New Year, New Reading Challenge

The first recorded New Year celebrations were 4000 years ago with the Babylonians, who made promises to pay their debts and return objects they had borrowed to earn their god’s favor. Early Christians would use the New Year celebration to think about past mistakes and resolve to behave better in the coming year. Many churches would have a Watch Night service on New Year’s Eve. While resolutions have become a secular tradition, their primary focus is to behave better in the upcoming year.

Many of us set lofty goals that are difficult to attain. In fact, January 17 is unofficially called “Ditch New Year’s Resolutions Day” because so many give up before the month is out. Thus, I propose that we set a resolution everyone can do, that will make us feel good, entertain us, and nourish our minds. The challenge I propose is to read a book a month. Sounds simple, right? You may already do this in your daily life. To make it a bit more of a challenge, there is a theme for each month as follows:

Reading Challenge 2024
● January – Read an old favorite
● February – Read a meet-cute romance, love story, or book of poems
● March – Read a book that was made into a movie or TV show
● April – Read a book set in another country
● May – Read a biographical fiction book
● June – Read a book set at the beach or on a tropical island
● July – Read a historical fiction or mystery book
● August – Read a book that has won an award
● September – Read a non-fiction or self-help book
● October – Read a book that takes place in fall or winter
● November – Read a sci-fi/fantasy book or current bestseller
● December – Read a holiday story or non-fiction book

This is just a guide; feel free to substitute a month for a genre or book that is more to your taste. The Youth Services department also has various reading challenges for different ages and reading levels throughout the year. Please see their service desk for details.

The goal is to read more in the coming year and maybe find a new favorite you would not have discovered. Printed copies of this challenge are available at the Crawfordsville District Public Library on the second floor at the Reference desk. Once completed, you can redeem the challenge for a free book. Call the library reference desk for details at 765-362-2242.

Don’t forget that the library is hosting a Winter Reading Program until January 31, 2024. Programming opportunities for all ages are also available at the Carnegie Museum of Montgomery County and the library this winter. Join a book club, work on handcrafts, and learn to keep a nature journal. These are some of the opportunities available in January for your enjoyment. Check out our Events Calendar to see all the events we have going on at the library this winter.