What It's Like To Read 100 Books In A Year

With two months to spare, but who's counting?

Like a runner with the line in sight, I made a sprint for the finish. Although reading is about as far from exercise as it gets, my reading pace is certainly something to go for gold. I consumed my last five books in less than a week, taking me past the ‘100 books’ benchmark for 2015.

The idea to read 100 books in a year comes with its own story.

Before year nine, I never understood how someone could enjoy reading. Yet one day during class, I found a novel about a girl called Gracie Faltrain, and I was instantly hooked. From then on, I powered through books so quickly that I never even remembered their titles or authors, only the stories within them.

Any day I wanted to re-read a book led to a process of elimination. With only the character’s name and the situations they endured stored in my memory, I would have to search the internet, all to no avail. One time, I turned to the librarian, who printed a list of all the books I had borrowed. It was three pages long.

As incentive to record every book I read, I decorated a notebook with the title “Books for 2015”. Whether it was on my kindle, paper, or online, I would be able to find my favourite stories again. To make it a little more interesting I challenged myself to get 100 books in that notebook by the end of 2015. And I did.

There is definitely a mixture of positives and negatives when it comes to reading 100 books in a year.

You discover yourself!

I believe you uncover the best parts of yourself when you read. The reason it is so hard for me to pick my favourite book isn’t just because I don’t remember their titles; it’s because in each story I read I find a piece of myself within the characters. I learn life lessons that stick with me long after I've finished reading.

I found an interest in sign language after reading Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover; Harry Potter taught me about friendship; Wanted by Kelly Elliott taught me that everyone is deserving of love; Divergent by Veronica Roth taught me that you can be anything you want to be.

Picking just one is like selecting one part of my personality to represent my whole self.

You lose all your time!

More times than I can count, I have looked up at the clock and found that a few hours have passed whilst reading, leading to stress over assignment deadlines. (I’m looking at you, Kirsty Moseley.) The best way to stop this is to set a timer and stick to it, because ‘one more chapter’ is like saying ‘one more piece of chocolate’.

It comes at a cost….

When you read, the characters’ hardships and triumphs become your own. However, these experiences cost, and I mean in monetary figures. The best way to reduce your expenses is to borrow books from libraries; however, if you want unrestricted access to books, eBooks are a cheaper and more convenient alternative, not to mention they take up much less room.

You lose sleep.

There will never be enough time in the day to read all the books you want. However, don’t let them consume too many of your nights either. Waking up tired is never fun when work needs to be done.

Don’t like best sellers? No problem.

Reading books is just like listening to music: everyone has their own taste. Although it’s good to try some award-winning novels or best sellers, don’t feel compelled to love them just because everyone else does. I couldn't make it past the first chapter of Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl, no matter how much it was praised. It’s just not my type of novel.

Sometimes, it’s a chore.

The best thing about borrowing books or reading on a kindle is that if you don’t enjoy them, you can return them. Unfortunately, this is not the case with school readings (Great Expectations, anyone?). The best way to make it through books you don’t enjoy is with occasional rewards. For each chapter you make it through, give yourself a little break, or a treat. Reading aloud or listening to audio books can also help you concentrate.

I used to avoid reading at all costs, but remember, if I can make it through those praised English Lit books, you can too. Reading is only a chore if you make it one, so why not set your own challenge?

Sarah Bellis is one of Student Edge’s student contributors. Learn more about the contributors program.