Why Do You [Read] Like You’re Running Out of Time?
[Read] day and night like you’re running out of time?
Yesterday, I finished my fourth book for the year since January 1st. Four books? In the first 12 days of the year? My reaction:
I didn’t realize I was capable of surprising myself with reading this much hence the title of this entry (thanks to Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Non-stop from Hamilton - I changed the “write” to “read” if you’re not familiar with it) - because that was what I was singing to myself last night.
I’ve been a bookworm since I was a child. I’ve lost touch with that part of myself over the past few years but since getting a Kindle in 2018, I started to fall in love with reading again. Although I have almost always failed my reading goals over the past five years, the number of books I’ve been able to read was still more than what I read before my Kindle era. Last year, I signed up for a virtual library card for two libraries here in Maryland and I have them to thank for offering free access to e-books (and many more). My love for reading intensified in 2022 because I can now devour a lot of books/audiobooks without having to buy them. The $$$ I’ve been able to save up from the fiction and non-fiction books/audiobooks I’ve borrowed, I’ve splurged on the Crossway $2.99 sale at the beginning of the year.
My reading goal for this year is to read/listen to 52 books/audiobooks. I know. A very ambitious goal. I figured with all the free access to books and the hundreds of books on my to-be-read (TBR) list on my Notion Bookshelf page, I can squeeze in at least one book a week. The mini goal I have under this main reading goal is to read 25 Christian books as I mentioned in last week’s entry. I have three main reasons why I set a very ambitious reading goal for myself this year - all of which are aligned with the things I already mentioned last week:
I want to read more books for my growth - learn new things, develop my skills, and expand my vocabulary - and also as a pastime.
I want to build more intentional habits. Swapping mindless and doom scrolling with reading is one of the best things I’ve done so far.
With the Christian books I’m reading, I want to learn more about my faith, how I can improve my theology, and deepen my relationship with Him.
Because of the reasons mentioned above (and to answer the title), I don’t feel like I’m reading like I’m running out of time - I’m enjoying reading right now and I haven’t felt this way for a long time.
So far, I’ve finished two Christian books and two others. What are the books I’ve read so far? Here’s the list and some overview:
Reset, David Murray - A book I bought last year during Crossway’s $2.99 sale. I’m not particularly the target audience of this book (author mentioned it’s mainly for men and those in the ministry) but it’s a very easy and fast read for me. I love how some of the productivity concepts I have been already familiar with were explained with biblical references in this book.
Speed Reading, Kam Knight - Because of the overwhelming amount of books I now have access to, I wanted to improve my reading speed and did some research last year on what the best books are to improve it. Kam Knight’s Speed Reading was one of the top recommendations so I went ahead and bought it using my sister’s birthday gift. I started reading it last year but didn’t get to finish it because I wanted to set aside time to focus on it and take down some notes so I can have something to refer to once I’m done with it. I think this book is the main reason why I was able to finish two books quickly after it. Looks like I already got my ROI out of this.
A Better Encouragement: Trading Self-Help for True Hope, Lindsey Carlson - Purchased from this year’s Crossway $2.99 sale. It was a very quick read (160 pages) but there wasn’t anything new that I got from it. I was hoping for something more but whatever’s in the book are things that I already know although I have to admit it was nice to be reminded of. The anecdotes and some stories from the Bible were a nice touch though to provide more application.
Love In The Time Of Serial Killers, Alicia Thompson - Borrowed from Enoch Pratt Free Library. Started this last year and stopped because I didn’t feel like reading this during the holiday season. Decided I needed to finish it because it was already due. As a true crime fan, the book had references I easily understood but some of the lines were meh for me - or maybe I’m just old for that, IDK.
I have added a lot of books to my TBR list the past two years because I saw them randomly on #bookstagram or #booktok and some of them I just copied from all the “Top 100 Books to Read” lists you see all year round. I’m trying to sift through my TBR over the weekend and see if I can delete some of them that I’m not really interested on reading - that’s one of the things I also learned from Kam Knight’s Speed Reading. It’s important to have a clear purpose for reading whatever material I want to read and to make sure that I’m really interested so I can read it from start to finish and not waste my time. I’ve added a “From” column to my Notion Bookshelf so that I’ll have more stats on where I get the books I add on my TBR and whether or not I read them (dang it, why am I such a data nerd).
In terms of tracking and writing reviews, I have decided I’m completely ditching Goodreads this year and focusing on my Storygraph account. I’ve had the latter since last year but was still a bit hesitant to leave Goodreads for it because of emotional attachment - I mean, I’ve had that account since college! So if you’re interested on all the other books I’ll be reading for this year and some quick, spoiler-free reviews, I suggest you follow/add me there.
Rae’s Currently List
Watching: fasted from watching anything this week so I don’t have anything to put here
Reading: Kindle: Stop Calling Me Beautiful, Phylicia Masonheimer; Audiobook: Making a Scene, Constance Wu
Playing: fasted from playing anything this week so I don’t have anything to put here either
Thinking about: buying a physical CSB compact or journaling bible
Listening to: A Year in the Bible with Daily Grace
Hyperfocusing on: how taxes and deductions work in the US lol
What books are on your TBR list/pile this year? I’m curious so please share them!
Waiting for my Kindle to finish charging,
Rae