My Bookish Goals for 2019

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It’s that time of year again . . . 

Everybody is making New Years Resolutions 

 

I don’t make resolutions. I don’t know about you, but those feel like too much pressure to me. There’s also the easy to fall into trap of making unattainable resolutions or ones that society deems acceptable. 

 

Ahem, I’m looking at you . . .

“I’m going to get bikini body ready for summer.” 

“I’m going to make $1 million this year.”

 

No judgment if those are your goals and you have specific and healthy steps to attain them, but I’m thinking more specific and personal this year. 

That’s why goals work so well for me. Goals seem to take the pressure off, while also encouraging me to focus on what’s truly important to me. 

 

So let’s get into my Bookish Goals for 2019 

 

• Read only 100 books in a year (max of 120) 

Why? In 2018 I read 160 books, but the focus was more on quantity versus quality and savoring the reading experience. Limiting myself a bit also allows me to focus on other areas of life. And let’s be honest, 100 books in a year is still a lot.

• Request/be accepted for 5-7 NetGalley books per month 

As many new book bloggers do, I requested & got accepted for way too many ARC books from NetGalley. While this is great (FREE BOOKS), I didn’t have as much flexibility to read what I wanted when I wanted. The reading schedule was REAL

• 7 months or more of an average of 4.0 star rating

Why? This was my goal in 2018 as well. It helps to put my focus on reading books that I think I will really love. 

• Participate in the Book Riot 2019 Read Harder Challenge 

I’ve been doing this for the past few years and really loved being introduced to books I never would have known about. I’m not forcing myself to finish the challenge or read books that I know I will strongly dislike just for the sake of completing the challenge. 

• Participate in the 2019 Reading Women Challenge 

I just recently found out that this Reading Challenge existed, but I’m super excited to participate. My reasoning is similar to the Book Riot Challenge. 

• Focus more on *POC/AOC, **county of origin, and LGBTQIA+ content in books 

I’ve had these goals for the past few years, but I’m continuing with them. I usually aim to hit 20% for each goal. It helps keep my reading well rounded and I am introduced to books I never would have found otherwise.

*POC- People of color (usually the main characters), AOC(Author of Color).

**Country of Origin: Countries other than the U.S., Canada, U.K., Australia 

 

Do you agree or disagree with my goals? What are your reading goals for the year? 

Let me know in the comments. I’m always really interested in what people prioritize in their reading journeys. 

 

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Anger Management for Everyone: Ten Proven Strategies to Help You Control Anger and Live a Happier Life by Raymond Chip Tafrate, Howard Kassinove

 

Anger Management for Everyone: Ten Proven Strategies to Help You Control Anger and Live a Happier Life by Raymond Chip Tafrate, Howard Kassinove

Published: January 2, 2019

Publisher: Impact

Pages: 256

Genres: self help, non fiction, psychology

Rating: 3.5 stars

Recommend to fans of: people who have lots of conflicts with others, wanting to change yourself for the New Year, angry people 

Foodie Vibes: chamomile tea to help calm yourself 

 

Synopsis: 

We all get angry sometimes. But if you feel angry all of time—and if your anger makes others uncomfortable, creates distance in your relationships, disrupts your ability to think clearly and make good decisions, or otherwise results in behaviors that you regret or find embarrassing later—it’s time to make a change.

Written by two clinical psychologists with decades of experience using cognitive behavioral interventions to treat anger, Anger Management for Everyone provides a comprehensive, research-based program to keep anger in its place. This revised and updated second edition includes new information on the environmental effects on anger, such as hunger and sleep; new progressive muscle relaxation and mindfulness exercises; and new strategies and tips for improving social and interpersonal skills.

With the authors’ enhanced “Anger Episode Model,” and the ten proven-effective skills for anger management in this helpful guide, you’ll come to better understand and control your problem anger, learn how to cope with everyday disappointments and frustrations, and experience more happiness, success, and vitality in all areas of your life.

 

Review:

Thank you to NetGalley, Impact, Raymond Chip Tafrate, and Howard Kassinove for an ARC ebook copy to review. As always, an honest review from me.

The beginning of the book was startling. The language made it seem as if it was written for people who are out of control angry. As I kept reading I learned that the techniques discussed can be used for most people. But before I go into my review of the book, let’s define anger. According to the book anger is an emotional reaction to the unwanted and often unexpected behavior of others. It often develops as a sense of threat. A very helpful definition. 

The book helps the reader to learn about anger in general, their own anger reactions, reason behind anger, many different suggestions to deal with anger, many examples to further explain the tools, and also activities to practice new anger reducing techniques that you’ve learned. Since there’s a lot of information, some of it is bound to resonate with and help you. I’m not an incredibly angry person, but I could relate to some of the techniques presented. I liked the suggested of avoidance as a valid response to anger. It’s not the only response a person should use, but sometimes it’s best in that moment. 

I didn’t think that the examples were very relatable to me. While they were plentiful and well explained, I couldn’t see myself represented in most of the them. Also regarding someone who constantly provokes an anger response in me; these techniques didn’t work when used with them. Not sure if that’s the techniques or they’re just a toxic person. 

Overall, a helpful book filled with many explanations and techniques to help you appropriately deal with your anger. 

 

Add to your Goodreads TBR

 

What helps you to deal with anger?

 

Come say hi!

Twitter: @BooksAndLife1

Instagram: @BooksLifeAndEverythingNice

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Facebook: @BooksLifeAndEverythingNice

My Top 20 Books of 2018

Because there are waaaaay too many AMAZING BOOKS to limit the list to only 10 

 

Click on the title link to go to my review of each book to hear all the reasons why it’s an awesome book!

In no particular order . . . my favorite books I read this year 

 

• Song of a Captive Bird by Jasmin Darznik  |  Add to Goodreads

• A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Kline  |  Add to Goodreads 

• Promise by Minrose Gwin  |  Add to Goodreads

• When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Khan-Cullors, Asha Bandele  |  Add to Goodreads

• Well That Escalated Quickly: Memoirs and Mistakes of an Accidental Activist by Franchesca Ramsey  |  Add to Goodreads

• The Unforgotten by Laura Powell  |  Add to Goodreads

• The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration Into the Wonder of Consciousness by Sy Montgomery  |  Add to Goodreads

• Believe Me: My Battle with the Invisible Disability of Lyme Disease by Yolanda Hadid  |  Add to Goodreads

• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith  |  Add to Goodreads

• The Broken Girls by Simone St. James  |  Add to Goodreads

• I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara  |  Add to Goodreads

• Rust & Stardust by T. Greenwood  |  Add to Goodreads

• To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han  |  Add to Goodreads

• Rush by Lisa Patton  |  Add to Goodreads

• The Summer of Jordi Perez by Amy Spalding  |  Add to Goodreads

• Rage Becomes Her: The Power of Women’s Anger by Soraya Chemaly  |  Add to Goodreads

• Snowflakes Over Holly Cove by Lucy Coleman  |  Add to Goodreads

• The Secrets We Keep by Kate Hewitt  |  Add to Goodreads

• Today’s Moment of Happiness Despite the News by Kathie Giorgio  |  Add to Goodreads

• Are u ok?: A Guide to Caring for Your Mental Health by Kati Morton  |  Add to Goodreads

 

How many of these books have you read?

Which did your add to your TBR?

What are your favorite books that you’ve read in 2018?

My Most Important Book Goal

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For the last few years I’ve set reading goals for myself at the beginning of January. I guess you could call them Bookish New Year’s Resolutions. I don’t take them too seriously, but more as guidelines of what’s important to me as a reader. 

Goals such as reading diversely (POC, female authors, LGBTQIA+, settings in other countries), completing my Goodreads challenge, completing the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge, reviewing every book I read, and participating in the BookTube-A-Thon. 

 

This year I decided to add a very important goal to my list. 

 

For 5 months or more in 2018, I want my average book rating to be 4.0 stars or higher.

 

At the end of each month I total up the star ratings I’ve given books and average them. I find it interesting to see the stats at the end of each month/year. In 2017, most months were an average of 3.5 or so. Rarely hitting that magic 4.0 stars rating average. 

 

Now you might be thinking, so what? It’s just a bunch of numbers. But the reason this goal is so important to me is that reading is supposed to be enjoyable! 

 

I created the goal to make it a priority to read books that I love. 

 

Unfortunately I’ve only had one month so far this year when I hit my goal. I’ve started rating books with 1/2 stars, so my ratings have been a bit lower than before. The rounding would bump it up, but that kind of feels like cheating to me. Since this goal is for me, I don’t want to cheat myself out of enjoyable reading. 

 

So I’m going to keep choosing books I think I’m going to love, rather than ones I think I should be reading. 

With 4 months left in the year, I’m making enjoyable reading a big priority for me. 

I’ll let you all know how it goes!

 

What are you reading goals this year?

Are you achieving them?