2025 Reading Challenge discussion

Hi there, I am setting a goal of 12 books for 2023. I had planned to read 10 books last year but got caught by some accidents and stopped reading for 3 months; however, I tried my best to get my life back on track in November and managed to read 12 books in the end. Thus, I decide to set a higher goal for my 2023 and hopefully I can keep a regular reading habit and exceed the goal again. : )
Wish you all a joyful reading journey in 2023!

Total Books: 0/12

Ebooks: 0/9
-The Subtle Knife
-A Primer for Emtionally Focused Individual Therapy
-The Psychology of Money
-The Practice of Couple Therapy: Creating Connection
-Hold Me Tight
-You Have Such a Pretty Face
-The Psychology of Money
-The Amber Spyglass
-Magician by Colm Toibin ( a gift from my student)
Physical Books: 0/3
-Trauma Sensitive Mindfulness
-Attachment Theory in Practice
-The Satir Model

Good luck, Cindy! :)

Thx for this kind reply, Ilona. 🥰🙌

good luck with your reading

Hi Amber, thx for your reply. Wish you a joyful reading journey as well!

Total books: 1/12
Just finished a physical book: Trauma Sensitive Mindfulness
It’s a 5-star must-read for any mindfulness practitioners or therapists who wish to introduce mindfulness into their work with clients.

This book responded to several questions I had had since beginning to learn mindfulness-based approach. While it all sounded peaceful and full of compassion, sometimes I was not so sure about what mindfulness practitioners would do when facing some challenging and traumatic conflicts. Are they going to do something more than awareness and acceptance? Or, to remain the inner peace, they would just turn away from all these distressing incidents? How to find the balance between acceptance and change? How to tell the difference from “understanding things from a higher perspective” and “rationalizing injustice”?

This book doesn’t provide concrete answers to all these questions, but it brings about several useful prompts that we can keep in mind for constant reflection. I love this book because it examines complicated issues with unflinching courage and clarity, presenting different aspects of information to help readers to form solid bases for their own exploration. Each individual can benefit from the author’s well-organized writing and begin their trauma-informed path.

Total books:2/12
Just finished reading “The subtle knife”
A disappointing 3-star. I really love the first one “The Golden Campus,” but just can’t related to this one. Although some narratives were still good and capturing, overall, the flat characters and unconvincing plot development make me reconsider if I should finish this trilogy.
After reading some reviews on the third book, I guess I will remove it from my TBR list and, although sadly, say goodbye to the amazing world that I had looked forward to exploring. 🥲

Total books: 3/12
Finished reading “Atomic Habit”
A 5-star must-read👍👍👍

Total books: 4/12
Finished my very first EFT book! It feels great that I could preview this important material before joining the online workshop with Dr. Sue Johnson. It increases the depth of my learning with more solid background knowledge.👍

Total book: 5/12
Finished reading the timeless epic “The Fellowship of the Ring” 💪💪
I have always had a mixed feeling with this trilogy, loving its storyline and struggling with the complicated wording and settings. Those old songs, detailed descriptions of terrains and complicated names almost defeated me at first so I had stopped reading the first book of it for several months. However, when I found the audiobook of it, everything changed! The audiobook was so interesting and full of emotions that it helped me really immersed into the Middle Earth World and began to build connections with those characters. I am so grateful for this amazing reading and listening experience and can’t wait to begin the second book!

Total book: 6/12
Finished: Mad Honey
This is my very first TBR twin reading and I am grateful for my partner’s recommendation that leads me to this amazing novel! I had known very little about trans people and their struggles. Mad Honey, however, tells a sad but poignant story on this topic. The story is about the death of a trans girl and people around her. It depicts the cruelty and hatred a trans person may encounter no matter he/she decides to come out or not. It’s hard to even read some sentences or to imagine some scenarios the character was facing in the story, let along to live a life like that. I wasn’t expecting this but I am so moved and humbled by this novel and the issues it calls for attention and compassion.

You're doing amazing, Cindy!
I hope you continue to discover great books in 2023. Happy reading onwards :)

Halfway through the year, you've already embarked on countless literary adventures. May the remaining months be filled with awe-inspiring plots, relatable characters, and transformative narratives. Good luck, fellow book enthusiast!