I had a really good year of reading in 2025. I surpassed my Goodreads goal of 60 books, completed a couple of reading challenges with other bloggers (20 Books of Summer and Nonfiction November), in addition to two personal challenges (A Year of Elizabeth Strout and A Year of Maggie O'Farrell). I discovered several new authors and am eager to read more from their backlists. I don't have any goals for 2026 other than to read more from my own stacks, especially those books that are over 400 pages.
Now for the fun stats!
Total Books Read: 67
Print Books: 56
Audiobooks: 11
ebooks: 0
Female Authors: 55
Male Authors: 12
New-To-Me Authors: 21
Fiction: 54
Nonfiction: 13
General Fiction: 36
Classics: 0
Poetry: 0
Historical Fiction: 5
Horror: 0
Science Fiction/Fantasy: 2
Time Travel: 0
Dystopia: 0
Mystery/Thrillers: 10
Westerns: 0
Epistolary: 1
Childrens: 0
Young Adult: 0
Memoir: 9
Travel/Food: 1
Nature/Science: 1
Essays: 0
Rereads: 7
Debuts: 6
Over 400 pages: 6
Over 500 pages: 2
Over 600 pages: 1
ARCs: 7
Borrowed from Library: 10
Borrowed: 2
From My Stacks: 48
Total Pages Read: 19,410
Total Hours Listened: 128 hours and 23 minutes
Backlist: 56
Published in 2025: 10
To Be Published in 2026: 1
Ratings:
5 stars: 6
4.5 stars: 17
4 stars: 18
3.5 stars: 13
3 stars: 7
2 stars: 6
Top Picks of 2025 (5 stars):
The Guest Book by Sarah Blake
All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell
A Far-flung Life by M. L. Stedman
Honorable Mentions:
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn
So Far Gone by Jess Walter
The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
Tin Man by Sarah Winman
Beyond That, the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
The Names by Florence Knapp
Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
The Song of Hartgrove Hall by Natasha Solomons
We Spread by Iain Reid
Three Days in June by Anne Tyler
Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout
Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout
Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout
Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout
I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O'Farrell
Memorial Days by Geraldine Brooks
Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
The Next Day by Melinda Gates
The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan
Very nice statistics! You did well and enjoyed your reading year. I'm reading Beyond That, The Sea right now for a book group meeting in a couple of weeks. Enjoying it very much and will go back and read your review of it. Not sure how some will feel about the rotating point of view, but I'm fine with it. And, no, I didn't know that children were sent to the US during the war. Think this is a good one especially as it is the author's debut novel. I'll be reading The Correspondent and Frozen River for book groups later this spring. Good luck with this year's reading!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kay. It's always fun to tabulate my year-end stats. I think Beyond That, the Sea is one I'll re-read in the coming years. Same with Frozen River. My book group is reading The Correspondent this year, so I'll either re-read the print edition or try the audio. So far, this year's reading is going very well!
DeleteI recommended both The Correspondent and The Names to my book club, and now they are on our list of books to read this year.
ReplyDeleteEncyclopedia of an Ordinary Life is a book I have loved so much ever since I read it. It makes me happy that Rosenthal wrote that book and others before she passed away at a young age.
Deb, my book group plans to read The Correspondent and The Names this year, too. I'm happy since it gives me a reason to read them a second time. Yay!!
DeleteI really enjoyed Rosenthal's book, and found so many relatable subjects that I marked with sticky notes. I decided to send the book to my daughter (also an Amy, who wrote her name exactly as the author when she was in grade school - loved that image in the book) and she loved reading all the parts I marked for her enjoyment. It's definitely a gem!
Such a fantastic list of favorites and runners up! There are a bunch on there that I also loved. For 2026, I hope to read The Marriage Portrait and All the Colors of the Dark, and
ReplyDeleteThanks, Helen. I had a really good year of reading. So far, 2026 is pretty good in that regard, too. You're in for such a treat with The Marriage Portrait and All the Colors of the Dark. Both are outstanding!
DeleteI like seeing your lists & stats. A great reading year! Especially since you read a lot of long books. Some on your Honorable List I like the most. That's packed. I like that we overlap in our reading quite a bit which is fun. I wish you another great year in 2026.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Susan. I'm trying not to shy away from long books this year. Winds of War is on my nightstand and I'm really enjoying dipping into every day. I have another book going at the same time, which helps me feel like I'm not making much progress as the days pass. We did have a lot of overlap in our reading, didn't we? Fun to chat about books with you! Stay well.
DeleteWow lots of honorable mentions. Let's see where we line up: I am preparing to start The Correspondent today or tomorrow. Glad to know you liked it. // I liked The Marriage Portrait but not as much as Hamnet. I also liked/loved I AM I AM, I AM. I think about that book all the time. I understand she has a new book coming out in 2026. // We just finished SO FAR GONE and loved it. So well done and set in my state! // I;ve been thinking about rereading PROJECT HAIL MARY before the movie comes out. BUt it is hard to reread when there are so many other books I haven't read yet. // ENCYCLOPEDIA OF A COMMON LIFE is so charming. It breaks my heart that the author died so young. Have you read her TEXTBOOK? // Elizabeth Strout is a favorite author of mine, too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your wonderful comment, Anne. I hope you enjoy The Correspondent as much as I did. It's been hyped quite a bit, so I know expectations can be super high for the book. Yes, I'm excited about O'Farrell's new release this year. I also want to read more by Jess Walters. I have Beautiful Ruins on my shelf, where it's been lurking for years. I probably won't reread PHM before the movie since I just listened to it. I retain a lot more when I listen to a book... I haven't read Textbook, but if you recommend it, I'll seek out a copy! Thanks again for the chatty comment. It's comments like yours and others that makes blogging so worthwhile!
DeleteWhat a great reading year you had, Les! I really enjoyed The Rose Code last year as well. I am sure it would be among my top ten. I had planned to read Colors of the Dark with my mystery book club, but my mom died around that time and I just didn't manage it. Perhaps I will try to read it this year. I do hope to get to the The Correspondent as that one really appeals to me as well. I'm pretty sure Small Things Like These is on the list for my fiction book club this year. I am glad to see it was one you enjoyed. I hope you have a great reading year this year, Les, and a great year overall.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Wendy. I really enjoyed my year of reading in 2025. The Rose Code was so good, and I'm looking forward to The Briar Club later this year. I hope you can get to All the Colors of the Dark, as it's very good. And The Correspondent is such a lovely read. That might be more uplifting for you right now. Again, I am so sorry about your mum. Losing a parent is one of life's most difficult challenges. Big hugs to you.
DeleteThat does look like a terrific year of reading!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed The Rose Code and Project Hail Mary. I'm waiting to get a library copy of The Frozen River. I'll have to consider some of these others, too.
Joy, it was a wonderful year of great books! You're in for a treat when you read The Frozen River. It's well done!
DeleteYou've given me some great suggestions for this year. I love your round-ups because you take such time with the lists and reviews. I note my favorites in my planners, as I always write what I am reading in the margins and note if it's a buddy read, or worthy of a star, or any comments I want to remember.
ReplyDelete