You may be wondering why I want to keep track of all the books I read to my children.
I started recording the books I read to the kids in a basic Excel document in January 2015 – alphabetical by author and title of the book. I also I added the date we finished the book and my own personal rating since the kids aren’t old enough to give their ratings.
I know you may be thinking, that sounds great, but what’s the advantage? Well, I started keeping track because at the time I was reading lots of books and I found it hard to remember which ones the kids and I liked most. Since I stared tracking our reading I’ve found other, unexpected advantages:
- It’s clear where my current reading has been lacking or thriving.
- It’s makes it a whole lot easier to recommend books to others. By keeping track, I can just refer back to my handy-dandy list. Or better yet, refer them to my blog.
- I am able to see how our reading has evolved over time.
- It’s easier to set reading goals for the kids and for myself.
- I can see what types of books the kids enjoyed the most based on the topics of each book and the rating assigned.
- It gives me insight to the changes I’ve made in my life life based on my reading choices. I love being reminded of what’s made me think, made me cry, made me change.
- I enjoy being able to see metrics on my own reading. What portion of fiction books do I read verses nonfiction? What was the longest book I read this year? Is any of this information life-saving? No, but it’s fun for me. 🙂
Now that I have this blog in place I’ll be able to record the books I read as well as the books I read to the kids.
Your turn: How do you keep track of books that you read or books you read to your children? Feel free to share in the comments.
