Tuesday, January 21, 2014

A Year of Books in 2013: Part 2

This is part 2 of my 2013 Year in Books Review.  Part 1, which is fascinating and has been nominated for several blog awards, can be found here.

The following is based upon a survey that I stole from the internet.  

How many books read in 2013? 51

Fiction/Non-Fiction ratio?  1 non-fiction, 2 memoirs, 48 works of fiction.  

Male/female authors? 17/34

Favorite book read?  Harriet the Spy.  It was actually an audio book.  The kids and I started listening to books in the car, and it was life-changing.  We would drive somewhere, and they would be quiet.  Silent. And if someone would start to speak, he or she would receive a mighty shush.

I never read Harriet the Spy as a child. It was entertaining, funny, vivid, heartbreaking, and honest.  Caleb liked it so much I bought him the sequel and companion book, and he’s currently halfway through the sequel.

Caleb is in the middle of at least four books:  Harry Potter (the fourth one), Ender’s Game, The Long Secret (Harriet the Spy), and some baseball book.  It drives me crazy.  I just want him to finish a book, and then start the next.  He’s doing it all wrong.

Least favorite?  Breed by Chase Novak.  It was recommended by Stephen King.  I also read Under the Dome by Stephen King.  Neither was any good.  I am losing faith in Stephen King.

Oldest book read?  The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton, 1937  

Newest:  I think The Goldfinch, October 2013

Longest book title? The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton; Beyond the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo

Shortest title? Feed by M.T. Anderson

How many re-reads?  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Most books read by one author this year: Susan Beth Pfeffer.  I binged and read all four books in her young adult series in three days.  

Any in translation?  I started The Infatuations by Javier Marias, but I got bored so I quit.  Because you can do that.

And how many of this year’s books were from the library? 21.  I think my overdue fees probably equal the amount of money I would have spent on books had I purchased instead of borrowing them.

Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t? The Infatuations by Javier Marias, The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud, Paris was the Place by Susan Conley

Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013? The Silent Land by Graham Joyce

Book you read in 2013 that you recommended to people most in 2013? Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, Night Film by Marisha Pessl

Most humorous?  May We Be Forgiven by A.M. Homes

Best series you discovered in 2013?  I don’t generally read series, but I will (shamefully) admit to reading a young adult series by Susan Beth Pfeffer about what happens when an asteroid knocks the moon out of orbit.  It was scientifically preposterous, but I think she laced the prose with crack because I had to see how the thing ended.  

Favorite new author(s) you discovered in 2013? Rainbow Rowell, Leah Stewart, Graham Joyce

Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2013? Night Film by Marisha Pessl

Book You Read In 2013 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?  Fangirl.  I’ve already read it three times.  It’s short and enjoyable.

Most memorable character in 2013? Will Traynor in Me Before You, Levi in Fangirl, David Schickler in The Dark Path, Harriet in Harriet the Spy, Rose Baker in The Other Typist

Most beautifully written book read in 2013?  The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2013?  Autobiography of a Face by Lucy Grealy, Black and Blue by Anna Quindlen

Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2013 to finally read? Harriet the Spy

Shortest and Longest Book You Read In 2013? Night by Elie Wiesel and Under the Dome by Stephen King

Genre You Read The Most From in 2013? Literary Fiction

Best 2013 debut you read?  The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell

Book That Was The Most Fun To Read in 2013?  Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, Night Film by Marisha Pessl

Book That Made You Cry in 2013?  Me Before You by Jo Jo Moyes, The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2013 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2014? Middlemarch by George Eliot

2 comments:

Dad said...

I can't help noticing that there's practically no overlap between what you read in 2013 and what I read, except for Edith Wharton.

Holly said...

My New Year's Resolution is to read more like dad.