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It’s here!

Many of you have been eagerly anticipating the release of this year’s challenge, and the good news is — it’s finally here!

This is my third year creating and hosting this annual reading challenge and I am so excited by the amazing group of readers we’ve collected along the way. (If you’d like to meet the best group of bookworms on the internet, join our challenge Facebook page!)

The format for this year’s challenge is the same as in the past: 52 different categories to be met over the course of the year. These are fresh categories that can each be interpreted in a variety of ways, so pick a book that you think fits and start reading!

This 2020 challenge will officially begin January 1, 2020! (The challenge is released in November, in order to give you plenty of time to start planning and preparing!) 

Ready? Here we go!

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Over the past two years, I’ve heard from many people who want to participate in the Reading Challenge but are scared that they won’t be able to finish a book a week. And I always give the same reply — “More important than 52 books, is setting a goal for yourself and just having fun.”

But this month, if I’m being 100% honest, the challenge has been a bit of a struggle. Less fun and more draining. Life has been busy and has thrown a few curveballs, and some days, there just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day. If it wasn’t for the “buffer” I built up at the beginning of the year, there may not have been five books on this month’s review.

As much as goals motivate me, sometimes we just fall short no matter how hard we try. And that’s okay. This month I had to remind myself that it’s just about having fun — no pressure. And next month? Well, we’ll just have to see. Right now, we’re taking this one book at a time.

No matter how many books you’ve read so far this year, remember that next month is a new start! Read more

So, BIG news this month.

**Drumroll….**

I have now learned that you can rent library books directly onto your e-reader!

(Haha, you should see the look of disappointment on your face right now. Like, Liz, come on! That is definitely NOT big news. Quite the opposite. We’ve been renting books for years!)

Fine. Not big news for you but it is HUGE for me. This discovery resulted in me finally tip-toeing out of the “paper books only” camp and casually crossing over into the “e-readers are okay too.” As a die-hard, “readers are for overseas travel only,” sort of person, this was a big deal.

And since it’s February and I didn’t feel like tramping through the snow to the library, I therefore promptly stole my husband’s Kobo and irritated the heck out of him by messing up his reader stats. (Honestly, he should just be grateful I improved his reading speed.)

Long story short, guess who ended up with a new Kobo reader for Valentine’s Day?

This girl.

So while I figure out my new device (and spend way too much money on “bargain books,”) here are four of my February reads. As always, this is part of my 2019 Reading Challenge: 52 Books in 52 Weeks. It’s not too late to join us, so check out the Facebook Group and get reading!

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As we welcome the new year, it’s the perfect time to take a few moments to look back at our accomplishments over the past twelve months. What did we do? What did we see? And most importantly for us book-addicts, what did we read?

I, for one, set two goals for myself at the beginning of this year:

1. Have a baby. (CHECK.) 

and

2. Complete the 2018 Reading Challenge. (CHECK.) 

Over the past twelve months, I read my way through over 150 books and can happily say that I enjoyed a vast majority of them. The genres and authors were broader than usual, particularly since I participated in and completed my first reading challenge: 52 books in 52 weeks. (For a full list of said books, click here.)

And now, with January right around the corner, our 2019 Reading Challenge is set to begin in just a few days. For those planning on joining in, I am excited to share with you a few book recommendations to get you started!

In no particular order, here are FIFTEEN of my favourite reads from this past year:

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