Thursday, December 30, 2010

My year of reading - 2010

I love to read, I love to make lists. I love to collect data. I love spreadsheets and charts.

I love the end of the year because I can take all of my lists and create great spreadsheets and have my entire life documented in charts. Yes, it's a little odd, but it's the way I work.

Here is a brief look at my year of reading.

77 books
Of these books, 61 (79%) came from the public Library and I owned the other 16 (21%).
20 books (26%) were non fiction selections. 57 books (74%) were fictional.
Of the 77 Books, only two (.025%) were abandoned before I finished them.

*In years past, I have owned the vast majority of the books that I read. I had a bit of a book buying addiction. I am pleased with these numbers because my goal was to stop buying books and to use the library. I have saved money and gotten to know the library staff quite well over these last 12 months. Borrowing books makes me feel warm and fuzzy. It makes me feel like a part of a community, a smart shopper, environmentally conscious and supportive of our public services. 

23,495 pages
This translates to 64 pages a day, which is two and a half pages each hour, every day of the year.

72 hours and 24 minutes
This was the amount of time that I spent listening to books in the car. I only listened to five audiobooks this year. (6.5%)

Nook Books
I took the plunge and bought a nook this Spring. Only nine of the books that I read this year were on the Nook. (11%). Of these, four were checked out from the library and five were ebooks that I purchased. I hope to see this number rising as the years pass and the library offers more ebooks.

The battle of the sexes
I tend to read more books written by females than by males. This year I wanted to try to even that out. I did quite well. 35 books (45%) were written by male authors and 42 books (55%) were written by women. 

By the month
 Here is one of the many charts I made this year.
 
Best of the Year

Room by Emma Donoghue
This book was haunting and will stick with my for a long time. 

One Day by David Nicholls
I cannot remember the last time I had such an emotional reaction to a book.

The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall
I'm intrigued by polygamy, I enjoyed reading about it from the husband's point of view.

Into the Forest by Jean Hegland
When Society begins to crumble around them, these two teenage sisters try to survive in their own.

The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York by Deborah Blum 
This is the only non fiction book to make it on my list. It is fascinating.

Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin
Lewis Carroll was an odd man. This story is told by the girl who inspired his Alice books.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett
A must read about slaves in the south in the 1960's. This author has a great voice. I hope to see more from her.





Honorable Mention

A Visit From the Goon Squad  By Jennifer Egan
It's not a novel, nor is it a book of short stories. This book defies categorization. It should be read for that reason alone.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
The Girl who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
The Girl who Kicked the Hornets Nest by Stieg Larsson
 These books were fast paced and exciting. I'm not typically a fan of mysteries, but this series drew me in and kept my interest all the way through.

For a complete listing of the books I have read since 2001, visit my Library Thing profile.

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