I’m a planner. I love lists, schedules, menus. I love having goals to tick off and challenges to complete.

In fact, the more, the better!

Since this is a new year and all, I signed up for a reading challenge: 52 books in 52 weeks. I started strong with a theology book (Tim Keller’s The Reason for God) and some kids’ books (Septimus Heap and The Mysterious Benedict Society). I was bogged down for over a week in Your Child’s Growing Mind, but finished up today with a chapter on encouraging the kidlets’ creativity. Good stuff, there.

Now to choose the next book.

In my library bag are:

• tons of picture books (alas, those don’t count even though I spend about an hour a day reading them aloud)
• Mister Monday and Grim Tuesday by Garth Nix
• The Good Earth by Pearl Buck
• Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World by Mark Kurlansky

My reading is all over the place, but I’m trying to make sure to hit a few categories this year: American history (this is an ongoing course of study!), theology (I’m in a book discussion group focused on this topic), education (methods, philosophy, anything and everything that’ll help me be a better teacher), books about or set in other cultures and countries, and, of course, continuing to read widely in the spec fic genre.

And I’m leaving lots of room wide open for recommendations, books that catch my eye and the following of rabbit trails.

Do you have any books to recommend?