I've been keeping track of how many books I've read each year for the past nine years. The lowest amount was back in 1999 with a total of 42. The best year was 2003 with a total of 88, but that included the books I gave up on. I have no idea what the true number was. Last year I read 73, but gave up on another 17, so that beats 2003 with a total of 90. Are you bored yet? ;)
Here are my stats for 2007:
Books Read - 58
DNF - 9
Male Authors - 19
Female Authors - 39
New-To-Me Authors - 24
Audio - 2
Fiction - 40
Nonfiction - 18
Classics - 0
Poetry - 3
Young Adult - 7
Sci-Fi - 0
Fantasy - 4
Horror - 2
Romance - 0
Humor - 1
Travel - 2
Memoir - 6
Culinary - 3
Mystery/Thriller - 6
Re-read - 4
Mine - 38
Borrowed - 20
I'm surprised there weren't any classics in the list this year... or Sci-Fi. While I borrowed quite a few, I'm happy to note that the majority came from my own shelves. Of course, I probably added that many new books (if not more) back to my stacks.
In no particular order, other than the only perfect 5/5 heading the list, here are my favorites of the year:
Click on the title to be re-directed to the review within my blog.
Dispatches From the Edge by Anderson Cooper (5/5)
Lottery by Patricia Wood (4.75/5)
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (4.75/5)
The Good Guy by Dean Koontz (4.5/5)
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides (4.5/5)
Dreamcatcher by Stephen King (4.5/5)
Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill (4.5/5)
Twilight by Stephanie Meyer (4.5/5)
Julie & Julia by Julie Powell (4.5/5)
I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron (4.5/5)
One True Thing by Anna Quindlen (4.5/5)
On Rue Tatin: Living and Cooking in a French Town by Susan Hermann Loomis (4.5/5)
iPod: The Missing Manual by J.D. Biersdorfer (4.5/5)
More like a Top Thirteen than a Top Ten.
Favorite Character: Perry (from Lottery)
Best Young Adult Fiction: Twilight
Most Humorous: I Feel Bad About My Neck
Scariest: Tied between Heart-Shaped Box and Dreamcatcher
Most Disappointing: Dream When You're Feeling Blue; Birth House; Brother Odd
New-To-Me Authors to Watch: Patricia Wood, Joe Hill, Will North and Kelly Corrigan
Good picks. I'll FINALLY be getting started on One Thousand Splendid Suns this month. Gosh, it takes me forever to finish books...
ReplyDeleteA great list. I have several of your Bests on my TBR. I can't wait to read Heart Shaped Box!! I'm almost done with Great Expectations for the Year of Reading Dangerously, so I should start HSB soon. Whee!
ReplyDeleteGood list, Les. I have several of your top reads on my shelves or in my closet. I'll have to move them up the list.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering if it'd be okay to do this challenge but just 6 books in the year.
ReplyDeleteI read a lot more books from my stacks than library books but I didn't take into account how many books I purchased in the year! This time I'm totally doing that.
ReplyDeleteYay you for getting in 3 poetry books. I had 0 this year. bah.
My list of bests is up now.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you had a pretty good year. Quantity isn't everything, at least that's what I tell myself.
You might not have read any classics but well done on the poetry. I haven't even tried to read any for quite some time.
Here's wishing you a new year full of great reads! :)
Mary Kate - You are in for a great read! (By the way, thanks for linking me to your blog. Hope I don't embarrass myself with any mistakes!)
ReplyDeleteAndi - I'm so slow here. I already know that you've started Heart-Shaped Box. Isn't it amazing?! I have his collection of short stories to read sometime in the future. I know Nancy liked a lot of them, so I'm excited to read more by JH. Did you know his dad has a new book coming out? It's called Duma King and it's due out this month. Wonder if it'll be any good.
Kay - Yes! Get them out of that closet and on to your nightstand! :)
ilovemyman70 - I don't see why not. Thanks for stopping by. I'll have to pop over and check out your blog.
Iliana - I'm trying not to buy too many books this year. Actually, believe it or not, I don't buy too many books anymore. Most are from my mom, friends, comps/ARC, etc. I have tons from when I lived in TX, working at Borders. I used to go to Half-Price Books every weekend. Oh ya, I did buy a few on our vacations this summer... Gotta get to those this year!
I'm going to try to read more poetry this year. Every once in a while, I stumble on a great poem. Ted Kooser is doing a book signing at our store next month, so I'll have to snag a copy of his new book (Valentines) before then.
Nat - See my note above to Iliana about the poetry.
I'm going to work hard on reminding myself that it's quality, not quantity. Here's to a great year of reading.
Oh good, I've got some of these books sitting on the shelves just waiting to be picked up. I believe some were chosen based on your reviews. It's always good to know there are some great books to look forward to.
ReplyDeleteFramed - Always happy to help add to your TBR stacks. :) Enjoy!
ReplyDelete