2016 Statistical Roundup

So parsing it out I didn't quite have the dismal reading year I thought I did. I read more books than last year, and traveled around the world and through multiple cultures through my reading. Book events were few and far between, but that's OK. Considering I live in what is probably the most bookish city in America if not the world, I hardly ever leave the house! But hey, that just means more time for reading at home.

How many books read in 2016?
58. I thought this was a sad number but it's actually up 5 books from last year's low of 53.Woohoo!

How many fiction and non fiction? 44 fiction and 14 nonfiction. I attribute this to committing to read nonfiction before bed almost every day, and reading nonfiction at the gym. I'm really pleased to see my nonfiction reads in the double digits for the first time in a long time. Left to my own devices I just tend to read fiction, but I love the opportunities for learning that nonfiction provides.

Male/Female author ratio? 33 written by men to 25 written by women. That's a long way to parity but an improvement over last year. My reading is driven by what I'm interested in in the moment and I don't usually worry about ticking demographic boxes, so.


Favorite book of 2016? Charlotte Bronte: A Fiery Heart, by Claire Harman

Least favorite? The Galton Case, by Ross Macdonald. I just wasn't the right reader.

Any that you simply couldn’t finish and why?A few. Sadly The Sellout by Paul Beatty was one. And A Man Called Ove. They just couldn't hold my attention.

Oldest book read?The Barbary Coast, by Herbert Asbury, originally published in 1935.

Newest? Ill Will, by Dan Chaon, coming out in January.

Longest and shortest book titles? 
Shortest title: Ill Will, by Dan Chaon
Longest title: Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist, by Sunil Yapa

Longest and shortest books?
Longest: Either Ill Will or The City of Mirrors.
Shortest: Places of My Infancy, by Giuseppe di Lampedusa.

How many books from the library?
None! I didn't visit a library all year. Sad!

Any translated books?
I read books translated from Japanese, French, Italian, Russian, Danish, Finnish, Spanish, German, Swedish, Icelandic, Norwegian, and Arabic.

Which countries did you go to through the page in your year of reading?
I travelled to France, Greenland, Italy, Ireland, Japan, England, Algeria, Russia, Germany, Iceland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Mali, Spain, South Africa, Iceland, Israel and Dagestan. I also visited several fictional countries and another planet or two.

Most read author of the year, and how many books by that author? 
Justin Cronin, with three books- the complete Passage trilogy.

Any re-reads?
I re-read Alison Bechdel's Fun Home after seeing the Broadway musical, and re-read The Passage and The Twelve in anticipation of The City of Mirrors, all by Justin Cronin.

Favorite character of the year? 
Felix of Hag-Seed was a guy I loved to hate, and was rooting for all the way.

Which book wouldn’t you have read without someone’s specific recommendation?
I read several because they were book club picks. I would not have read Cinnamon and Gunpowder had it not been recommended by my friend Sarah.

Which author was new to you in 2016 that you now want to read the entire works of?
Virginie Despentes

Which books are you annoyed you didn't read? I didn't quite manage the new Ludmila Ulitskaya, The Kukotsky Enigma, but I will soon.

Did you read any books you have always been meaning to read?
The Man Without a Face, by Masha Gessen, about the rise of Vladimir Putin. This may be required reading for us all in 2017!

Bookish Events in Marie's Life
-started working at a new bookstore in New Jersey,
-celebrated my 9th year as a blogger,
-traveled to Portland, Oregon, for the first time and visited the legendary Powell's bookstore,
-volunteered for a whole afternoon at Housing Works Bookstore in New York City and
-took a class in classic crime fiction at the Center for Fiction.