January is my favorite reading month. The holidays are over, the house is quiet, the kids are back in school, and there is absolutely no reason to feel guilty about sitting down with a book for a few hours. This is my time and I protect it fiercely.
I have been a reader my whole life -- it is part of why I became a teacher. Books were always a safe place for me and I want that for my students too. There are books in my classroom that I bought with my own money specifically because I wanted certain kids to have access to certain stories. That is a whole other post.
What I Finished This Winter
I read three books in January alone, which felt like a personal triumph given the school year was fully underway. Some of that reading happened at normal hours and some of it happened significantly past when I should have been asleep. Worth it every time.
I gravitate toward thrillers in winter. Something about the cold and the dark makes a good suspenseful read feel exactly right. I also worked through one book that a colleague had been recommending to me for months and I am now recommending it to everyone I know.
The Nightstand Situation
My nightstand stack is a legitimate source of gentle concern for my husband. I currently have four books in various states of being read, which he finds baffling and I find completely reasonable. Different books for different moods. This is not complicated.
The Reading Nook
I have a dedicated reading spot in our bedroom -- a chair in the corner with a side table, a lamp, and a blanket situation that has gotten slightly out of hand but that I fully endorse. Creating a space that is specifically for reading makes you actually use it. It signals to your brain: this is what we do here.
Carmy would like everyone to know that this chair is also available to him and he uses it whenever I am not in it. He is correct that it is a very good chair.
Getting the Kids to Read
A is a reader like me -- she goes through books fast and has genuinely good taste. P will read if I find exactly the right book for him, which takes some effort but is very satisfying when it lands. E has always had a book or two going and carries that into college with her. I am proud of all of them for this.
We have bookshelves in the living room accessible to everyone. Keeping books visible and present matters. Kids read what is around them.
What Is Coming
I am going to start sharing more book recommendations here because people ask me what I am reading more than almost anything else. More on that in the coming months.
Happy reading, everyone. January is the best month for it.
-- Christin Marie