Numerical Goals for Reading: Aiming for 100 Books a Year

Key Performance Indicator of my reading

This is a story about my favorite hobby, reading.

Numerical goals for something you love?

Some might think that, but thanks to having a numerical goal, I have started reading books by authors I wouldn't have picked up before, and I feel that my world of reading has definitely expanded.
As it expands, the number of encounters with books that are important to me also increases, and I think that is thanks to having a numerical goal.
So, this time I will write about numerical goals for reading.

About my reading

My reading is centered on novels; I don't read many essays or practical books.
The genres of novels I like are mystery, adventure, and science fiction, but if a novel is interesting, I basically read anything.
Also, I prefer full-length novels over short story collections.

That said, until about 10 years ago, reading for me meant reading 2 or 3 books by my favorite authors per month, or about 20 to 30 books a year. At that time, I had an opportunity to count the books I had read since my 20s, and it came to about 400 books in total, which felt very small to me.

I simply decided that I wanted to read 1,000 books in my lifetime and started increasing my reading volume, and recently I have been reading at a pace of 100 books a year.

Since I commute by train, I can read for about an hour on the way there and back. Also, by adding the hour before going to sleep, I can secure two hours of reading time a day, so I read at a pace of about three books a week—two on weekdays and one on weekends.

100 books a year is not difficult!

Since it is 100 books a year, that is a pace of about 8 books a month, or about 2 books a week. Some people might feel overwhelmed when they hear 100 books, but doesn't 2 books a week sound like a number you could easily read?
For someone who commutes by train like me, I think it's a number that can be achieved naturally, don't you think?

Reading 100 books a year is by no means difficult.
What is difficult, I think, is "preparing 100 books you want to read" and "choosing 100 books you want to read."

Preparing 100 books

Preparing 100 books is not easy, is it?
If you buy them all, it costs a fair amount, and there are limits to borrowing and lending between family and friends, so for someone like me who likes novels and isn't particular about them being brand new, it's best to use second-hand bookstores or libraries.

In particular, recent libraries are quite networked, and they also hold books that went out of print when barcodes were introduced, so they are very convenient for finding books.

If I assume I have to buy them, I won't pick up books I'm only slightly curious about, so I try to borrow them from places like the library to read, and if I find a work I like, I buy it.

Choosing 100 books

And, more difficult than reading 100 books or preparing for them, is finding and selecting the 100 books you want to read.

In companies and similar settings, when numerical goals are set, the goal sometimes becomes solely about achieving that number, but since this is a hobby, there is no need to be overly fixated on numbers. Therefore, you don't need to choose 100 books from the start; I think it's just right to gradually increase them, like 10 -> 30 -> 50.

It's a strange thing, but the more you read, the more books and authors you want to read, so there is no need to try to pick exactly 100 books.

* * * * *

Now, it's fine for people who have many books they want to read, but for those who don't, even choosing 10 books is quite a task.
However, since the goal is to expand your own reading world in the first place, it is also important to listen to the opinions of others rather than trying to choose only based on your own preferences.

The result of aggregating those opinions is bestsellers, various rankings, awards selected by professionals, and guidebooks, so if you use those as a reference, I think you will find about 10 books right away.

There is a reason why books at the top of rankings that everyone finds interesting, or books called masterpieces, are considered as such, and they really are interesting or masterpieces.
Of course, I think there are genre preferences, so it goes without saying that you should refer to rankings and guidebooks within your preferred genres.
However, peeking into different genres once in a while will expand your reading world.

◎ Recommended Literary Awards

First, regarding literary awards, while awards have a commercial aspect of creating buzz and generating bestsellers, let's use them as a reference without worrying about that background.
There are authoritative awards like the Naoki Prize and the Akutagawa Prize but personally, I recommend the [Japan Booksellers' Award] which you can approach without feeling intimidated.

Since it is chosen by bookstore staff across the country, in a sense, it is straightforward commercialism, but I think a wide range of interesting books are selected.
It is also an award where books that are already selling well (or have won other awards) are less likely to be chosen, so I think it is the perfect award for discovering new authors.

I think it would be quite a fun challenge to try and read through all 17 past winning works.

There are many other awards, and
for literature, I recommend the Naoki Sanjugo Prize, the Akutagawa Ryunosuke Prize, the Tanizaki Junichiro Prize, and the Yamamoto Shugoro Prize; for overseas literature, the British Booker Prize is recommended.

Also, if you want to specialize in mysteries, the Mystery Writers of Japan Award and the Edogawa Rampo Prize are famous, and for overseas mysteries, the Crime Writers' Association (CWA) Dagger Awards and the Mystery Writers of America (MWA) Edgar Awards are well-known.

In science fiction, international awards like the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus are more famous than domestic ones like the Japan SF Award or the Seiun Award.

There are many other awards, so please use them as a reference depending on the genre. However, I feel the bar is set a bit high for Nobel Prize-winning authors. If you are looking at international literature, I think British and American works are the easiest to start with.

◎ Recommended Book Rankings

There are various book rankings, and they are easy to use as a reference since you can see simple popularity rankings.
Among them, if you are a mystery fan like me, 【Kono Mystery ga Sugoi!】 is a sure bet.

The rankings for the year are announced as a magazine at the end of the year, and since they are released for both domestic and international categories, just reading through the ranked books amounts to quite a lot.
Also, since it has already reached its 32nd edition, there are 64 works in total just from the number one spots, so I think it would be fun to try and complete those as well.

Various rankings are introduced on the internet as well, so let's find one that suits your tastes.

◎ Recommended Guidebooks

Various guidebooks have been published, and it is best to choose from the genres you like. In my case, I started with mystery masterpieces, so I was helped by Bunshun's 【Top 100 Eastern and Western Mysteries】 and Hayakawa's 【Mystery Handbook】.

There are other unique ones as well; for example, a book called 【Author's Bookshelf】 cannot be called an official guidebook, but it sparks interest because you can learn about the books that authors are reading. (Following the books that your favorite authors like is also a fun way to read.)

◎ Others

Besides rankings and the like, the definitive list of 1000 Novels You Must Read Before You Die compiled by the Guardian's review team and external experts on January 23, 2009, is also quite a fun list.
It is for advanced readers, but for those interested in world-class masterpieces, it is a list you can use for a lifetime. (By the way, the link below is an introduction site set up by YuriL.)

Recording your reading

Finally, I recommend keeping a record of your reading.

Recording might be a hassle, but there are convenient web services like "Booklog" and "Dokusho Meter" now, so you can record them easily.

I use "Bookmeter," and it is very convenient because it allows me not only to manage the books I have read but also to register books I want to read.

It is sure to make your reading life more enjoyable, so I recommend using it.

The above is my reading data, and since I am reading at a pretty good pace this year, I am looking forward to encountering many more books.

I have been writing at length, and while I think that ultimately quality becomes more important than quantity, I want to continue reading widely while my eyes are still healthy.

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