This past year was the first time I have ever kept track of my reading statistics. I didn’t break it down by category/genre/gender as some people do, but I did find it rather interesting to see how I did this year. I do like comparisons, so I can only imagine that next year’s information will be even more interesting as I will be able to compare my year-over-year performance. It’s the accountant in me; just go with it.
Anyway, here’s how I stacked up this year:
- 197 books read, of which 35 were audiobooks
- 54,551 pages total
- 18.41 days spent listening to audiobooks
- 150.28 average pages read per day, or approximately 0.54 books read per day
- 57 percent of the books read were review copies
As for what I read, while it was review-copy heavy, 2011 was an excellent year in books. Here is a list of my favorites for the year:
- The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy (audiobook)
- Paper Towns by John Green
- Still Missing by Chevy Stevens
- Skipping a Beat by Sarah Pekkenan
- Where She Went by Gayle Forman
- Divergent by Veronica Roth
- Doc by Mary Doria Russell
- Bossypants by Tina Fey (audiobook)
- Before I Go to Sleep by S. J. Watson
- The Tiger by John Vaillant
- Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
- The Story of Beautiful Girl by Rachel Simon (audiobook)
- Vlad: The Last Confession by C. C. Humphreys
- Domestic Violets by Matthew Norman
- Becoming Marie Antoinette by Juliet Grey
- Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (audiobook)
- Practical Jean by Trevor Cole
- Children of Paranoia by Trevor Shane (audiobook)
- When She Woke by Hillary Jordan
- The Poisoner’s Handbook by Deborah Blum (audiobook)
- Monsters in America by W. Scott Poole
- The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
- Perfect by Ellen Hopkins
- A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
- The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
- Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
I can never narrow down the list to something a bit more manageable, but I will say that Sarah Pekkenan’s Skipping a Beat, Veronica Roth’s Divergent, and Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One are the three books for which I championed the most throughout the year. If you didn’t have the pleasure last year, I highly recommend checking them out this year!
As I mentioned earlier, it was a heavy review copy year. 57 percent is way too high. I suspect this was in part due to my evolution as a blogger. If my first year was figuring everything out, my second year was all about finding my way as a serious reviewer/blogger. Even though I wish I would have read more of my own books and not let review copies dictate my reading list as much as I did, I now know in what direction I want to go next year. Everything is a learning opportunity, right?
Overall, I’m pretty satisfied with my numbers and what I read, except for the number of review books I read. On the website, it was even better. I was nominated for best feature during the Book Blogger Appreciation Week; Armchair BEA grew beyond our wildest dreams. I solidified my relationships with certain publishers and authors. I couldn’t ask for anything more.
I hope everyone had a successful 2011. Here’s to meeting all of your goals in 2012!
Thanks, Amy! It's still a relatively new thing for me but definitely informative.
Congrats on a great year! Like you, I love comparing my stats from year to year 🙂
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Great minds think alike!
Yes, except for a select few who really get caught up in reviewing and hope to make it a profession, I think you are right. I'm calling it the natural progression of a blogger. LOL!
YAY! I haven't found someone yet who didn't love it, even though there is always a first time for everything. I know it is right up your alley though! Enjoy!
PAPER TOWNS is one that still has me thinking, even though I read it early in the year. I always thought that tracking books was a silly exercise, but now I can see just how interesting and enlightening it is. Good luck!
Thanks! I'm glad I finally started tracking my books this year. It was definitely an eye-opening exercise. READY PLAYER ONE crosses genders, genres, and ages. You will definitely love it, especially if you listen to it as an audiobook. The audiobook production is one of the best!
Thanks! Sadly, the OCD part of me was really hoping to break that 200 book barrier. I don't know what it would accomplish other than making me feel better about reading a nice round number. LOL!
We read a lot of the same books and I liked a lot on your list. And I think all book bloggers follow the same basic timeline — starting out, getting excited about review copies, feeling overwhelmed by review copies and cutting back on review copies!!
What an awesome reading year! I am listening to Ready Player One at the moment and really enjoying it.
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Great list and stats. I agree, it takes some time figuring out how many books are for review vs what you would like to read from your own shelf. Ready Player One is on many lists, I am considering that one. Your current read Secret Garden made my top ten.
Here's to another great year of reading. Cheers
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Wow, almost 200 books! That's impressive. Congrats on a great reading year!
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