Happy New Year, everyone! We are in the year 2016 – how crazy is that? I’m grateful I made it to 2016 and I’m quite excited for the awesome year ahead!
I will be participating in the (2016) Goodreads Reading Challenge, as usual.
But this year, I don’t have a set goal of books to read. I’m just going to read what I can and see how far I go. Asย my second degree, I mentioned before that Iโm currently in a 6 year dental medicine/surgeon program (class of 2020โฆsigh, I know!) in Accra, so I’m usually busy with school work. I tend to read the bulk of my books during the one month Christmas break and Summer break (which is about 2 months).ย Since I read sparingly during the school year, once Christmas or Summer break rolls along, I usually binge-read and sometimes knock out 3 books in a month, depending on my mood.
During the school year, when I have time I usually reach for the slim African Writers Series (AWS) books or short story collections. A story or two a day or just allocating 1ย hour of my time to sit back and read is necessary, as I can’t be studying all the time haha. I plan on keeping this reading habit I’ve cultivated. But I do have some goals I’d like to achieve this year…
I have 4 reading goals for 2016:
- To read a wider array of African novels. I tend to go for West African (Nigerian, Ghanaian), Kenyan and Zimbabwean fiction. I want to make a conscious effort to explore this year! More South African, Congolese, Botswana, Sierra Leonian, Namibian, Egyptian, Somalian, Mozambican fiction – anything that’s different from what I’m used to. Of course I’ll continue to read what I like, but a little more African novel diversity would be more inclusive and a fun learning experience!
- To read more poetry.ย I’m not really a lover of poetry, but I’ve come across some engaging, fun and comprehendible poetry collections that I’d like to enjoy this year, for a change.
- To read at least 1 African romance novelย and/or 1ย African thriller novel.ย When it comes to African romance fiction, I’m eyeing the chic lit/romance series from Ankara Press as well as novels by authors Nana Prah and Kiru Taye. I’m not very familiar with the thriller genre, but Liberian author Hawa Golakai’s thriller novel – The Lazarus Effect is one I’d love to read. Ghanaian author Boakyewaa Glover also has a thriller called The Justice that has been on my radar as well. We’ll see!
- Last but not least, I’d love to give back. Instead of always talking about books, why not give some away and share? I’d like to doย 2 orย 3 giveaways this year – YES, I want to turn you all into African book addicts too. *Fingers crossed* ๐
No pressure though!ย Reading is personal, for everyone.ย For me, reading is a hobbyย where I enjoy myself and learn new things in the process; it’s never been a competition on how many books to read – quality over quantity. I hope I can achieve these goals by the end of the year – I would be proud. With these goals set, I think I’ll be reading with a purpose this year!
Have you set any reading goals and habits for 2016? Does school, work or other life happenings affect your goals? Please do share!
Stay tuned for more reviews/book discussions and other bookish stuff throughout the year!
African Book Addict! 
