Taking on the A to Z Reading Challenge: My 2025 Reading Goals

Happy New Year and welcome to 2025! As I get older, the years seem to fly by. However, I’m happy to say that 2024 was a year full of blessings. It brought the arrival of our sweet addition to the family, making us a family of four. Moving back to the East Coast was a bittersweet experience, but overall, it’s been a positive change.

Living in Colorado was an incredible experience, and I’m grateful for the time we spent there. The state is truly beautiful, offering endless outdoor adventures and scenic landscapes. We met wonderful people and made lasting memories. Although we’re no longer there, we hope to visit again in the future.

Settling into our new home has been a process, as it always is with every move. Moving across the country is never easy, but I firmly believe in going where the opportunities are—whether they’re career-related or simply for the experience. While there are still a few boxes to unpack, we’re mostly settled in now.

As we kick off the new year, many of us take time to reflect and set goals for growth and self-improvement. I enjoy this tradition and have set a few personal goals for 2025. One of those goals is to complete the A to Z Reading Challenge, which I’m excited to take on this year. Many of my friends have completed this challenge in the past, and now it’s my turn.

I have an ever-growing collection of books on my shelf and in my Kindle library that I’ve been eager to read. Of course, adding to my collection doesn’t exactly help reduce the stack, but that’s the nature of loving books!

I was fortunate to receive two Barnes & Noble gift cards this past year—one from my mom for my birthday and another from my husband for Christmas. These thoughtful gifts allowed me to add books I’ve had on my reading list for a while, and many of them are now part of my A to Z Reading Challenge. My mom also gifted me the A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series by Holly Jackson, which is now on my list too.

While my list has plenty of rom-coms, I wanted to diversify it with other genres. I’m passionate about American history, true crime, self-development, psychology, mental health stories, and documentary-style books.

I’ll admit that it was a bit challenging to find books that fit certain letters of the alphabet and still caught my interest. To complete my list, I did some research and was fortunate to receive book recommendations from friends and family. With their suggestions and my own findings, I was able to fill my list with a mix of genres I love.

Since some of the books I selected are part of a series (like Colleen Hoover’s Hopeless series and Holly Jackson’s A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series), I’ve chosen to count the first word of the series title for those letters.

In addition to the A to Z challenge, I’m also reading The Bible by Thomas Nelson. I’ve found a “One Year Bible Reading Plan” that organizes the readings by day, with each day covering a few pages from both the Old and New Testaments. Combining the A to Z challenge with my Bible reading means I have a total of 27 books to tackle this year.

I’m currently reading The Way I Am Now by Amber Smith and really enjoying it so far! It’s a great addition to my reading list, and I’m looking forward to finishing it soon.

I’m planning to read 2-3 books a month to stay on track, though the pace may vary depending on my schedule and the length of the books. Regardless, I’m determined to complete the challenge!

If you’re looking for new books to add to your reading list, feel free to check out my A to Z Reading Challenge list below:

I’m excited to embark on the A to Z Reading Challenge this year and see where it takes me. I hope it inspires you to set your own reading goals and discover new books along the way. If you’re taking on the challenge, what books are on your list? Have you read any of the books on mine? If so, which ones did you enjoy? (No spoilers, please!) I’d love to hear your thoughts and recommendations!