Could this be the Toughest Challenge of them all?
Happy New Year to you all! I do hope Santa made all your booky dreams come true – if all the wonderful new Christmas book posts I’ve been snooping at are anything to go by, it looks like he certainly did. Here’s my luscious festive loot and I can’t wait to get stuck in!
If I’ve observed one thing in my many years of being alive, it is that there are two types of people that walk this earth – those who make New Year resolutions and those who choose to miss out on all the fun. (No prizes for guessing which category I fall into!) I love New Year, and relish the opportunity to clear out the old and reset my focus. Usually this involves some kind of Spartan health regime, but after a month of mince pies, a little early morning pain and deprivation feels refreshingly good.
Aside from my very probably short-lived fitness enthusiasm, I’ve decided to take on a frankly downright scary reading challenge – and I’m not talking about Anthony Powell’s A Dance To The Music Of Time, although I do plan to read that this year.
Pilgrimages are so last year, 2017 is strictly come dancing!
My main challenge for the year is to not buy any more books during 2017 *gulp*. Not one! (Ts & Cs apply).
After much consideration, I’ve decided to give myself a little buffer for emergency situations. As I’m a total secondhand book junkie, and regularly feed my habit by scouring the charity shops of West Wales, this is going to be ridiculously tough. So I’m allowing myself three jokers for times of absolute desperation – only three measly books can be legitimately bought throughout the whole of 2017.
You might wonder why I’d choose to do such a crazy thing, and now 2017 is here, so am I. The thing is, I buy a lot of books. I plan to read them all, but I’m always onto the next book trawl before I’ve made any headway through the last one and my bookshelves are groaning under the weight of wonderful exciting unread books. My aim for the year is to read the treasures I already have, and to make more use of the library for those books I’m itching to get my hands on but don’t own.
I’ve got a nice little stack of books to keep me going for a while, and I think if I take it a month at a time, it won’t feel like such a huge deal. (Who am I trying to kid?)
January’s TBR pile
Will I manage it? I really don’t know. This could well be my toughest challenge yet!
Lucy
Sarah
Lovely books! I really want to read The Essex Serpent. And I’ve learnt a new word – Wortcunner! I’m going to try and work it into conversation today.
I am so impressed by your challenge. I’m considering doing something similar but I don’t know if I can… I have no problem not buying new books, but I find it almost impossible to walk past a charity shop – and I have an amazing charity bookshop directly opposite my flat! But the TBR is at ridiculous proportions… Good luck with the challenge, its definitely the toughest of them all 🙂
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Wortcunner is my new favourite word. It sounds so fabulously rude, and unsurprisingly has shot right to the top of my family’s list of favourite name-calls!
Curbing new book purchases will be a breeze, but, like you, it’s the charity shops that are my weakness. I undoubtedly have enough books to keep me going for several years, and that’s not even including the boundless treasures in the library, but I may have to avoid all towns for a year if I’m going to manage this. If I lived across the road from a charity shop I wouldn’t have a hope!
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Im presuming you don’t object if people buy you new books?? I’m going down a similar path to yours but making it last just for six months and that will be tough enough. I can’t imagine 12 months temptation every time I walk by a bookshop or see all the zillions of emails from book publishers with special offers……
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Indeed – I’m already planning my birthday wishlist! Actually I very rarely buy new books, it’s the trawling through secondhand bookshops and charity shop bookshelves that’s my addiction. I go into a zone and a short while later find myself outside with a full bag in each hand and no idea of how I got there! 🙂
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You are a brave woman.
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Brave……. or stupid! 🙂
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I have visions of the owners of your local second hand book shops weeping brokenly into re-used paper tissues, and gnawing on mouldy crusts of bread as they watch their profits plunge, due to the New Year Resolution, (Is this the most WICKED attempt ever at an early break of a resolution, being presented with the spectre of a destitute second hand book shop owner…..)
I wonder if a certain unfortunate President Elect ever read the second from bottom title in your last picture………………
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So cruel! You’re absolutely right, I might single-handedly put all the secondhand shops out of business. *sigh* I guess that’ll be my contribution to the apocalypse sorted then! 😉
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Good luck! It’s a scary thought, but really – why do we keep acquiring more and more books than we can possibly read? And I bet you’ll pick those three purchases verrrry carefully…!
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Thanks – I’m going to need it! It makes no sense, but there’s a compulsive collecting aspect to all this book accumulation. I don’t collect rareties or valuable volumes but I’m filling in the missing gaps in an imaginary perfect personal library, but ultimately there is no end, it just keeps on growing. Maybe if I can halt the accumulation this year, who knows, I might even be able to face getting rid of some next year – actually, scrap that, what a preposterous idea! 😉
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Good luck! I am trying not to buy books, but I would fail dismally if I set a challenge. I *have* been donating madly, though!
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Thanks Karen! You are good – I can’t bring myself to get rid of any. I’m hoping that this year of reading my own books will mean I can shift some (and make room for more – mwhahaha!) 🙂
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That is scary, and I wish you luck. I’m trying to focus more on my own books but I know I would fail miserably if I tried anything like this. My objective is to move more things out of the house this in and to visit shops and libraries less often and to be extremely picky when I do.
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Thanks Jane! I’m hopeless at getting rid of books so I’m hoping that if I’m strict with myself and read what I’ve already got, I can then pass some of those on, and at least justify the odd secondhand bookshop flurry next year. Just don’t ever let me loose in Hay. Ever.
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Oooh, good luck!
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Thanks Elle, I’ve a feeling I’m going to need it! 😉
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As I write this, A Dance to the Music of Time is staring at me from the shelf where it sits, unread. I am also trying to read my own books in 2017 and use the library for the rest. I haven’t committed to stopping purchases completely, but I am thinking maybe one a month (after a self-imposed ban Jan – Mar)? I bought a LOT of books last year, and when I counted them all up in December it was a complete shock, especially because I’ve read so few. Oops.
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Wow – I think I’d have the shock of my life if I totted up all the books I bought last year. That might be just the kind of sobering moment I’ll need if I find my resolve weakening.
Maybe 2017 is your year for ‘A Dance to the Music of Time – I’m planning on reading a book a month so it’s easily doable over the year with time to fit other reading around it. Last year I read Dorothy Richardson’s ‘Pilgrimage’ – a series of 13 novels/fictional memoirs – along with a few other bloggers and it was really nice to compare notes and cheer each other along! 🙂
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Haha good luck, I made a similar pledge nearly two years ago and have failed! Am redoubling my efforts this year though with TBR challenges! I have also had to put my family on a book present ban, so we’ll see how I get on! My original plan is here: https://murderundergroundbrokethecamel.wordpress.com/about/about-murder-underground-broke-the-camels-back/
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Haha, your post did make me laugh! I have drooled over that very same Hay book that finally broke you – those British Library Crime novels have such fabulous covers, don’t they? I do think I may have set the bar too high with this challenge, but if I can hold off the tide of incoming books for even a few months (weeks?) that’s got to be a good thing for my TBR. 🙂
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I think I managed about five months to start with, then only bought a couple. But have had a major relapse recently!
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Respect – five months is like, forever! 🙂
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I am reading the Essex Serpent at the moment! And wow, good on you. There is a blog I can’t remember the name of along the lines of ‘reading my own shelves’ (I apologise if that is very wrong, and it reminds me of one time on Blue Peter when they showed an envelope that had luckily reached them for their guide dogs milk bottle top appeal that only said something like ‘BBC blind dogs’ on it) as chances are most of us have enough to see us through a year.
i wish you luck, young knight. May the gods smile upon your quest.
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I thank you! *struggles to rise from bent knee in heavy and partially rusted armour*
I have seen posts about just reading your own books for 3 or 4 months at a time, and it was probably those that set my inner voice nagging at me. Obviously as I’m just a little obsessive I had to go large, and make it an eye-watering 12 months *gulp* I’ll be fine as long as I don’t set foot into a charity shop, but it’s those random trolleys of secondhand books in unexpected places that’ll scupper me – hospitals and wildlife centres will all have to be off-limits!
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Good luck to you! I know I would never succeed with a challenge like this, so I simply set myself a limit of 24 books for the year. That seems doable (except I have already purchased 2 since the new year began).
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Oh my, that sounds so civilised! 24 books sounds plentiful, but not enough to require new bookshelves every six months. That is perfect, in fact, I want to be you when I grow up! 🙂
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Wow! A full year! I admire you, I tried 3 months last year and didn’t manage. I’ll keep my finger crossed and will definitely join you for few months 🙂
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Yay – company! We can do this….or not 😉
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Hahaha, now I feel motivated! We can do this! I’m officially joining for January. One month at a time… it does sound a bit Bookaholic Anonymous 😉
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Haha, yes! *stands up* ‘My name is Sarah, and I’m a bookaholic….’
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Get an e-reader. You get the high of buying the book, but then you can forget you bought books because you don’t see them. 😂
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Alas, I’m strictly old school when it comes to books. I love the smell and feel of the them, and all those beautiful covers! To be honest, I think I’m as addicted to the surprise element of the hunt as I am to the books themselves, as you just don’t know what treasures you’ll find in a secondhand bookshop!
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A book you never knew you had to have until you had to have it 🙂
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Exactly! 🙂
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Good luck to you. I’m doing something similar in terms of buying, although restricted more by necessity than desire! However, I also want to read more from my own shelves too – I’ve bought so many that are still sitting there.
Have you come across Cathy’s blog 746 Books? I wonder if that’s the one the earlier commenter was referring to.
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Thank you! It’s a grim prospect but as my tiny lounge is crammed to maximum capacity with much unread book booty, I do need to get cracking on what I’ve already got.
Funnily enough I have come across Cathy’s blog before, but never clocked the significance of the 746 books – doh!
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I only just discovered this post.
I wish you luck. If you manage it will be a great experience. And you have the emergency books. That’s a good idea. Your post is already tempting me to buy something.
It’s such a tenacious addiction.
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Thanks Caroline! It is indeed a tenacious addiction. After reading all the new year/new books posts I’m already feeling sorely tempted – I fear I won’t last out the week – eek!
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Reading book posts makes it harder. The week is almost over. There’s a good chance you’ll make it.
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One down, only 51 to go! 😉
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I’m also trying to read as many books from my shelves as possible. I’ve joined a GoodReads group and have committed to 24 for the year, which seems do-able.
I read ‘Dance’ last year, one a month, and really enjoyed it. I hope you do too.
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That sounds like a good plan. I do wonder if I’m shooting myself in the foot banning book-shopping rather than focusing on how many of my own books I can clock up over the year.
I really enjoyed reading Dorothy Richardson’s ‘Pilgrimage’ over the course of last year, so I was keen to do something similar this year. As I’ve finally collected all the volumes of Dance, it seemed like the perfect choice. I’ve heard really good things about it, so I’m looking forward to it!
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I am with you. I’ve pledged myself to a “no spend” challenge and also to read from my TBR shelves at home–or to get books from the library. In the first place, I have about 1000 books at home that I’ve never read. In the second place I have just as many I’d happily reread.
Best wishes!
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Yay – that calls for a fistbump of solidarity! It’s going to be tough, but for all the reasons you’ve just said, it’s got to be done. Good luck!
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This is an unusual resolution but I think I need to do exactly the same! I am forever buying books in second hand book shops/charity shops (I think they feel like a guilt-free purchase!) but at the moment I don’t really have as much time to read as I would like, so I have a growing bookshelf of unread books! Great post 🙂
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You’re absolutely right, secondhand books do feel like guilt-free purchases. However, if I added up how much I’ve spent on them in the past year or so, it’d make my eyes water! And thank you! 🙂
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I’ll be curious to see how this goes for you. I’ve tried the ‘read from my own shelves’ challenge, but it didn’t work very well. The library still took over. Maybe it would work better alongside a book buying ban. I thought about setting a limit on library books, too, but that just doesn’t seem right. And, I agree with you that it’s the hunt for ‘treasure’ that is so much fun. I find the same at the library. Maybe you could hunt for them, and then put them all back? Ha!
Anyway, good luck with it, and Happy New Year!!
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Haha, I love the idea of picking a load of books from the library shelves then just putting them all back. I wonder what the staff would make of that? It’ll be interesting to see if I can do this challenge – or at least, how long I can hold out for. If I can come out of this having read a lot more of my own books, and having learnt a bit of restraint on the book-buying front, it’ll have been worth it. 🙂
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Good luck with your challenge! I don’t think I could ever commit to more than 1 month of not buying books, though, lol 😦 But I’m glad you have allowed yourself some leeway during emergencies. 🙂
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Thank you! 🙂
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Looking good! Charity shops have such good finds these days! It’s great that you can get a little back from helping great causes!
If you’re interested in Charity shopping, I’ve just written a review on Octavia Foundation, Tooting. Have a read and spread the word on the good work that they do: tootinghustle.wordpress.com
Happy blogging x
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