My New Year’s Resolution to “Read Nothing”

January is the month where everyone decides that this will be the year to completely change who they are as people, piling on New Year’s resolutions like it’s their ding dang job, fully deluding themselves into believing they WILL use that gym membership frequently enough to justify the monthly fee and they will DEFINITELY learn how to sew, like, for real this time. January is also the month where all I want to do is hibernate, turn into a tiny little grump of a bear, huddle in my apartment, and simply never leave, but then I blink and suddenly it is February and I have a blog post due and my editor is sending me kind emails with many exclamation points letting me know that the post is extremely late, and um, were you going to talk about reading resolutions or not, Adam!!!!!

Yeah, so this is the one where I rant about reading resolutions and why a) you should definitely make them and also b) no you shouldn’t. (I can actually picture the face my editor is making right now, halfway between horrified and confused, with just a sprinkle of annoyance, because she has been waiting weeks for this unhinged rant. But maybe even a little self-satisfied because referring to my long-suffering colleague as “my editor” makes us both sound SO COOL and metropolitan and I love that for the both of us.)

Argument A: Reading Resolutions Are Rad

I know I began with sarcasm, but this truly is the year you should commit to a reading resolution.

Why? I'm glad you asked, because I made a handy dandy list. 

1. Reading resolutions encourage you to get back into reading.

Did you used to love reading, but somewhere along the way, life got hectic and you got out of the habit? If you're anxious about where to start, all you need to do is this: Resolve to read. Anything. Even one word. I'm serious. Even reading the back of a cereal box counts. I know it might feel discouraging at first, but there is a 100% chance you will get back into reading again, because you stumbled across this blog post and HAH, I TRICKED YOU, YOU'RE READING RIGHT NOW. This is where it starts. Any reading is good reading. And when you feel brave enough to tackle a book, talk to your new best friends in the Book Squad.

2. Reading resolutions give you tangible goals to work towards.

Sometimes all a person needs to keep themselves motivated is the thought of reading a specific number of books. Whether it is ten books, twelve, or two hundred, we all have different goals to satisfy the numbers goblin that lives in the back of your brain. Or maybe instead of a distinct number, you want to read every single Stephen King book he has ever written. Or maybe your goal is to finally get around to finishing that one fantasy series you started ages ago, but lost steam around book three. Or maybe you're a TikTok girly, and your goal is to read every single Reylo book under the sun. If so, you're going to have so much fun!!!

3. Reading resolutions challenge you to read outside the box. 

Are you stuck in a rut when it comes to the type of books you read? Sure, you've found your niche of wittily-written queer British historical romance, but maybe you've never read any literary fiction, and aren't you a little curious what that's all about? Or maybe you've looked on your book shelf and at reading history and you've realized you haven't read many international authors, or authors of color, or authors from a different socio-economic background. If you're in need of a challenge, you're in luck, because every year our team thoughtfully curates twelve Squad Goals prompts to encourage readers to expand their reading horizons. 

Argument B: Reading Resolutions Are Bad

Don't make a resolution! They're silly! And books are dumb! Anyone who reads them is just a big ol' nerd! Boo, hiss!!!!! 

Okay, so this argument is for the folks who need a little reverse psychology to get them going and enjoy being defiant. 

And to you I say: Don't read any books this year! Don't get swept away in a wonderful new story! I DARE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!

In all seriousness, sometimes a resolution is intimidating and can feel like homework, especially if you're burnt out or tired or have a neuro-spicy brain like myself, where all you want to do is hide away during the winter but you're forced to be a person with a job. My personal goal this year is to "read nothing" and because of that, I haven't felt pressured to read a certain number of books or a certain type of book. Instead, I'm picking up books if and when they speak to me, and putting down the books that don't feel correct. So far I've read two books I thoroughly enjoyed: All Systems Red by Martha Wells (a delightful novella with a character that could have been torn straight from the pages of my personal diary) and Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon (an intriguing, and distinctly human new spin on how we interpret classics and ancient history). I think this will be the year where, instead of trying to force myself into being a different person and a different reader, I allow myself to exist and not feel guilty for reading less, for choosing to spend my free time taking naps with my cats or daydreaming about my next D&D character or listening to girl pop on repeat. 

At the end of the day, reading is a hobby, an activity that I firmly believe should be enjoyed, and not everyone "enjoys" a strict resolution. Maybe that makes me a bad librarian to admit resolutions don't work for everyone, but like I said earlier, all reading is good reading. No matter what your goal is, or what kind of reader you resolve to be this year — even if you "read nothing." 

-Adam Lopez is a Readers' Services Assistant at Lawrence Public Library.