Hi, I thought I’d do a little introduction since it’s the beginning of a new year and there may be some new faces around here. I’ve had this blog for about 15 years now. I know, I can’t believe it has been that long either. I started this blog as part of an assignment when I was in library school. Social media was just starting to take off and our instructor wanted us to connect using blogs, FriendFeed, and other social media platforms.

I think I may be the only one who still has my blog, although it has undergone a lot of changes over the years. Where I used to blog about assignments, now I write about books coffee, and style with some photography thrown in for fun. So today I’m sharing a little about my reading habits and how I add books to my TBR shelf.
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New year, new reading challenges, am I right? I spend the end of year planning out my reading challenges for the coming year. I look at my favorite authors to see if they have any books coming out {I also look at their backlists for books I may have missed}, I scour my friends’ Instagram pages for suggestions, I visit NetGalley to sign up for new releases, and I look for classic novels on The New York Times Bestseller list to round out my selections. Usually, I set my reading goal at 12 books per year. This number works out well for me, as it doesn’t put too much pressure on me and I don’t feel like I’m rushing through books just to make goal. That being said, more often than not, I’ll read a couple books over my goal.

MY 2025 TBR SHELF

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Below is a small selection of books from my TBR shelf. All the Missing Pieces and Happy Land are the first two books I’ve read and finished for 2025. I’ll be sharing a review soon. But if you can’t wait, you can see a quick review of All the Missing Pieces by clicking here. Both books were provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for a review.

I discovered Frieda McFadden last year and am a new fan. Her characters are just this side of crazy, which totally fascinates me. And the stories are so twisted that I’m hooked from the start. Anyway, I was torn between reading The Housemaid and The Boyfriend, but went with The Housemaid because the call is coming from inside the house and those types of books always hold my interest {carry over from the thrillers I watched as a teen}.

Imitation of Life by Fannie Hurst is going to be the first in my series of classic books to silver screen book reviews. I chose this book because I’m a big fan of the movie {both versions} and have wanted to read the novel for a long time. When my father passed away, the last song played at his funeral was Trouble of the World by Mahalia Jackson, which was a pivotal song in the movie. I felt like this was a message from my dad letting me know that he was OK. So this will also be an emotional read for me.

James and Before I Let Go have received rave reviews on bookstagram, so I had to add them to my list. Both of these books are going to be my new-to-me author reads.

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To see the full list of books I plan to read in 2025, join me on The StoryGraph. The StoryGraph is a cataloging platform for books. It also provides book recommendations and reading statistics with nifty little charts.

IT’S YOUR TURN

What are your 2025 reading goals? How do you choose which books to read? Do you share your reviews and recommendations? I’d love to know where, leave a comment below so I can give you a follow.

BOOKISH THINGS

Bookshop.org – Shop for books selected by me, for you!

NetGalley Professional Reader – I receive free ARCs from NetGalley to review on my blog and share on Instagram.

The StoryGraph – A reading app that shares all the nerdy details of my bookish life.

THANK YOU

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Thank you for stopping by my blog. I hope you enjoyed this post and learned something new. If you like what you read, please consider sharing this post on Facebook or Pinterest. While I pay for many of the items I share on this blog out of my own pocket, some items are gifted to me {I always disclose those items}.

Come back soon,

Daenel T {Living Outside the Stacks}

 

 

 

LET’S CONNECT

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AFFILIATE INFORMATION

As the blogger and photographer behind Living Outside the Stacks, I independently select and write about stuff I love and things I think you’ll enjoy too. Living Outside the Stacks has affiliate and advertising partnerships so I get revenue from sharing this content and from your purchase. Thank you for your support.

Reading and reviewing books brings me a great deal of happiness. If you’re a reader, I’d love for you to visit my online bookstore, Living Outside the Stacks, to make your purchase. If you purchase from my shop, I’ll receive a small commission and you’ll also support indie bookstores. If you need help staying organized, but want to keep it pretty, I invite you to give Artful Agenda a try. It’s a digital planner inspired by paper planners. Use my code: RD1191716. Artful Agenda connects effortlessly to your Google and Outlook calendars and works across devices.