Happy last day of the year!
I did this remembrances of books past last year in the exact same format, so I figure why re-invent the wheel. Or, in this case, blog post. Since my favorites always change with my moods, I find it too hard to come up with actual “Best Books of the Year” lists. So this is more of a random sampling of what I read.
For the counts in the first part of the post, I kept last year’s figures (they’re the first numbers in parentheses and in hard-to-read pale blue) just so I could be depressed. Okay, I’m not really depressed (because, hello…I read some LONG ASS books this year, thank you very much Stephen King), but I am surprised by how many more repeat authors there are on the list. I seem to have had a few reading binges. I also thought I spent more time with audio this year, but maybe it’s (again) because of those King books that I spent WEEKS listening to. As always, it was a good year of reading (with a few exceptions, as mentioned below). So, without further ado, I give you…
Books read by Softdrink: (112 in 2011) 89 in 2012
- Female authors: (73) 54
- Male authors: (42) 37
- Non-fiction: (22) 18
- Classics: (18) 9
- Dystopians: (13) – Reclassified this year as Time Travel and/or Fantasy, since I seem to have changed preferred escapist genres: 16
- Repeat authors, within this year only: (5) 10 (Patricia Briggs, Kelley Armstrong, Vivian Swift, Stephen King, Laini Taylor, Cassandra Clare, Gillian Flynn, Anne Bishop, Diana Gabaldon, Sarah Vowell)
- Translations: (5) 2
- Audio books: (11) 9
- Re-reads: (4) 0
- Books set (all or mostly) in other countries: (40) 27
- And new for 2012: Books featuring werewolves and/or vampires: 13 (14 if you count The Count of Monte Cristo, as some people thought he was a vampire ;-D)
Books read by Hamburger: Still 0 (and still amusing myself with this stat)
Favorite Cover(s): Fingerprints of You and The Song of Achilles
Favorite Whole Book Experience: IT (Let’s hear it for the crazy clown posse!)
Favorite Book with the Worst Cover: For the second year in a row, Josh Bazell for the win, this time with Wild Thing
Favorite Non-Fiction Character: Vivian Swift, because I wish I had her artistic talent
Book I Really Wish I Hadn’t Read: Wild
Most Disappointing Book: Also Wild
Book that I’m Glad I Finally Read: The Stand
Book that I’m Not Glad I Finally Read: American Psycho
Book that I’m Glad I Finally Read Again: Yeah, that didn’t happen this year
Favorite Audio Book Experience: 11/22/63
Favorite Author: Stephen King
Book 1 2 in a Series I’m Most Looking Forward to Continuing: Days of Blood and Starlight
Favorite “holy crap (s)he did not just do that” Book: Gone Girl
Least favorite “holy crap (s)he did not just do that” Book: American Psycho
Most Awesomest Narrator: Craig Wasson (see 11/22/63)
Favorite Book Heavily Influenced by Other Books: The Flight of Gemma Hardy
And two new categories:
Author I’m most scared to meet in a dark alley: Bret Easton Ellis
Author who most resembles his main character: Glen Duncan (and probably Bret Easton Ellis, too)
YES YES on 11/22/63!!! Total kick ass was what that was. And so is Vivian Swift!
I’m pretty much convinced I need to not read American Psycho! Plus the twitter stuff: http://www.flavorwire.com/356469/bret-easton-elliss-worst-tweets-of-2012 wasn’t so great either about the author.
American Psycho scares the crap out of me. I really regret seeing the movie back in 2000. I will never touch that book.
I loved the audio of 11/22/63 too!! Happy New Year to you and the bookless Hamburger!
You make me glad I didn’t finish American Psycho. Have a Happy New Year, Jill!
I’ll be getting to 11/22/63 very very soon. I can’t wait! And Andi and I are reading Gone Girl together, starting tomorrow. I have the eels already.
Uh, that should be EEKS, not eels. Damn auto-correct got me after I hit post. *oldladygrumble*
I’m glad you’ve read American Psycho so I don’t have to. That’s the way it works, doesn’t it?
I very much enjoyed your categories and they made me think about the books I read this year — especially the best book with worst cover. Some of those covers are… well, misleading to say the least! I wonder if I might have one for worst book with best cover…..now pondering many permutations of these things!
I’m amusing myself with Hamburger’s stat also. I’ll mention it to Jason so he feels like a big shot (he listend to audio books on his commute).
It was an honor to read It with you and the posse.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the year’s reading!
Here’s my list of Ten Books I Resolve to Read in 2013. I hope you will stop by! And Happy New Year!
Oh, you have me wiping tears of laughter away after your last two stats. BEE is a scary author, isn’t he?
You didn’t enjoy American Psycho just a little bit? A wee bit? Come on, I know you did!
Love theses lists and the wackier the better. I must read American Psych (safer than meeting the author in an alley). Here’s to a Happy 2013!
Oh I loved this. And yeah … I wouldn’t want to meet Bret Easton Ellis in a dark alley. Or in a brightly lit room, for that matter.
So your survey is totally better than the one that I completed…so can we just make yours a thing next year and we’ll all do it?
And seriously? 13 books about warewolves? And IT would have been your favorite audio if you listened to it. Scott is listening to it now and I’m majorly envious. Can’t wait for Shine-On!
Yeah, I don’t think I’d want to meet Ellis in a dark alley either.
I’m with you on American Psycho. I was conflicted for a while after reading it, but eventually I realized that I just plain hated it.
I think my most favorite number is the number of books Hamburger read!
love the list. that’s a good way of taking stock of your past year’s reading.