Conquest of PagesReading challenge ideas to try this year
A good challenge nudges you toward books you would not pick on your own and gives the year a shape. A bad one turns reading into homework. Here are ideas for both ambitious and gentle readers, and how to choose one you will finish.
Challenges about how much
- A book a month. Twelve books is a generous, sustainable goal for many people, and finishing it feels good.
- A book a week. Fifty-two books is a real commitment; shorter books, audiobooks and novellas make it practical.
- A page goal. Count pages instead of titles — it rewards the long classic as much as the quick read.
- A daily minimum. Ten pages a day adds up to thousands over a year without ever feeling like much.
Challenges about what
- Read around the world. A book by an author born in each of the 195 countries. It never really ends, and it is the best way to find voices you would otherwise miss. Start from a continent: Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Oceania.
- Read in translation. Choose a number of books originally written in another language, and read the translator's note.
- The alphabet. One book for each letter, by title or by author surname.
- The classics. A short list of the older books you have always meant to read, one per month.
- Genre bingo. A grid of genres you do not usually read — poetry, memoir, science, a mystery — and a book for each square.
- An author's complete works. Pick a writer you loved and read everything, in order.
- Series, finished. The trilogy sitting half-read on your shelf.
How to choose one you will finish
- Aim a little lower than your hopes. You can always read more; a goal you abandon in March teaches you nothing.
- Pick one challenge, maybe two. A “how much” goal and a “what” goal together work well.
- Make progress visible. A tracker with a chart, a streak or a map keeps a challenge alive when motivation dips.
- Allow swaps. If a book on the list bores you, replace it. The challenge serves you, not the other way round.
Conquest of Pages is built for exactly this: a yearly goal, a read-around-the-world tracker with suggestions, and a globe that fills in as you go.