Annual Personal Metrics: 2012 Book List

I read just under 56 books in 2012. That's about the same reading pace that I maintained in 2011. Of the total, all but two were fiction. Most were borrowed from the Lewes Public Library.

Here is the list:

2011 Metrics: Reading

I read 54 books during 2011, down from my totals the last few years, but not drastically so. In fact, I think a prime reason for the lower number was the fact that I read all five of the novels that make up George R.R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire collection. These thick novels took up nearly two months of reading time this year; they are long but ultimately satisfying reads.

I also dove back into the 20 novels of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin series this year. I started at the end of August with Master and Commander. As we start 2012, I am about to finish The Hundred Days, the 19th in the series. I am reading this series straight through, without leaving O'Brian's 19th-Century. I've done this before and have read some of these novels three or four times. I still thoroughly enjoy them.

Of the rest of the books I read this year, only one was non-fiction - Bob Woodward's Obama's Wars.

though I am happy to say I own the entire Aubrey/Maturin series, most of the rest of what I read this past year were from the Lewes Public Library. I remain a strong supporter of my library.

I also read two books by relatives in 2011. My nephew, whose nom de plume/guerre is Magpie Killjoy, wrote an interactive novel called What Lies Beneath the Clock Tower.

Descend into the depths of the undercity and embroil yourself in the political struggles of colonialist gnomes and indigenous goblins. Fly in air balloons, drink mysterious and pleasant cocktails, smoke opium with the dregs of gnomish society. Or dream and speak of liberation for all the races. Fall in love and abscond into the caverns. It's up to you, because this is an adventure of your own choosing.

And my fifth cousin's wife, Donna Gruber Adair, wrote a slightly fictionalized  account of the westward movement of Benjamin Adair, my paternal grandfather's paternal grandmother's brother.  The book, An American Odyssey, includes my great-great-grandfather JB Mahaffie, a founding settler, with the Adairs, of Olathe, Kansas.

As you can see, I enjoy reading. I am a fan of fiction and treasure the fact that I can entire other worlds and different times through the pages of a novel.

2010 Metrics: Reading

I read 60 books in 2010, down a bit from my reading totals in 2008 and 2009.

All but two of the books I read were fiction, the exceptions being The Blind Side, by Michael Lewis, and Craig Ferguson's outstanding memoir American on Purpose. I like fiction. I read for entertainment and escape and I usually choose fiction.

As my word cloud of authors shows, I read a few folks more than once last year. I read three by Chris Knopf, who writes anti-hero mysteries set in Southampton. I like the off-beat nature of his characters and the fact that he sets his stories in a beach resort, often off-season. It rings bells for me. I also read three of Neil Gaiman's books. All of these I had read before. Mr. Gaiman is a personal favorite.

Among those I read twice was Jack Kerouac, who appealed to me this past fall for some reason. I really enjoyed travelling back to his time.

As usual, most of the books I read in 2010 came from the Lewes Public Library. Forty-seven -- 78% -- were library books and thirteen -- 22% -- I either bought or borrowed from family members.

Another Representative Paragraph

I've recently started reading Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, by Helen Simonson. I chose it based solely on its cover, of course. so far, it's been a fine book, worthy of one of my periodic representative paragraph posts.

The following is a part of a paragraph near the start of the story, as Major Pettigrew, a 60-ish widower is riding in the car of Mrs. Ali, a widow from the village with whom he seems to be falling in love. It's a rainy, gray day.

She laughed, and the Major turned his head to look out of the window at the fog-soaked hedges of the lanes. He was aware that he no longer felt chilled. The hedges, far from being grim and soggy were edged to the last leaf in drops like diamonds. The earth steamed and a horse under a tree shook its mane like a dog and bent to nibble freshly moistened dandelions. The car broke from the hedged land and crested the last rise of the hill, where the road widened. The town spread down the folded valley, opening out along the coastal plain. The sea lay gray and infinite beyond the sharp edge of the beach. In the sky, a rent in the fog let down pale shafts of sunlight to gleam on the water. It was as beautiful and absurd as an illustrated Victorian hymnal, lacking only a descending angel trailing putti and rose garlands. The little car picked up speed as it headed down and the Major felt that the afternoon was somehow already a success.

Mid-Year Reader's Report

I have read 32 books so far this year. That is slightly ahead of last year's mid-year pace and about the same as at this point in 2008.

This year, I'm tracking my reading using a Google spreadsheet.

I finished book 32 -- A Lion Among Men -- last night. Seven of the 32 (about 22%) were purchased. The rest were from the Lewes Public Library (Yay, the library!). all but one -- Craig Furguson's memoir American on Purpose -- were novels. I read for escapism; I prefer fiction.

To get truly geeky, I have read 10,507 pages this year. That's an average of just over 328 pages per book.

2009 Metrics: Reading

I read 63 books during 2009. That's almost exactly the same as my total for 2008 (which I find a little freaky).

I find that, of the books I read, 51 were checked-out from the Lewes Public Library, 11 were books I own (either gifts or books I bought), and 1 was borrowed (The first in a series by Owen Parry, handed off to me by my brother Matt, who often finds great novels for us to read.

2009 Book Montage

Mike's favorite books »

For 2009, I used a web site called GoodReads to track my reading. Ill be looking around this weekend for where to track reading in 2010. I'm leaning towards designing my own Google Docs spreadsheet.