If you’re anything like me, you’ve got a To Be Read list a mile and a half long. You also probably bump books lower on the list when more intriguing ones catch your attention, or pick up books that aren’t anywhere on your list at all to be read first. I’ve had books on my list for years that I still haven’t gotten around to reading yet because I get distracted by other books. So is there any hope for us to tackle our To Be Read piles? Will we ever reach the end?

Probably not. But we can try to knock some out!

Read Shorter Books First

You’ll be amazed at how quickly you’ll breeze through the smaller books and then you’ll have time to tackle the larger tomes at the end of your list. Plus, if you’re participating in a yearly book challenge — like the one on Goodreads — you’ll read more books faster!

Prioritize Your List

Are you really going to read those classics you should have read in school but never got around to it? I promise your ninth grade English teacher will never find out! Also, the longer the book has been on your list, the least likely you are to ever read it. Cross it off your list for now; you can always go back and add it again!

Don’t Buy Any Books

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve bought a book with every intention to read it right away, but something else distracts me and it winds up on the back of the bookshelf. Take advantage of the Library’s physical collection and digital collection on OverDrive. So even if you don’t get around to reading the book, you didn’t waste any money on it!

Check Your List Often

This is an easy one for me because I use Goodreads, which allows users to add books to a Want to Read shelf, as well as shelves that show Completed books, Currently Reading, Favorites, and more. I will periodically go through my Want to Read shelf and read the little synopses of books I had added and delete those that don’t catch my attention anymore. You can look up book blurbs and go through your own pile or list to decide what stays and what goes.

Listen To Audiobooks

Do you have a long commute? Is it hard to do chores in silence? Instead of cranking up mindless music, download some audiobooks that you’ve been meaning to read. This still counts as reading the book! You can always pause or go back to a section if your mind wandered and you forgot what you were listening to (guilty). You can knock out twice as many books this way.

If none of this works, I fully support your decision to quit your job and become a hermit so that you’ll have all the time in the world to read the mountain of books on your list that seems to get higher and higher with each passing day.

Happy Reading!