My 2025 Reading List Em For Marvelous

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Nov 2, 2025, 9:42 AM

After a very successful 2023 list (20/24, by far the closest I’ve come to completing one), I faltered a bit in 2024, finishing 16 of 24. Part of that was due to the library holds system – The Power of Moments just arrived, and I’ve been waiting weeks for Delicious! and The Measure to be delivered – but I suspect I also fell victim to a defect I noticed in 2022: placing books on the list that I wasn’t absolutely chomping at the bit... That’s the bar I’m using this year (absolutely chomping at the bit to read), and I’m also making one other change: I’m putting some of the books I’m most eager to tear into in... If I get to them sooner? That’s quite alright.

I’m guessing I’ll just be grateful to have read them at all :) (If you’re new, this is the very lowest-key of book clubs: I consider it a delightful exercise in thoughtfully planning my reading a year at a time (12 fiction, 12 non-fiction), and though I’m... January:The Unmaking of June Farrow | I love a well-done time travel escapade and this 2024 NYT bestseller, set in North Carolina and recommended by Janssen, has all the makings of a hit: “a... February:Gilead | This Pulitzer Prize winner has come recommended from many different sources over the years, and not always ones that I’d guess would appreciate a book about a pastor in the 1950’s.Adorning the... I’m looking forward to reading my first offering from Andrew Peterson. It’s time for the 12th edition of my annual reading list.

I like to put together the list as way to document my reading goals for the year and to collect any suggestions or recommendations you might have based on the types of books I... Similar to recent years, I’m maintaining two lists. The first list is my fun reads, which are generally fictional works from the science fiction genre. I read these books for entertainment, although there are distinct reasons why the list leans towards science fiction that you can read about here. My morning reads is the list that I use for learning. The themes are primarily personal development, health and wellness, and business.

The guidelines I use to comprise each of these lists are included at the end of this post. My ‘Want to Read’ list on Goodreads had 205 books on it to start the year which, believe it or not, is an improvement from last year when there over 220 books on it. I generally read about 30 books in a year – 20 from my fun reads and 10 from my morning reads. I’ve trimmed the overall number of books in my queue by being more selective in what I add to it. While I create and use the lists to guide my reading, I’m don’t rigidly adhere to them. If a strong recommendation or new title comes up, it could jump the queue if I find it interesting.

Each year, there are a couple of titles that I like to try and revisit. It’s a good way to reinforce the key concepts I took away the first (or last) time I read it. I didn’t do a good job of this last year, but I’d like to revisit at least one or two off this list in 2025. A record of my reading in 2025. This is a page to keep track of what I read (and what I don’t finish) in 2025. I read 30 books in in 2024, so I’m hoping to at least match that.

It’s the New Year, which means it’s time for me to set some goals for the year. So today, I wanted to set up my reading goal and share my current TBR list. Last year, I managed to read 53 books. My goal was to read 50, so I ended 2024 with three books over, which I’m happy about! That’s an extra book on top of reading one a week, and that’s pretty good for me. I’ve seen posts on social media and blogs of readers who were able to read hundreds of books in 2024, which is mind-blowing to me.

I wish I could read more than a hundred books in a single year, but my dyslexia and the busyness of my personal life limits the amount of books I can finish. I will comfortably read a book a week, which works out perfectly for my weekly book review. I do want to push myself, however, so I’m setting my 2025 reading goal at 55 books. I want to make sure to set a realistic goal, and aiming for 55 books means I’ll have to read just a smidge more than a book a week. As for what I want to read, here is my TBR list that I’ll be working through for the year: It’s been a while since I’ve made a reading list for myself (the last one was in 2017!), so I thought I’d make one for 2025.

For this reading list, I tried to pick a mix of books I haven’t read before, as well as some I’ve been interested in re-reading; fiction and nonfiction. There’s also a mix of all sorts of genres; prose and graphic novels; and new and old books. Energy levels permitting, I plan to post reviews throughout the year for each book I read from this list, too. So, without further ado, here’s my (alphabetized) list of books I plan to read in 2025! Anyone who knows me knows that I read way more than 25 books in a year, so you may be wondering why this list is so short. The answer?

I want to leave room for impulsivity and flexibility for when my brain needs a break from an assigned list, so I can pick up whatever books I want at the library or in... Also… I have a much longer list of books that I own but haven’t read yet, and I *also* plan to read many of them this year: I usually own somewhere between 25 and 40 books that I haven’t read at any given time. I tend to go through approximately 30-50 books from this category in a calendar year. If you end up reading any of these books, too, please share what you think! Helloooo!

We’re already a week into 2025 and I’m already buzzing with excitement about all of the good books ahead! Below is a list of 25 books (of the 36) I plan to read this year, broken down into four categories - new books, books I’m currently reading, books I’ve read before (and am... As a reminder (and helpful tip!), I try to utilize the library as much as possible. I think libraries are one of the greatest gifts and are far too underutilized. I mostly request and read books from the library first (either physical books, or via Libby or Hoopla), then, if they’re 5-star reads, I sometimes buy the book to have as part of my... This helps cut down on costs, keeping reading as free + fun as possible.

I encourage you all to become BFF’s with your local library, too! Also, it’s worth noting that if I start a new book and it’s vulgar, super raunchy, repetitive or straight up just doesn’t resonate or sit right with me, even mid-way through, I’ll stop reading... I think that’s what keeps reading special and enjoyable for me. I’m not the kind of reader who has to see a book through to the end to say I read it or to see if it gets better. There are far too many amazing books out there to waste time reading through ones that don’t keep us captivated or challenged, amiright?! So, #dontsettleforbadbooks, okay?

New Books on the Block (books I’ve never read): 4. The Maid’s Secret - Nita Prose (coming April 2025) Check back as I update this reading list often! Just about every week, I add new books I’ve accepted for review or titles I can’t resist, as well as a few backlist titles squeezed in where I can. I also update the list to include links to my reviews as they go live.

This list includes some backlist titles that I’ve read recently and plan to post reviews for this year. For the last few years, I’ve been breaking my reading list down into categories. Click one of the headings below to go directly to my reading list in that category. Note: This list contains affiliate links which do not cost anything for you to use. They help support the work I do here. Thanks for using them to do your shopping!

Published January 7, 2025 | My Review to Come Make sure to use my affiliate code PLANWITHEMM10 to save 10% at Archer and Olive. There’s nothing more satisfying to me than a big stack of books on my nightstand! At the beginning of the month, I gather titles from my TBR shelf and just pile them right on up. So it’s fitting that we make a book stack for the year to come with one caveat... They haven’t been released yet!You might be wondering - well if they haven’t been released yet, how am I supposed to know about them?

This bit can take a little bit of research but will make sure that you’re in the know about upcoming releases from your favorite authors. Here’s what I do:1. Make a list of authors who wrote my favorite reads (either from the last year or of all time)2. Head over to Goodreads and check out their profile. There’ll be a list of all of their titles, which you can then sort by publication year to see what new books are coming out soon. You might also find a recent release that you haven’t read yet, but we’ll save that for a later spread..3.

If there isn’t anything on Goodreads yet, you may want to check out the author’s social media. This is where you’ll get the earliest news of an upcoming publication, title or cover reveal, or any preorder incentives. Stores like Barnes & Noble will often offer 25% sales on preorders, so it helps to know what you want to order ahead of time! 4. Add the title to your list, then rinse and repeat!Now that we have our list, we have to make our stack. This can be as small or as large as you’d like, based on the number of anticipated reads you have.

All we’re going to do now is draw books one at a time until we have a completed stack. Drawing a book only takes two shapes: the straight lines for the cover and 2 slightly curved lines for the ends. You can experiment with the thickness of your book, how curved you want the ends to be, etc. You can also add some embellishments to the stack by coloring in the spines, lettering your titles, or adding fun doodles. Once I’ve made my list of reads, I plan to mimic the cover’s lettering on the spine! You could also wait to color in the spine until you’ve read the title, or add a cute little check mark off to the side.

My 2025 Reading List Em For Marvelous

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