Checking in on My 2026 Reading Goals

Alright, we are in month EIGHT of this year, which feels wild, and now that I have a little bit of time to breathe, it’s time to check in on my numerous reading goals for the year 2026. You can read my initial thoughts about these goals here. In that blog, I said I had ten goals, but really I had 11. Let’s go through them:

Goal 0: Read 12 450+ Page Books

This was not a goal I talked about in that initial blog post, but as I prepared for my move, I knew I had tooooo many big books and had been really leaning into reading smaller books, because reading quickly makes me feel accomplished. So I originally was going to try to read 12 500+ page books this year–one for every month, roughly. Then I pulled the books I owned I wanted to “count” for this challenge, and realized a lot of them were like 450-499 pages long, hence the adjustment. As of August 13th, I have read 6 450+ page books, so I am only a LITTLE bit behind schedule. I read Immortal Consequences, Skander and the Spirit War, A Thousand Heartbeats, Iron Flame, Mysterious Benedict Society, and God of the Woods. I own 6 more that I would like to get through, and have 2 more on my Kindle that I’ve been meaning to read for awhile. We’ll see if I get there.

Goal 1: Read One Agatha Christie Novel

I have not done this. I’m putting it on my calendar to get one from the library in early October and read it on my weekend trip to DC! Recommendations for which standalone to read?

Goal 2: Read a “Best of X Year” Short Story Collection

Haven’t done this either! Maybe I pick one (I own two) and do one a day in September?

Goal 3: Attend 5 Author Talks (Non-Conference)

Jokes on me, I haven’t gone to any conferences this year. I’ve seen 3 author talks in-person, I believe: Rick Atkinson, Tom Lin, and Greg Melville. I now live somewhere with a lot less options, but there is a bookstore within walking distance to me, so I’ll try to put two on the calendar for September and October.

Goal 4: Read 250 Books Total (No PBs)

While I am not counting picture books, I am counting short chapter books, etc. Currently, I am at 162 books read, which Goodreads tells me is 9 books ahead of schedule.

Goal 5: Read all 2026 Book Clubs for My DAR Chapter

I have kept up with this so far! There were 2 months where I’d previously read the books, so I didn’t re-read. I still have to read August, September, and November’s books, but I already listened to the novella we are discussing in October!

Goal 6: Read the Fiction Pulitzer & Carnegie Winners

I read the Pulitzer winner…lordt. That’s all I can say. What a book….the Pultizer committee and I continue to be on different pages of different books entirely. I don’t own the Carnegie book–I need to put it on hold at the library, probably.

Goal 7: Attend 3 In-Person Book Clubs

Done! I joined a book club at East City Books and attended the in-person discussions of Birnam Wood, Moderation, and Audition. I also read Lincoln in the Bardo but couldn’t attend.

Goal 8: Catch up on the Dragon Master Series

I’m pretty much there! I was on book 15 when the year started, and there were 30 so far, with 31 and 32 set for a 2026 publication. I’m all caught up except for book 32, which just came out last week and I have on Kindle to read ASAP. Book 33 doesn’t come out til February 2027, so I’m going to call this goal complete once I check off book 32 in a couple of days.

Goal 9: Read the 2026 Newbery Winner & Honors

I had already read one of the Honor books and the winner, so I had three more Honor books to read. I read and LOVED Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest, thought Teacher of Nomad Land was fine, and I have a copy of Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli to read probably in early October.

Goal 10: Finish Murdle 1 and 2

Is a logic puzzle game book a reading goal? Not exactly, but grant me grace. This has really slacked off in mid-year, but I’m back on my Murdle grind. There are 100 puzzles in each book. In Book 1 (which I do by myself), I have 39 puzzles left. IN Book 2 (which I occassionally do with my boyfriend) I have a lot more left—I think like 83. Might adjust this goal to just finish Murdle 1 by my birthday, which marks one year since I received it.

So…I think I’m doing okay! I have a plan for most of what needs to get done, and let’s just hope I can execute!