Reading Resolutions

It’s a new year and I've made my usual list of resolutions (although I prefer to call them “intentions.") Some are healthy, some are "green", some are just plain fun. As I reviewed my list, I wondered: as important as reading is to me, are there any resolutions that would be appropriate to make regarding my reading habits? Several came to mind immediately. Declaring publicly one’s intentions to do something has been shown to improve the likelihood of actually doing it, so here are my “reading resolutions”:

• Lighten up! Pick some things to read that aren't on your must-read list, that you know nothing about except what you can tell from the cover and the blurb.
• Nonfiction is not virtuous for its own sake.  Select a nonfiction title because you’re really interested in the subject, not because you feel you “should” read it.
• Take more patrons' recommendations, especially those who enjoy books you've recommended to them.
• Quit sooner. Do not read so far into a bad or boring book that you feel as though you have to finish it. (This is an essential corollary of the first three.)
• Tackle a "big” novel once in awhile, one that will occupy you for a week or even two. It’s not about numbers, and your attention span is not as short as you think it is.
• Read memoirs by people whose lives or work mean something.
• Audio should be quality, too.  With the selection of audio books available there is no reason to lower expectations.
• Try - just try - an  ebook. Then you can say you don’t like them.

Here's to a year of good reading!