Friday Flashback: New Year’s Resolutions?

Jan 4, 2013

Rather than maunder about my failed resolutions of 2012 (be less neurotic? HA!), I think I’ll revisit this list — 12 Things Happy People Do Differently. In fact, I’ve printed it out and posted it behind my computer, right next to Caroline Starr Rose’s “I will…I won’t” poster.

I’d also like to revisit a list of reading resolutions–compiled and posted by Camille DelVecchio from The Penfield (NY) Public Library–that I blogged about way back in December 24, 2004.

But first, some reading statistics from 2012:
I read 62 books this past year, 8 more than last year, but still not good enough! Of these, 28 were Adult (5 of which were re-reads), 14 were Young Adult (1 of which was a re-read), and 20 were Middle Grade.

This surprises me a little. Only 14 YA? That seems wrong. (I’m not counting books I read in manuscript form, though.) I will ponder this . . .

Now to the Penfield Public Library reading resolutions (with updated commentary from yours truly):

– I will finally read that classic from high school that I’ve been avoiding.
What should it be? Probably something Russian. Anna Karenina, maybe?

Any suggestions? (Anna Karenina was never assigned in my high school, but it seems like friends in AP English often encountered Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky.)

– I will assemble a list of my favorite people and send them ideas about books (favorites, recent reads, and the like).
This seems a little pushy to me. Anyone need a rec? (See next resolution)

– I will create a journal and keep notes on the things I read.
Once upon a time I kept a paper reading journal, and then I tracked reads on Livejournal. Now I keep track on Goodreads and Shelfari, but my comments are brief. I do post more detailed recommendation each month at Book End Babes, however. (See this list for 2012 recs.)

– I will spend an hour in aimless browsing at a library.
Must do this very soon! But that would mean turning my back on that teetering TBR pile.

– I will read a book written in the year I was born.
Ooooh, maybe The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin? Or The Green Man by Kingsley Amis?

– I will reread a book I loved as a child.

Something by Judy Blume. Or Edward Eager? I’ve also been meaning to re-read Little Women, because I have in mind a “In which I am a jerk about” blog post for it. (Have been feeling bitter about Professor Bhaer lately. And I always like to complain about Amy.)

– I will read a book on the history of my town.
Hmmmm. Does Oxford count? It’s my town for the summer, yes?

– I will read a book about a place I’ve never been.
Is this supposed to be nonfiction, do you think? Or a novel set somewhere I’ve never been?

– I will find a book of poetry and read some aloud.
Wouldn’t it be lovely to start each day reading a poem aloud? Whom should I read? Emily Dickinson, of course. And there’s John Donne, Keats, Yeats, Frost . . . I’m blanking out, especially for the 20th and 21st centuries. Any recs?

– I will gather a few friends and read a play outloud.
This seems very Whedonesque. Who’s up for it? (I could imagine the NAH gang doing this, but my dear husband would run screaming in the opposite direction.)

– I will read a book written from a political point of view totally opposite my own.
This is a tough one. Not sure where to start.

– I will reread a book that I just didn’t “get” when I was eighteen.
That was soooo long ago. High school friends–what books did we struggle with? If nothing else, I’ve been meaning to give Wuthering Heights one more chance to win me over. And then perhaps I’ll watch Andrea Arnold’s film.

– I will ask a librarian to show me some print and online resources for readers.
Do I have to? My dear librarian friends, what resources do you recommend? I already feel overwhelmed by all the book buzz out there.

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That’s it for now! I wish you all the best with your 2013 reading resolutions. May your reads be full of magic and romance and adventure and enlightenment!

[Cross-posted at Livejournal]

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