The New Year A Time to Reflect and Resolve
One of my favorite quotes comes from the most quotable Catholic: G.K. Chesterton. He writes of the New Year and resolutions: “The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul and a new nose; new feet, a new backbone, new ears, and new eyes. Unless a particular man made New Year resolutions, he would make no resolutions. Unless a man starts afresh about things, he will certainly do nothing effective” (source).
Taking his words to heart, with each new year I take time to reflect on the past twelve months, and then create a small list of resolutions and goals for the upcoming new year. One goal that remains the same each year is to read. Though I make changes to what that looks like each year, the heart of the resolution remains the same: to make reading good books a priority.
My Reading Plan: How I Met My Goals
In the year 2023, I read sixty books, the most I have read in a single year to date. To reach this goal I did a few things. First, I decided what authors I wanted to focus on last year. Though I read a variety of authors' writings, I chose a few to include works from each month: Jane Austen, Dietrich von Hildebrand, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, Pope Benedict XVI, and David McCullough.
Next, I created a word processing document and wrote out the months of the year, writing out the titles of each book I wanted to read under the month. After that, I looked at how many pages were in each book and then divided those pages by how many days in the month there are. That number would be the number of pages I would read each day of the month for that book.
For example, my copy of the book The Diary of a Country Priest by Georges Bernanos has 298 pages in it. I listed that book in my December column, so I divided 298 by 31, for a total of 9.6. I would read 10 pages from that book on each day of December. Doing this for each book helped make my reading goals much more attainable.
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Difficult Yet Life-Giving
What helped the most was acknowledging that to reach my goal of sixty books would be difficult, and some days I wouldn’t want to do all of my planned reading. I coupled that thought with this reality: that if I completed my goal, if I prioritized reading every day, I would be a different person in one of the most beautiful ways at the end of the year. As I write this in December, and I am finishing up the last few chapters of my December books, I can truly say: I am a different person not just because of the beautiful words, thoughts, ideas, and wisdom from the books I read, but also because of the discipline and sacrifice it took to read those books.
Resolving To Read
You don’t have to read sixty books this year. But you should read. Even one book. And if you don’t think you have the time, look at how much time is spent on your phone. Maybe a resolution this year can be reading one page of a book before picking up your phone to scroll social media. Reading fills our hearts more than a phone ever will. Reading good books opens up our minds and hearts, gifting and gracing us, leading us to discipline, virtue, and the beautiful.
What’s On Your List?
Here is my 2023 book list for inspiration! Have you read any of these books on the list? What did you read this year? Please let us all know for ideas and motivation!
My 2023 Book List
January
Friends of God by Josemaría Escrivá
Be Healed by Dr. Bob Schuchts
Introduction to the Devout Life by Saint Francis de Sales
Love and Responsibility by Karol Wojtyła
The Journal of Raïssa Maritain
The Excellent 11 by Ron Clark
Aesthetics, Vol. 1 by Dietrich von Hildebrand
February
Aesthetics, Vol. 2 by Dietrich von Hildebrand
The Case for Catholicism by Trent Horn
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Saint Paul by Pope Benedict XVI
Truman, Vol. 1 by David McCullough
I Believe in Love by Fr. Jean C. J. d’Elbée
March
Truman, Vol. 2 by David McCullough
The Nature of Love by Dietrich von Hildebrand
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
Making Sense Out of Suffering by Peter Kreeft
Her Last Conversations by Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, edited by John Clarke, OCD
April
Ethics by Dietrich von Hildebrand
Emma by Jane Austen
To Know Jesus Christ by Frank Sheed
You Have Words of Eternal Life by Hans Urs von Balthasar
Letters of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, Vol. 1
May
Morality and Situation Ethics by Dietrich von Hildebrand
Persuasion by Jane Austen
The Wild Orchid by Sigrid Undset
On the Way to Jesus Christ by Pope Benedict XVI
Letters of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, Vol. 2
One Million Followers by Brendan Kane
June
Graven Images by Dietrich von Hildebrand
Introduction to Christianity by Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI)
The One Thing is Three by Father Michael Gaitley
The Poetry of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
July
Jaws of Death: Gate of Heaven by Dietrich von Hildebrand
Wise Blood by Flannery O’Conner
The Plays of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
The Power of Silence by Cardinal Robert Sarah
Introduction to Christianity Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI)
August
In Defense of Purity by Dietrich von Hildebrand
The Prayers of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
Hold On to Your Kids by Gordon Neufeld
Wisdom of the Heart by Peter Kreeft
Prayer and Intelligence by Jacques and Raïssa Maritain
I Would Like to Travel the World by Guy Gaucher
September
Liturgy & Personality by Dietrich von Hildebrand
Story of a Soul by Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
October
The Art of Living by Dietrich von Hildebrand
1776 by David McCullough
A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken
Thérèse by Dorothy Day
What is Philosophy? by Dietrich von Hildebrand
November
Man and Woman by Dietrich von Hildebrand
Mornings on Horseback by David McCullough
Two Sisters in the Spirit by Hans Urs von Balthasar
Gratitude by Dietrich von Hildebrand
Virtues of the Human Heart by Joseph Pieper
December
The Reed of God by Caryll Houselander
The Diary of a Country Priest by Georges Bernanos
The Divine Project by Pope Benedict XVI
The Pioneers by David McCullough
Peace of Soul by Fulton Sheen
Whether you have already prepared a book list for 2024 or not, it is not too late to get started! Make your list today!
Claire Couche is a wife, etiquette instructor, blogger, homeschooling mother, and registered nurse. She is passionate about sharing content that helps her community live a beautiful and virtuous life. Using her degrees in theology and history, Claire shares about the Catholic faith often on her IG account @findingphilothea and her website, Finding Philothea. You can often find her reading a good book in a beautiful dress! Learn more about Claire and all things etiquette here.
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