I didn't think I was going to attempt my own book journal this year. 2025 was such a failure that I ended up throwing it away and that is not like me.
Then I ended up buying a book journal because there was a misprint and I was able to get a B5 size for around $12. But there are pages for reviewing books and I'm not writing that much.
My brain was back to no reading journal for 2026.
Until the two year-long reading challenges I planned to participate were released in December and I was like, I totally need a reading journal.
The picture of the reading journal cover page to the left is from 2025, BTW. It's the one I threw away. I couldn't share pictures of my 2026 reading journal because, well, I haven't made it yet.
I know! I need to get on it. Soon.
The issue? I create a lot of the things I use in my sticker making machine's software, and because I'm not good at this, it takes some time for me to get it done. I haven't felt like doing it, and the few times I thought, maybe I can do it today, it was gray and cloudy. The sticker cutter needs lots of light to read the registration marks and there are times even on sunny days that I need to hold my phone with its flashlight on to get the thing to cut.
This year, I'm going to make changes. For one thing, I'm going to do two books per page instead of one. That's where my journal got ugly, trying to decorate the rest of the page. But this will eliminate that. I will only have room for a book cover and a little room to write down information and a review. If I have stickers that will go with it, fine. Otherwise, the book cover is all the art I'll use.
No bingo boards this year. I hardly remembered I had them in 2025. Also, this book journal will not be limited to one year. If I don't fill it in 2026, I will use it in 2027. Because of this, I'm planning to add calendars and keep track of what I read by month.
I'm debating whether to put the book challenge icons/information in the same section with my review rather than a whole separate section. I need to decide before I start the book journal.
Hopefully, I don't mess everything up again this year. Stay Tuned.
