This Week’s Topic: My Year in Books - 2017
It has been so much fun checking out everyone's year in books, so I decided to take a look at my own.
Here's what Goodreads had to say:
I guess I should not be surprised that my most popular read was an older book, I just didn't think it would be this one. It is not shocking to see that my average rating is that high. I don't rate books I don't finish, and I don't finish books that I am not enjoying. I have very few 2-star reads and NO 1-star reads, because those were probably DNFed.
Now for the numbers.....
I am a YA blogger, so it's not a shock to see I read a lot of YA books.
And, I read a lot of romance and contemporaries (and a lot of contemporary romances too), but you all knew that already.
This graph really supports the fact that I don't read my own books. I read 352 books and only 22 were from my shelf. This is something I really want to work on this year. I have a lot of great books, and I think somebody should read them.
Again, no great revelations here.
Reading Challenges
I did really well with my reading challenges. Here's a quick look:
- Diverse Reading Challenge - 121 books I read had a main character, who belongs to a diverse group. I also completed 11/12 monthly mini-challenges. I struggled finding a book with a non-western setting, and by the time I did, it was too late.
- Monthly Motif - I completed 12/12 for this one, which is probably why I am doing it again.
- Pop Sugar Reading Challenge - I was able to knock out 36/40 of the prompts. I don't re-read, so that eliminated 2 prompts, and I never got to read the librarian recommendation or the book I bought on a trip. This year's Pop Sugar Challenge was a little too intense, so I passed on it for 2018.
- Alphabet Soup: Crushed it, 26/26. It did get harder towards the end, but it was fun, not stressful.
- Debut Author Challenge: I read 48 debuts. I was really happy with this, and I found so many wonderful authors, who I want to read more from.
- Shelf Love: Ok, so I didn't crush them all. I only read 24 of my own books. I need help.
It was fun looking back, but now I am excited to look forward. For 2018, I would like to:
- Read more of my own books.
- Finish those series!
- Keep reading books that make me happy.
- Balance new releases with old books.
Now it's your turn!
How was your year in books?
Let us know in the comments!
352 books? Teach me your ways, Sam!
ReplyDeleteFirst, you need to get a job far from your house and spend 3 - 3.5 hours a day commuting. Lots of quality reading time.
Delete352 books!? Whoa, you are a reading machine! :O And so happy that your avg. rating's so high--means you read a lot of fabulous books last year. <3 Hope this year's just as fabulous for you, Sam!
ReplyDelete- Aimee @ Aimee, Always
80 of those are audiobooks, which I listen to as I do chores, shop, drive. They are a great way to knock books off your TBR.
DeleteYour numbers amaze me, Sam! I always think it is fun to look at reading stats. I find it very interesting that you read the same number from NetGalley and your library. Very impressive!
ReplyDeleteThe stats are interesting, and now I want to add more columns to my spreadsheet. My library card allowing me access to Overdrive and Hoopla gives me a lot of reading options. All my audiobooks are from the library, and I get my literary fiction reads from there too.
DeleteWOW what a fantastic year for you! so many books and they look like the majority were good. You did a great job with the Popsugar challenge. I failed so hard and am not doing it this year. Happy reading for 2018!
ReplyDeleteThe Popsugar challenge for this year had too many tedious options. I am focusing on series, debuts, and backlist this year.
DeleteWoah, you read so many books! That's amazing. Great job on all of your challenges. I want to focus on my own books more this year too, which is why I'm doing the Beat the Backlist challenge. I figure that will be some extra motivation to do so!!
ReplyDelete-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
If only my reading prowess was a marketable skill. Backlist is something I am going to work on. I read about 30 books a month, and I am trying to make less than half of those review books. This plan may fall apart Sept - Nov, but I will try.
DeleteWow! That's like a book a day! I wish I could read faster (I clocked in at 100 for the year) so I could get to some of these books waiting on my shelves. lol I love how detailed you broke down what you read. I'm really curious on the breakdown of sources for myself.
ReplyDeleteRemember, 80 are audiobooks. I started using a spreadsheet to keep track of my books. It was originally for review books, with they listed by release date, but then I added in all the books I read, and it's easy to sort the data from there.
DeleteWow, you had an incredible reading year! How do you get to so many books?? Great job on your challenges, too!
ReplyDeleteLong commute. Lots of time to read. Audiobooks are great too for when I am driving or shopping or doing chores. I knocked out 80 books via audio.
DeleteHow do you read so much?! That’s amazing! It looks like you had a fantastic reading year. I hope 2018 is just as good.
ReplyDeleteAj @ Read All The Things!
I read a lot of good books. I DNFed a ton too, but I don't talk about those.
DeleteI've been enjoying looking at everyone's year in books too! It's fun to see everything broken down. Also, 352 books?! Wow! I've have had some good reading years, but I don't think I've ever gone above 250. I'm hoping to balance new books with old too this year, and I've been doing a pretty good job so far and discovering some great older books.
ReplyDeleteThese posts have been awesome to read. I love them! Remember, 80 were audiobooks, so I only read 272. I also read a LOT of contemporaries, and they are shorter than most SFF books. I am trying to go 50/50 with the old and new. Maybe have a throwback Nutshell day once a month. I use Hoopla and Overdrive a lot, so I get older books from there. I wasn't reading for many years. I just got back into it in 2013. There are tons of books I want to read pre-2017.
DeleteI should do the Diverse Reading Challenge. I talk a lot about the importance of diverse books and own voices, but every year when I look at my stats, I still read 80% white authors.
ReplyDeleteI liked the Diverse Reading challenge I did last year, but the hosts are not doing it again. I found the one from Platypire Reviews, which does themed months that are more broad. Either way, I am keeping track of books featuring MCs that fall into a diverse group. Now I am curious about the authors. I know I had a bunch of #OwnVoices, but not sure about percentages. I have to investigate this further.
DeleteWow 80 audiobooks! I love audiobooks. I dont use GR anymore but Ive been loving seeng the end of year GR reading stats. Hope your 2018 reading is evwn better.
ReplyDeleteI listen to audiobooks at work, because I don't have to interact with people much. It's fantastic. I listen to them when I do chores and drive too. Contemporary romances are perfect in audio for me, and I love them so much. I like GR, but I did't want to have a million shelves. The spreadsheet gave me more ways to analyze my reading.
DeleteI've read 'A court of wings and ruin' on my Kindle and I enjoyed it so much that I didn't even realize it was so long, wow! And oh my, 352 books, you're like a bookish guru! :)
ReplyDeleteThere are so many books I would not have read if I had read the physical book. I am intimidated by big books, but ignorance is bliss when I read from my kindle.
DeleteThis comment made me smile. My goal was 5 books a week, which is about what I read. It was the audiobooks that put me over. I like being able to look back and see how I read. This past year was the first time I did it, and it was interesting. I even added more columns to this year's spreadsheet. I am trying to go 50/50 on old and new books. Non-review books give me that breather from having to write a full on review and sometimes I need that. That is why my TBR each week will have a mix of ARCs and shelf/library books.
ReplyDeleteWow! You had quite the reading year! :)
ReplyDeleteLots of good stuff to talk about.
DeleteGreat recap!! I love that your longest book was 707 pages!!
ReplyDeleteI think that is why I don't read too many fantasy novels, lol.
Delete352 books? How did you do that? =O It's an amazing number! Congratulations on reading so many books Sam. Also, congrats on doing so well on your challenges.
ReplyDeleteHappy readings! ;)
Tânia @MyLovelySecret
Reading is a great distraction from my tiresome commute.
Delete352 books! You're a reading machine, woman! Although if I had your commute my number would probably go up, too. :) Wow, the graph showing the source of your books is interesting. Very few of your own books and a ton from NG and the library. My year is going to be devoted to reading my own books off my own shelves (and Kindle). Not exclusively, but I'm so over ignoring my own books for new releases that turn my head or for arcs. No more, I say! :)
ReplyDeleteI like reading on my Kindle, because I can control the font size and white space. My eyes are terrible, and a lot of the physical books I have are printed in fonts that are too small and serifs bug me too. I was kind of ashamed that I read so few of my own books. I get distracted by the new and pretty books too easily. Yet, I keep buying books. Gonna change that this year.
DeleteYour numbers are NUTS :) you will never cease to impress me, Sam!!
ReplyDeleteYou know, reading keeps me out of trouble. 😝
DeleteI wish I could read that many books. You are my idol! Love your list and your stats. It's probably a good thing you read more ebooks than physical books because at your book-reading rate, you wouldn't have any room to walk in your house if you had that many physical books hanging around!
ReplyDeleteRebecca @ The Portsmouth Review
Physical books are hard for me with all my eye issues, but I also have a things about clutter. Although I admire all the Bookstagram pictures, I prefer ebooks. My Kindle keeps me sane during my commute and calm during all the delays.
DeleteWow you read a lot, especially considering one book was 700 pages! And you killed it with your challenges! Esp the diverse reading one. Your graphs were interesting to see :-) I also read mostly ebooks (no surprise for me either)!
ReplyDeleteMy longest books are always SFF books. Maybe that's why I don't read so many of them. 😝 Contemporaries tend to be quick reads (300 - 400 pages), and with my commute, I can knock a book like that out in one day. Making all those graphs was sort of fun. I used to teach science, and I was always a sucker for a good plot. Ebooks are easier for me when I travel and with my eyes. I also don't have space for that many books in my home. I think I am still a "real" reader though.
DeleteI thought I read a lot, but I can't hold a candle to you! Love these stats posts!
ReplyDeleteNicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
I don't do all the things you do. A long commute and an empty nest gives me lots of time to read.
Delete