Several years ago, I realized I wasn’t reading nearly as much as I used to. I’ve always loved to read, but somehow life got busy and reading kept getting pushed further and further down the list. In fact, in 2023, I read a grand total of THREE books. Three!

So, in 2024, I decided to challenge myself to read as many books as the age I was turning that year. I turned 48 and read 44 books. So close!

In 2025, I turned 49 and read 57 books. Mission accomplished!

When I created my 50 by 50 bucket list in August 2025, naturally, one of my goals was to read 50 books before I turned 50. But once I realized I had already easily passed that number the year before, it seemed a little too easy for a bucket list goal. So I decided I needed to up my game.

New goal: 60 books before 50.

And…I did it! 📚

Along the way, I also did something I swore I would never do: I gave audiobooks a try.

I had always been against them. In my mind, listening to a book just wasn’t the same as reading a book. But I finally decided, what could it hurt to try?

Well, I’m hooked.

I love being able to listen to a book on a long car ride, while I’m walking, cleaning, or doing any of the million other things that need to get done when I don’t have time to actually sit down with a book.

And if you know me, you know that at any given time I probably have three books going at once—one audiobook, one hardback and one on my Kindle. Apparently one book at a time is just not enough for me.

I’ve also discovered the Libby app and use it diligently. I very rarely pay for a book anymore. Instead, I borrow my books and audiobooks through our local libraries, which makes me feel a little better about just how many books I go through!

So how did the 60 break down?

39 were hardback or Kindle books and 21 were audiobooks.

I’m also a pretty generous book rater. If I like a book, I generally give it four out of five stars. I very rarely give anything less than three stars—although there were at least three books this year that earned only two stars from me. I won’t name names. 😂

But there were 14 books that earned the coveted five stars:

⭐ The Hour I First Believed — Wally Lamb
⭐ The Girls Who Grew Big — Leila Mottley
⭐ Theo of Golden — Allen Levi
⭐ Wish You Were Here — Jodi Picoult
⭐ The Calamity Club — Kathryn Stockett
⭐ The Bright Years — Sarah Damoff
⭐ Small Great Things — Jodi Picoult
⭐ The Four Winds — Kristin Hannah
⭐ The Poppy Fields — Nikki Erlick
⭐ The Great Alone — Kristin Hannah
⭐ Heart the Lover — Lily King
⭐ The Names — Florence Knapp
⭐ The Alice Network — Kate Quinn
⭐ The Good Left Undone — Adriana Trigiani

And if you absolutely made me choose my top three? In no particular order:

📖 The Good Left Undone
📖 The Calamity Club
📖 The Bright Years

This year also reminded me how much fun it is to branch out a little with what I read.

I rediscovered Kristin Hannah and already have two more of her books on my hold list. I still love lighter books from authors like Abby Jimenez. I’ve tried a few autobiographies. And thanks to My (Not So) Lazy Book Club, I’ve ventured more into historical fiction—a genre I never thought I would enjoy as much as I do.

And I will probably always love a decent thriller with a twist. Give me a Freida McFadden or Lisa Jewell book that makes me think I know exactly what’s happening, only to find out that I absolutely do not, and I’m happy.

I also have to give a shout-out to all of the readers in my life who are constantly giving me suggestions for new books and authors. One of my favorite things about reading more has been talking about books more—hearing what other people loved, passing along books I loved, and adding approximately 4,000 more books to my “want to read” list.

My friend Steph has now informed me that I should up my goal to 80 books this year.

Ummm…we shall see. 😂

But for the purposes of my 50 by 50 bucket list, I’m calling this one complete.

What started a few years ago because I realized I had stopped making time for something I loved has turned into something I look forward to every single day. Whether I’m curled up with a hardback, reading my Kindle, or listening to an audiobook while I’m doing something else, books have become a big part of my life again.

And that might be my favorite part of this bucket list goal. It wasn’t really about getting to 60.

It was about finding my way back to something I love.

Bucket List #22: Read 60 Books Before 50 — MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!