I don’t usually make New Years resolutions. This year I am making an exception. I’m promising myself I will read fewer books

Don’t get me wrong. I still love to read. In 2025 I read 102 books.

I’d never tracked my reading before. I’m not sure what the list says about me or my reading habits, but this year I think I am going to aim for about sixty books. That is still five every month, more than one a week

The reason for the lesser number is that last year I was skewed heavily towards fiction. I read ninety novels. I’m not sure that is a good thing. I think it may have been fueled by looking at the world around me, wars, rumors of wars, inflation, crises and the list goes on. Fiction is a place to escape.

I can breeze through a novel in a couple of days. Non-fiction works typically take a lot longer. They require more thought and consideration on my part.

last year I had a number of non-fiction works that I started and didn’t finish. They just didn’t hold my attention, so I abandoned them. This year I have resolved to do better, to escape less and perhaps learn more. It shouldn’t be that hard, should it?

Except, we are in February. I have finished a dozen books so far – and nine have been fiction. As a percentage, that is lower than in 2025, but still pretty high. Obviously I am still paying attention to the news and still looking for an escape. if it helps keep me sane and hopeful, that’s probably a good thing.

What about you? What are you reading these days? Fiction, non-fiction? What genres? For fiction I tend to gravitate towards mysteries. Non-fiction my tastes are a little broader: politics, religion, sports, biographies, I’ll read anything that looks interesting.

I’m also curious about your New Year’s resolutions, if you made any. Have they survived into February? And if they haven’t, are you willing to admit it here?

I thought not.