Little Red Book

Way, way back in 2006, while making my New Year's resolutions, I decided it was time to get organized about this reading thing.  I knew I did it.  A lot.  But how many books did I read in a year?  No idea.  If someone wanted a recommendation I was reduced to scanning my book shelves, which was only partially successful because I'm also a library junkie.  And when reading a series with a lot of similar titles, the "oh, crap, have I read this one yet?" factor was just too high.  It was time to start my Little Red Book.

The journal itself is something I won that year in the Cherry NaNo group.  Left to my own devices I probably would have grabbed a plain old notebook from the grocery store.  And within a month or two there would be a reading list in the front and grocery lists, driving directions, and all kinds of other random crap in the back.  So the pretty journal was a blessing.  Even though it's showing some wear after four years of constant use, it's still in good shape.  No random doodles, no pages torn out.  Just an ongoing list of the books I've read since I started my project.

Being me, I have a few rules for the Little Red Book.  Only books read in their entirety are recorded.  DNFs don't make it.  If it's an anthology, I have to read the whole thing.  Two stories out of five doesn't make the cut.  And most of all, these have to be books I've never read before.  Re-reads most definitely don't go in the book.

Even with all these rules I've managed to make it to 400 books in the last four years.  I expect to finish book number 401 before midnight on Friday.  At the rate I've been reading, and considering the number of pages I have left, this book should take care of me for another 48 years.  Since that would make me approximately 84 years old, this is probably the only reading journal I will ever need.

I highly recommend you start a reading journal of your own, if you don't have one already.  You can do it the old fashioned way, like me with my Little Red Book.  You can make a spreadsheet and track them on your computer.  Or you can go the social media route and use a website like Goodreads or Shelfari.  And you don't have to use my rules.  Make up your own, or have none at all if that suits you.  However you decide to do it, start a list.  Try it for a year.  You might be surprised to see how satisfying tracking your reading habits can be.