Book 'Em: 2015 Popsugar Reading Challenge

If you like to read (or like books) and have been on Pinterest pinning about reading or books then you have seen it. That is I hope you have anyways, and if you haven't had the good fortune to well that's about to change! It is a real challenge and so amazing if you are tired of reading the same thing over and over.

Popsugar Reading Challenge 2015

Besides that this is a challenge for me why else do I love it? Well it is Popsugar who I have received countless subscriptions boxes from in the past! I love how well those boxes are well curated. Plus, this company has great articles and videos to really help shape your life. That's why this challenge is so perfect.



I stumbled across this pin on Pinterest and realized that this was an ultimate goal for me with my reading. I was tired of reading young adult fiction or the same books over and over. There comes a point in your life where you want to grow up even in reading. But the best thing about this challenge it also returns you to your childhood as well!

Now I am obsessed with Goodreads and I have been using their website/app for awhile. Goodreads is the world’s largest site for readers and book recommendations. Our mission is to help people find and share books they love. Goodreads launched in January 2007. You can see what books your friends are reading. Tracking the books you are reading, have read and want to read has never been easier.

Upon me arriving in Alabama in 2013 my friend Odette made me join and I have been using it ever since. I haven't been able to add all the books that I have read yet, but I working on it. But they have a challenge for you too with How Many books you can read that year! So I am combining my two challenges together!

My Goodreads book challenge is to read 60 books this year. This works out perfectly since if you do finish the Popsugar challenge then you have read 52 book. I want some more books to read for fun for the year. Plus, so many books these days are series that you never know when you will read a series to be a part of your challenge.

Setting rules for myself is easy because I know if I don't I won't finish the challenge. The rules are pretty simple: 1) Stick to something you know you will read. 2) Don't read when you don't want to read just to finish a book. 3) Don't read books that someone else has read for the same category. 4) Keep an open mind. 5) Do not listen to what others have to say.

The most frustrating things for me have been naysayers and not having the list handy with me all the time. The first one infuriated me so bad. "You won't read all that." "Why read something you normally read?" "You won't find Christian books like that." Excuse me? If you think the only fiction I read is Christian fiction you will be rolling in your grave to know that I have read Fifty Shade of Grey and Scarecrow. Then not having a list of books I have picked out for the challenge has been difficult. Especially if I am at the library and don't have it. But Goodreads came to the rescue for that as well now.

So what books have I read so far? Well at this very moment I have read 11 books for the challenge. For me that's a huge improvement from last year. So the books so far are:

Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella (A book set in a different country)
She's All That by Kristin Billerbeck (Book #1 of the triology)
A Girl's Best Friend by Kristin Billerbeck (Book #2 of the triology)
Calm, Cool & Adjusted by Kristin Billerbeck (Book #3 of the triology)
Next to Love by Ellen Feldman (A book with a female author)
They Did It with Love by Kate Morgenroth (A mystery or thriller)
Seven Strategies For Wealth And Happiness by James E. Rohn (A book at the bottom of your to-read list)
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Hogwarts Library) by J.K. Rowling, Newt Scamander (A book you can read in a day.)
L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad (A book with bad reviews)
Frozen by Kate Watterson (A book with word title)
Leaving Tuscaloosa by Walter Bennett (A book that takes place in your hometown)

I am currently reading for the category of "A book by your favorite author that you haven't read yet" which is The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling. It is nothing like what you expect from the person that wrote Harry Potter.

As for on the to-read list here are a few that I have picked out:

Where Are the Children? by Mary Higgins Clark (A popular author's first book)
A Summons to Memphis by Peter Taylor (A book that won the Pulitzer Prize)
Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin (A book with more than 500 pages)

Reading is a true gift that so many people take for granted. Some people in this world would love to learn to read. So don't waste it and expand your imagination and knowledge! Let me know if you want to update my list of what I am reading.

You can follow me on Goodreads: Hunter Collins