UPDATE: You can now find all the details for the MEN'S companion reading challenge here. Wrangle your husband into doing the challenge with you or send to a man in your life who might want to dig into some amazing Gospel-Centered books. 

Reading is one of the best ways that I invest in myself, in my homemaking, and in my spiritual life. But with four little munchkins and one on the way, it can be really tough to find the time to read (and to find books that are actually worth the time)! 

Jason and I are both avid readers and love to do so, but if we don't plan to make time for reading (and put together reading lists) then it just doesn't happen. I've been thinking about my reading goals and lists for 2017 this month and just came across Tim Challies' 2017 Reading Challenge late last week. 

Listen to the Podcast:

Listen in to my podcast episode from this week to find out more about why I developed this reading plan, tips for following along, and the reasoning behind the books and categories I chose. Or skip the podcast and head down below for all the info :) 

And don’t forget to subscribe to my podcast in iTunes. 

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

On Friday night, Jason and I sat down with a pen and paper and started mapping out the books we would read to follow along with this reading challenge. We are doing the highest reading tier which is 104 books in the year (yes, we are crazy)! 

But as I started writing out the categories and trying to pick books, I realized that I was going to be fitting into books that I really didn't interest me and leave no extra time for other Christian books I knew I wanted to read. 

I'm ALL for broadening my reading horizon, which is why I was so excited about this new reading challenge idea. But in my busy life and schedule, I just don't have the time for some of the categories: read a book that won a prize, a book of poetry (poetry so does not speak to me), a graphic novel, a book of comics, etc. 

So then I started thinking about this wonderful community here on my blog and that while I'm putting together this reading challenge, since I'm going to go off of it anyway and create my own, that you might want to follow along with me! 

So I sent out a quick email to my weekly newsletter ladies and got hundreds of responses that you would love to join a reading challenge if I created it geared towards Christian women. And thus, my 2017 Christian Reading Challenge was born. Ready to jump in? 

Please note: Jason (my hubby) is putting together a companion lists for men. So if you're husband wants to follow along the reading challenge with you, stay tuned for that list coming tomorrow or download the free toolkit to get access to it immediately. 

2017 Christian Reading Challenge for Women

Here's how it works: 

I have given you category suggestions for each book as well as my book recommendation. I personally recommend all of these books and tried to think about the very best books I recommend all women read. If you've already read that book or simply want a different suggestion, scroll down and you will find more book recommendations for each category (OR feel free to choose any of your own books). 

Then download and/or print off the reading list to follow along. 

A note about fiction: This list does not include any fiction. I LOVE reading fiction and read many fiction books throughout the year. However, since this is for entertainment and relaxation for me, I don't need to add these in as reading goals. When we are on vacation, or I have more down time (like during Christmas), I read a lot more fiction. But I'm already prone to being lazy and reaching for a fiction book more than a ...