The Empty Shelf Challenge
2015 is right around the corner, and that means one thing: RESOLUTIONS! If you are like me, my New Year’s resolutions last about 24 hours. I have kept very few for the whole year. In 2014, though, I stumbled upon a resolution that I knew I could keep, and I believe it’s one most Bookkaholic readers will find easy to stick with as well because it only involves two things: an empty shelf and reading. So, for 2015, I invite you to try a New Year’s resolution known as “the empty shelf challenge.”
In January, clear off a shelf in your home. It can be any width, length, or height; however, I do recommend selecting one tall enough to allow your books to stand upright. Next, after you finish reading a book, just add it to the shelf. Finally, watch your shelf fill up! The challenge can be both fun and informative. For example, I knew that I read a great bit, but I was surprised by just how quickly my first shelf filled up, which caused me to add a second one. I also invite you to challenge a few friends to take “the empty shelf challenge” with you and compare notes via social media. That way, you’ll be motivated to read more, and you may stumble upon a few new titles along the way!
Here’s a recap of my experiences with “the empty shelf challenge.”
In January 2014, I started writing for Bookkaholic, and I began “the empty shelf challenge.” I read a total of six books in January, but my favorite was The Book Thief, which I completed as an audiobook (see full review here). To keep up with all my reads, I used stand-ins for audio and e-book reads. Several of the books I read throughout the year were reviewed on the Bookkaholic website.
By the end of March, I had completed 22 books. I was walking a lot, so I had amassed quite a few titles in the audiobook count. At that point, my favorite read for the year was A Star for Mrs. Blake by April Smith. This book was a delightful piece of historical fiction (see full review here).
By the end of June, I had to add my second shelf! When I first picked my empty shelf, I was concerned about being able to fill it up in a year, but I quickly realized that filling the shelf would not be a problem. Half-way through the year, I had read 45 books. I had also discovered two new series: Susan Hill’s Simon Serrailler detective novels and Elly Griffiths’s Ruth Galloway books. I enjoyed both series, but the Ruth Galloway books may have just edged out the Simon Serrailler works.
The summer brought a lull to my reading, and by the end of September, I had only added 16 books, which brought my total to 61 for the year. I discovered several new authors in that time, though, including Britta Bolt, Simon Beckett, and Stephen Dobyns. Britta Bolt’s Lonely Graves (see full review here) was probably my favorite mystery, thriller, and suspense read. However, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce (see Rebecca’s full review here) was my favorite read of the year at this point. This book was fantastic on so many levels. I highly recommend it to everyone!
We are at the end of 2014, and the final picture shows the completion of my experience with “the empty shelf challenge.” At this point, I have completed 75 books. The fall quarter saw me add 14 more titles to my list. I re-read The Hunger Games trilogy, which I liked even more the second time around. However, my favorite book of the quarter was The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap (see review here).
Reading is such a joy, so keeping this resolution was not a problem. I hope you’ll take “the empty shelf challenge,” too!
Happy New Year, and happy reading!
Mollie Smith Waters
In 1973, I started keeping track of the books I was reading because I kept picking up the same ones in the library. I must have copied the little book several dozen times by hand as I would need more room. Eventually I transcribed to to a spreadsheet and was able to sort by genre, author, and title. I print and bind the list into a book periodically. I carry it with me always, you never know when you might stop at the library or a book store!
I didn’t start rating them until the 90’s which I sorely regret. But so far, I have 41 years of books, and 1567 that I remembered to write down. During that time I went to graduate school, worked full time for 30 years, divorced, remarried, bore and raised 3 children, was widowed, retired, and lived a life filled with joy and pain. Almost always with a book near at hand.
I love the bookshelf idea, but I’m cheap, and there is nothing better than a library that is already filled with shelves and librarians filling them. My bookshelves at home tend to be filled with specialty books for topics that I am studying in more depth.