52 Weeks - 26 Books: My Challenge

Hello there!

I love reading because I love learning and developing. However, I still find myself going through phases when I kind of stop reading - for weeks on end! So I am hereby challenging myself to read 26 books over the next 52 weeks.

I have had a long think about the contradiction of this situation - I love learning, reading is a great way to learn and it gives me such a great feeling of satisfaction - so how come I can go through long periods without picking up a book? I think the answer is twofold:

1. I haven’t generally had have set reading times (i.e. before bed, on the way to work etc), and for me personally, until something is habitual I have to schedule it in. So now that I get a bus into the city most days a week, I am going to switch the iPod off and get the book out.
2. I read FAR too much non-fiction. In fact I read marketing, business and self-dev books almost exclusively for the last few years (with the very rare exception). I need to vary it up a bit, give myself a break and throw in some fiction and some other types of non-fiction (I loved studying political history and philosophy at uni, so I want to learn some more of that stuff).

So, every two weeks I’m going to have finished a book and I’ll write a review here. You might not really care that much(!) but it is my way of having accountability. And as we all know, it is the great way to stick to a goal.

So to put it formally:

For the next 52 weeks (until March 9, 2009) I plan to read a new book every 2 weeks, posting the review here on the Monday

So here are some of the books already on my list:

Non-Fiction

The 4-Hour Work Week (up first, see pic for proof!)
The Long Tail
The Game
The Prince
Leviathan
Playing the Moldovans at Tennis
Meatball Sundae & The Dip
1914-1918: The History of the First World War
Call to Action
Brilliant Presentation

Fiction

Don’t Cry for Me Aberwystwyth
Running with Scissors

Hmmm, a bit short on the fiction side so if anyone has any suggestions (or non-fiction, I’m far from 26 books!). As a guide I have loved all of Irvine Welsh’s, Mark Haddon and Malcolm Pryce. Help!

There, that’s it. Its done and I’m ready to go!

It feels good.

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