 pages
✅30. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson // 311 pages ⭐️⭐️
✅31. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho // 182 pages ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅32. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway // 96 pages

Serial Reader List:


Finishing:

*50 Shades of Grey 2/3
3. Fifty Shades Freed

Continuing:

*Bloody Jack 8/12
9. The Mark of the Golden Dragon: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Jewel of the East, Vexation of the West, and Pearl of the South China Sea
10. Viva Jacquelina! Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Over the Hills and Far Away

*Harry Potter 5/7
6. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

*The Witcher 3/9


*The Chronicles of Narnia 3/7


*Boku No Hero Academia 25/Ongoing
26. 僕のヒーローアカデミア 26 Boku no Hero Academia 26

Start to Finish:

✅The Dark Tower 7/7

✅The Talisman Duology 2/2

Best of luck with your reading goals in 2021, Bailey :)

Hey Bailey, good luck for your reading goal!

Challenges:

Yearly
✅TBR Jar: 10 books (msg #50) COMPLETED 12.28.2021
✅Genre Bingo: 3 Bingos (msg #28) COMPLETED 6.17.2021
✅Serial Reader: 15 books (msg #56) COMPLETED 7.20.2021
✅Let's Turn Pages: 18,000 pages (msg #35) COMPLETED 9.6.2021

Quarterly
✅Q2: A Diverse Education: 15 credits (msg #17) COMPLETED 6.11.2021
✅Q2: Who Runs the World?: 5 books (msg #25) COMPLETED 6.18.2021
✅Q3: Book Recycling: 5 books (msg #62) COMPLETED 8.20.2021

Monthly
✅January—Marathon Challenge: 4 books (msg #77) COMPLETED 1.18.2021
✅August—Soul Searching Challenge: 3 books (msg #3) COMPLETED 8.28.2021

Personal

✅Finish books I've started but haven't finished 3/3
✅Read 5 Stephen King novels 5/5 COMPLETED 4.29.2021
*Read 5 classics 3/5

Unofficial
✅Reading Adventures in April: 3 books (msg #23) COMPLETED 4.19.21


Group Reads:
✅January: Station Eleven
✅March: The Night Circus
✅May: The Ten Thousand Doors of January
✅August: The Alchemist

Buddy Reads:
✅January: The Gunslinger
✅February: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix & ✅The Drawing of the Three
✅March: The Waste Lands
✅April: Wizard and Glass
✅May : Wolves of the Calla
✅June: Song of Susannah
✅July: The Dark Tower & ✅The Talisman
✅August: Black House
✅September: Insomnia
October: Dracula
✅November: Little Women

25K Celebration:

✅Celebrating 25,000 Members: 5 books (msg #75) COMPLETED 4.19.21
✅Scattergories (msg #65)
✅Virtual Party! (Mystery Character?)
✅What Would 25 Year Old You Read?
✅Listopia (Votes are in and a few books added ;) )
✅What's Our Story?
✅Movie Night: 4 movies COMPLETED 4.20.21

Statistics:

Total number of books read: 55

Authors

Male: 12
Female: 15
Transgender, Nonconforming, Other: 1
Multiple Authors: 12

Authors I haven't read before: 25

Length

<100 pages: 3
101-300 pages: 16
301-500 pages: 17
501-999 pages: 16
1000+ pages: 2

Type
(For this I'm categorizing each title based on the format I used the most)

Audiobook: 16
E-book: 11
Hardcover: 9
Paperback: 18

Genre

Academic: 14
Children's: 1
Classic: 3
Crime: 1
Fantasy: 17
Fiction: 4
Graphic Novel/Manga: 4
Historical Fiction: 2
Horror:
Mystery/Thriller: 2
Nonfiction: 1
Poetry:
Romance: 1
Science Fiction: 1
Short Stories: 1
YA: 2

Decade Published (Original)

1810:
1820:
1840:
1860: 1
1870: 1
1880:
1900:
1910:
1920:
1930:
1940:
1950: 3
1960: 1
1970:
1980: 4
1990: 5
2000: 7
2010: 28
2020: 4

Translated Works

Total: 3
Original Languages: Japanese (1), Polish (1), Portuguese (1)

Rating
(I am not counting partial stars that I give in some of my reviews. Rounding down)
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐: 4
⭐⭐⭐⭐: 11
⭐⭐⭐: 14
⭐⭐: 6
⭐: 1
Unrated: 18


Reviews written: 33

1. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
206 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo
Reason for Reading: It's a classic I've wanted to read for a while and I enjoyed The Magician's Nephew even though it was confusing and I shouldn't have read it first lol

2. The Wake of the Lorelei Lee: Being an Account of the Adventures of Jacky Faber, on her Way to Botany Bay by L.A. Meyer
554 pages
Rating: 4.75 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo
Reason for Reading: I love the Bloody Jack series and plan to finish it ☺️

That’s a great list, Bailey! Good luck with your challenge!

Btw, we’ll get to interact in The Gunslinger buddy read thread. :)

3. The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
437 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo, TBR Jar
Reason for Reading: It was chosen randomly from my TBR jar list and was on my TBR to increase the amount of books I read by diverse authors!

4. Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande
282 pages
Rating: Unrated + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo
Reason for Reading: Required for one of my classes

5. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
333 pages
Rating: 2 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo
Reason for Reading: Monthly group read on here ☺️

6. The Gunslinger by Stephen King
315 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo, January Buddy Read
Reason for Reading: My mom recommended The Dark Tower series to me and it's my lifelong goal to read all of Stephen King's novels

7. Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson
192 pages
Rating: Unrated
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo
Reason for Reading: Required for a grad school class

8. If I Stay by Gayle Forman
261 pages
Rating: 2 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo, TBR Jar, Serial Reader
Reason for Reading: Chosen randomly from TBR jar and it's been on my TBR/shelves for YEARS

9. The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King
464 pages
Rating: 2 + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Marathon Challenge, Genre Bingo, Serial Reader, February Buddy Read
Reason for Reading: Next book in The Dark Tower series

10. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
311 pages
Rating: 2.5 + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Genre Bingo, TBR Jar
Reason for Reading: Chosen randomly from TBR jar :)

Hi Bailey!
Your thread popped up in my Notifications so I thought I'd drop in for a visit. :D
I really like the way you've listed 47/50 books of the books you plan to read in 2021 in advance. It's great how you've left for 3 chosen-by-whimsy books as well.

Have a wonderful reading journey this year!

oshizu wrote: "Hi Bailey!
Your thread popped up in my Notifications so I thought I'd drop in for a visit. :D
I really like the way you've listed 47/50 books of the books you plan to read in 2021 in advance. It's ..."

Thanks oshizu! Unfortunately a great number of the books added to my 2021 list will be textbooks that haven't been assigned yet for summer and fall terms 😭 Hope you have a great year as well!!

11. Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis
240 pages
Rating: 3.5 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, Genre Bingo
Reason for Reading: I'm enjoying The Chronicles of Narnia and want to continue the series. Side note: I want to start collecting these books so that my future kids can read them and love them like I wish I had when I was a child 🥺

It appears as though 2021 is the year of the series for me lol! The majority of the books I've read so far have been part of a series and I'm honestly loving it. Hopefully this trend continues so I can make some long overdue progress on series I've already started!!

12. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
516 pages
Rating: 4.75 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Genre Bingo, March Group Read
Reason for Reading: Chosen as the group's March book and it was already on my TBR!

13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
870 pages
Rating: 4 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Genre Bingo, February Buddy Read, Serial Reader
Reason for Reading: Next in HP series that I still haven't finished

14. The Waste Lands by Stephen King
720 pages
Rating: 4 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, March Buddy Read, Serial Reader
Reason for Reading: Next in The Dark Tower series :)

15. Charlie the Choo-Choo by Beryl Evans (Stephen King)
24 pages
Rating: 4 stars
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages
Reason for Reading: Related to The Dark Tower series and I had to see the pictures after reading about them in The Waste Lands

16. Wizard and Glass by Stephen King
1016 pages
Rating: 5 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, April Buddy Read
Reason for Reading: Fourth book in The Dark Tower series

17. Groups: A Counseling Specialty by Samuel T. Gladding
544 pages
Rating: Unrated
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages
Reason for Reading: Required textbook

18. Group Counseling: Strategies and Skills by Edward E. Jacobs et al.
480 pages
Rating: Unrated
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages
Reason for Reading: Required textbook

19. The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls by Anissa Gray
304 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Genre Bingo, A Diverse Education, Who Runs the World
Reason for Reading: Quarterly challenges

20. Handbook of Clinical Psychopharmacology for Therapists by Preston et al.
376 pages
Rating: Unrated
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages
Reason for Reading: Required textbook

21. Fifty Shades Darker by E.L. James
532 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, TBR Jar, Genre Bingo, Serial Reader, A Diverse Education, Who Runs the World, Reading Adventures in April, Celebrating 25,000 Members
Reason for Reading: Finishing books I've started but haven't finished... finally!!

24. The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King
309 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages
Reason for Reading: It's a Dark Tower story!

26. The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
374 pages
Rating: 5 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, May Group Read, A Diverse Education, Genre Bingo
Reason for Reading: It was the May group read choice

28. Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King
931 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, May Buddy Read, Serial Reader
Reason for Reading: The Dark Tower series!

29. Song of Susannah by Stephen King
544 pages
Rating: 3.5 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, June Buddy Read, Serial Reader
Reason for Reading: The Dark Tower series!

30. Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Vol. 1 by Naoko Takeuchi
240 pages
Rating: 5 stars
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, Genre Bingo, Who Runs the World?, A Diverse Education
Reason for Reading: I loved the TV adaptation and my boyfriend gifted me the first 2 manga editions 🥺

31. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
301 pages
Rating: 4 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Genre Bingo, Who Runs the World?, A Diverse Education
Reason for Reading: Who Runs the World? challenge and because it was so highly recommended by lots of bookish content creators!

32. Into the Gray by Margaret Killjoy
22 pages
Rating: 4 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Genre Bingo, Who Runs the World?, A Diverse Education
Reason for Reading: I want to read more from trans and nonbinary/conforming authors!

33. The Dark Tower by Stephen King
1050 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, July Buddy Read, Book Recycling
Reason for Reading: To put the story of Roland of Gilead, Eddie of New York, Susannah of New York, Jake of New York, Oy of Mid-World, and all others to rest.

35. The Talisman by Stephen King & Peter Straub
656 pages
Rating: 3 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, July Buddy Read, Book Recycling
Reason for Reading: July Buddy read and it's connection to The Dark Tower series

38. Black House by Stephen King & Peter Straub
659 pages
Rating: 2.5 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, August Buddy Read, Book Recycling, Genre Bingo, Soul Searching
Reason for Reading: August buddy read and sequel to The Talisman

39. Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski
420 pages
Rating: 2.5 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, Book Recycling
Reason for Reading: Next book in The Witcher series 🐺

40. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
182 pages
Rating: 4 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, TBR Jar, August Group Read, Book Recycling, Soul Searching
Reason for Reading: Been on my TBR for a while and was chosen for the August group read!

41. Suicide Squad, Volume 1: Kicked in the Teeth by Adam Glass
160 pages
Rating: 3.5 stars + review
Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Serial Reader, Book Recycling
Reason for Reading: Trying to get into comics and loved the first Suicide Squad movie so this seemed like a good fit.

Finally got this page all updated!

My original goal of 50 has been smashed once again, WOO! Now it's time to finish up my other challenges within this group and call it a wrap on 2021's reading year.