The 2023 Book Pile-Up

Even though I did not reach my reading goal this year, I did improve on the amount of non-fiction books I read. I believe this year was about 50% fiction and 50% non-fiction! At the start of the year, I set a higher goal, 200 books. But I knew it was a possibility that I would not get that far since we were going to have an international move coming up, and moving into a new place. Several of the books I read were for college classes, but as always, I ended up gleaning a lot from the required readings! 

My top ten reads are mainly non-fiction, but the recommended series is fictional:

1. Atomic Habits by James Clear

• This book is highly recommended across many people’s reading lists, and it sadly took me awhile to actually pick it up (the title seemed New Agey in my mind, but it turns out to not be.)

1. The Doctrine of Repentance by Thomas Watson

• This was the first book by Watson that I was introduced to, for school. It is a short but powerful read!

1. Love or Die: Christ’s Wake-up Call to the Church by Alexander Strauch

• Another short read but a great discussion on how to truly love one another and your neighbor as the church.

1. The Fruit of Her Hands by Nancy Wilson

• This was one of the first short books I read on the topic of Christian homemaking. It is rooted in biblical truth and makes it very applicable.

1. The Gospel Comes with a House Key by Rosaria Butterfield

• This was the first book I have read by her, and I absolutely love what she had to say in this book!

1. How Should We Then Live? By Francis Schaeffer

• This book was the first Francis Schaeffer book I have read, and now I am trying to read most of his books. He does a dive into the fall of the western mind and culture over the centuries and generations.

1. Total Truth by Nancy Pearcey

• In this book, Nancy does an excellent deep and thorough dig into the fall of absolute truth, and also does some culture digging on the side.

1. Ultra-Processed People by Chris van Tulleken

• This British author does a great job at breaking down how much of our food is made and why processed foods are so common today.

1. The Only One Left by Riley Sager

• This book came highly recommended to me by a friend. It is perfect for the reader who loves psych thrillers and plot twists!

1. What is a Family by Edith Schaeffer

• Francis’ wife writes an excellent homemaker’s book and guide along biblical standards.

I do not typically read fictional series any more, but the one I read through this year (also came highly recommended by a friend), was the Unwind series by Neal Shusterman. This series is written for high schoolers, but both my friend and I were well past the intended age and still loved it! Written as a dystopian book, society is run by a country that was divided by a Civil War over reproductive rights, and made it possible to “unwind” unwanted teenagers, since it is deemed as not ending their lives. 

For this year, 2024, I have a monthly reading goal when it comes to the types of books I want to read. But my overall reading goal is 150 books. I have a list of genres that I must hit each month, and then the remaining time can be spent reading extra books on the side. Each month I want to read:

• A missionary’s biography

• A book by C.S. Lewis

• A psych thriller or mystery

• A historical fiction

• A non-fiction

• A theological book

• One book of the Bible

• A book about unbiblical/cult beliefs

• A book on a topic I am studying

This goal is to help me continue to read a wide variety of books, but also to read more books that I personally own, since I need to not go to the library as often! Oh and on the note, I almost forgot to mention that Daniel and I officially have a home library! We reached over 1,000 books, which apparently allows the collection to be deemed a library! 

What books did you guys enjoy reading this past year? Let me know in the comments below!