I tried reading 30 books in 30 days…and totally failed
At the end of June I decided to try something really, really stupid. I challenged myself to try and read 30 books in 30 days during July and documented it on our TikTok - you should follow us over there! - with a video (nearly) every day.
My aim was to make reading a habit again as I’d slipped a little in my reading and couldn’t quite get my mojo back, and I was also spending too much time on my phone (that hasn’t changed, let’s be honest). I also wanted to have a low spend month and filling all of my time with reading seemed like a good way to make that easier.
I was thwarted by record-breaking temperatures that reduced me to liquid, picking up a few titles in a row that I wasn’t fussed by, and the general pressure of it, but mostly the heat. It was unbearable.
But you know what? I may not have completed the challenge, but I did so well and I’m so proud of myself!
I read 22 books in July.
I tackled full novels, graphic novels and novellas via my Kindle, physical books and audiobooks.
It looks like so many books! Isn’t that amazing? I’m so pleased! It’s a lot of books so I’m not going to run through all of them, but I am going to mention my favourites and my least favourites.
Favourites
‘Heartstopper 1-4’ by Alice Oseman - obviously. OBVIOUSLY. Can you believe it took me so long?! I can’t. I adored it though, as I expected to, It was sweet and romantic and gorgeous and sad and full of depth. I can’t wait to get my hands on book five and finally watch the TV show.
‘I Kissed Shara Wheeler’ by Casey McQuiston - Casey McQuiston completely nailed it once again with a queer ‘Paper Towns’-esque romp that I absolutely flew through. It’s huge fun, wonderful rep and I loved it.
‘The Charm Offensive’ by Alison Cochrun - I enjoyed this romance so much that I wrote a full review! I loved it, but there are definitely some issues with the representation which I detailed here.
Least Favourites
‘Book of Night’ by Holly Black - I adore Holly Black so I was excited for this, even with the mixed reviews I’d heard, but it was so slow and the magic system was so underdeveloped I barely understood it. I didn’t really connect with any of the characters and I felt no propulsion throughout the story at all.
‘Meet Cute Club’ by Jack Harbon - this queer romance was just…fine. It was extremely short, very light, and fluffy, and even though there were attempts at depth it never really hit properly. This had a lot of potential and it missed for me.
So there we are. I failed to read 30 books in 30 days, but I read some amazing things and I’m so pleased with what I achieved!
Have you ever done a reading challenge like this before? How did it go?
Written by Sophie
