Hey, y’all! It’s time to start my annual reading challenge via Goodreads. If you’re new here, let me tell you now: I love books. I am a certified bibliophile. And each year, I set a reading goal on Goodreads – a goal I typically break and reset at least twice.

This year, my goal as of today is only 50 books. But there’s a reason for this. I have decided to have a theme for my book choices in 2025. I saw a list of 100 classics everyone should read, and I wrote down those that I have never read. That number was 36. (Before you think I’m exceptionally well-read, be aware that the list included the “complete works of William Shakespeare,” then also included some of those works individually, just to hit their goal of 100, I guess.)

So, I have 36 classics to read, and I’m giving myself 14 books of my choosing. This should be fun!

I am currently reading The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath), Twas the Knife Before Christmas (Jacqueline Frost), and Horror Movie (Paul Tremblay). I have also started The Murder of Sleepy Hollow, the fifth book in the Charlie Kingsley series by Michele Pariza Wacek, but it’s more of a read-for-a-few-minutes-before-bed kind of thing.

If any of you are fellow readers, recommend some books! Or tell me your favorite read of 2024!