I started keeping track of my reading when I turned 30 just so I could answer the question, "How many books do you read in a year?" On Nov. 4th I turned 33 and I can now say that I read/listen to just over 100 books each year.
My blogiversary is still a few months off but since I track my reading from birthday to birthday it's time to recap my reading year. Tomorrow I'll share with you the best books I read this past year but today it's all about the stats.
Before I begin though ...
Thank you to all my readers, old and new, for making this blog such a pleasure to write.
- To those of you who comment: I LOVE hearing your thoughts, so keep it up!
- To those who subscribe: looking at the slowly climbing # of subscribers makes me think I must be doing something right - I'm glad to have you here!
- To those who drop in occasionally: I'm so happy you choose to visit!
And now for the stats ...
I wanted to beat my totals for last year (104 books read and/or listened to) and I most certainly did that. With 63 paper books and 54 audiobooks in the mix, I reached 117 total books this year!
*** Books - 63 (20,312 pages) ***
Based on those numbers, I read 5.25 books each month with an average of 322 pages each. That turns into about 1,691 pages per month, or about 56 pages a day.
That is a bit less than last year, but my totals in the audiobook category make up for it ...
*** Audiobooks - 54 (533.22 hours) ***
That is just over 22 days of audiobook hours. According to my numbers, the average audio was about 10 hours long and I listened to about 4.5 books each month (about 90 minutes each day). That is significantly higher than last year, and I know it has a lot to do with having the ability to play audibooks on my phone now - I LOVE that!
*** Mom & Son Book Club - 7 ***
Kiddo and I reviewed seven books together this year but he read a lot on his own too. We also listened to several audiobooks that I reviewed myself.
*** DNF (Did Not Finish) - 7 ***
I gave up on 7 books this year. Reasons for not finishing include: I wasn't in the right mood, it started out boring, I still couldn't get into it after reading half the book, and thinking I'd chosen a completely different book. This is almost half of my total for last year, which means I must be getting better at choosing the right books for me!
*** New TBR (To Be Read) Titles - 75 ***
And I've actually read or listened to quite a few from that list of 75!
*** Kiddo's TBR titles - 9 ***
Kiddo has read all or part of at least three of those books this year.
*** Events ***
Online Events:
- I participated in 3 read-a-longs this year and enjoyed them all to various degrees. I also hosted 4 read-a-longs, for The Sparrow, The Color Purple, Children of God, Dueling Monsters: Round 2 (Jekyll/Hyde vs. Dorian Gray),
- Book Blogger Appreciation Week was exhausting but wonderful, as always.
Real-Life Events:
- Being interviewed for Blog Talk Radio's That's How I Blog! show was a lot of fun, even though I tended to ramble a bit ...
- The CityLit Festival in Baltimore was a nice afternoon out, even though there weren't any authors there that I was passionate about.
- Laurie R. King, author of the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes books, came to a local library and I got to meet her.
- I ventured to New York City for Book Expo American and The Book Blogger Convention (I was a panel moderator at the 2nd event) - the entire extended weekend was so much fun!
- This is the 2nd year I was able to organize panels at the Baltimore Book Festival; thanks to everyone who came out!
*** Other Stats/Facts ***
Other interesting tidbits from this past year:
- I started working to get the MD/DC/VA and Local Area bloggers connected via a database. We're up to around 40 people so far - woohoo!
- Google Reader Sharing - are you doing it? If not, read this post and see what you're missing!
- I also shared my rather complicated way of tracking what I plan to read over the next year.
- This was a crazy year for Kiddo as well, what with getting used to his feeding tube and all. But he's kept a good attitude about things (for the most part) and is getting better and better at ice hockey.
That's all for now ... but I'll be back to share my favorite books from this past year soon!
21 comments:
Wow. I can't even imagine listening to that many audiobooks. I'm just starting to get into them now, but each one takes me weeks to finish! Next year, though, audiobooks are going to play a much bigger role in my life, so I do wonder how that's going to be.
Regarding your son's feeding tube, I just read the article and that sounds really scary to deal with as a parent. My cousin's son was a very premature (25 weeks) twin (his other twin died) and consequently spent four months with a tube down his throat, which led to tons of problems with his eating. He can't eat very much without having a reaction in his esophogus too, so he's been on a feeding tube since he was about 2 years old (I think he just turned 7?). I know how hard that is for my cousin and his wife to deal with and they're always hoping one day their son will be healthy enough not to need the g-button anymore. Anyway I know this isn't really relevent to the bulk of this post, but I just wanted to tell you I really sympathize and offer lots of hugs. I'm so glad she's still getting to play hockey!
Well it's been fun getting you know you too!
It also seems that we have a similar taste in books.
Congratulations on your birthday - I loved my 30s! It's a decade of really coming into one's own.
Congrats on all your accomplishments, reading & personal this year! Just read the article about Kiddo & I am amazed at his coping skills. Kids are so much stronger than we often give them credit for. Here's to another fabulous year :)
Happy birthday!! It sounds like another really great reading year. I love all the stats and recaps that you've shared.
Amanda - I read your goals post this week and I'm interested to see how your audiobook listening changes next year. I too don't listen to them unless I'm actually DOING something else but still, as you can see, I fit a lot in each month (though this month I did go a bit overboard ... LOL). As for Kiddo and the feeding tube, we are lucky that he can eat as much as he can, and we're even luckier that he's adapted so well to it all. Still, it's nice to know that we're not the only family dealing with this kind of thing, so thanks for that. *hugs*
Trish - Thanks! I'm really enjoying this decade so far - can't wait to see what happens next.
Teacher/Learner - Yes, we are amazed by Kiddo every day. :) Thanks for the good wishes!
Amy - Glad you're enjoying them! I know that I track my stats really for my own knowledge so it's fun to know that other people actually read these kinds of posts when I write them. LOL
Happy (belated) birthday! *throws confetti* Looks like you had a rather productive year in reading...here's hoping the coming year is even better! Happy reading!
Congratulations on such wonderful statistics! Love your blog and glad that you are still raring to go...Happy Birthday!
Belated Happy Birthday to you, Heather. And the best of good wishes for you and your family, especially to your kiddo.
I'm reading a bit over a hundred books a year myself, but I'm kind of disappointed - I thought I was reading more. But I've slowed down over these last few years. Still, I mustn't quibble. :)
Happy Birthday! You've really accomplished a lot in the past year!
Happy birthday! What an interesting bunch of stats.
I used to listen to lots more audiobooks when I drove for commuting, but these days I read on the train
A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!
It always amazes me how much you bloggers read. I don't know how you do it. Glad to hear kiddo is doing so well.
I don't subscribe, but I am a book blog addict and check all the blogs I follow every day. Maybe that is why I don't read so much. LOL
I am floored by your audio book stats. Seriously floored. When I think of how much time I waste in the car, cooking, cleaning, etc. when I could be multi-tasking with an audiobook... *deepsigh*
You had an awesome year! I love audiobooks and could not live without them. Really.
Awesome! Thanks for all the great reviews. I always enjoy reading them and have picked up a few books on my to-read list from you.
GMR, Jennifer, Yvette, & Alyce – thanks all!
Marg – As I get older I find that I’m more prone to motion-sickness -no more reading in the car or on the train for me. :(
Elisabeth – Thanks so much for continuing to drop by!
Trisha – Ooh you should DEFINITELY listen to books when you are doing other things – it’s make doing chores so much less painful. ;)
Beth F – You and me both!
Listener – So glad to hear it!
Happy birthday!
Congrats on your awesome reading progress, I'm pretty amazed by the audiobook amount, FYI.
Do you listen to audio while doing housework?
I'm trying to up how much I listen to audios (like when I drive, or workout or clean).
OMG, have you ever done some sort of the best audiobooks for beginners list? I know, I know weird of me to ask, but I never know what to order on audible or the library and figure a blogger is pretty trustworthy.
April - I listen to audio whenever possible - while getting ready for work, driving, cooking, doing laundry, brushing my teeth, etc. Whenever Kiddo doesn't need me, that is. :) My suggestion for audiobook newbies is to pick a book you've already read and enjoyed - that way if you have a hard time paying attention at first, you'll easily be able to pick up the story when you tune back in. Another suggestion is to listen to the first 10 minutes of the audio to make sure you like the narrator's voice; a bad narrator can KILL a great book. Once you get into audiobooks try picking up the next book in a series you're already into, or another book by an author you really like. Also, make note of narrators whose work you enjoy - that helps you when you look for new audios to try. I hope that helps!!!
Awesome year! I'm very impressed with all those audio books!
Happy Birthday Heather and you have an amazing kid in Kiddo.
Suey - Thanks! I'm pretty happy with the totals myself. :)
Ryan - I'm glad you agree! LOL
Yeah I certainly wonder exactly how my ratio will change now! I'm still not driving anywhere, but I want to be doing a lot more exercise in the next year and audio's good for that!
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