Reading Challenges 2021

[juliebarkley]

I have been really enjoying the Le manoir series by Evelyne Brissou-Pellen. I am almost done season 1 now.

[Heidi]

I spent a lot of time not reading in 2021, courtesy of still healing from my injury TBI. I think I’ve found a pace that works for me, and I’m looking forward to taking this new approach out for a spin in 2022 (are we having a 2022 thread, @Defining?) 

 

For now, I’m about a quarter of the way through We Need to Talk About Kevin,  and I really like it. It’s a long-ish book (over 400 pages), so the progress meter doesn’t move very quickly . I’m looking forward to reading a bit each evening (probably mostly for classes once they resume on the 10th) and then for pleasure most of the day on Sundays.

 

How was everyone’s 2021? Did you read as much as you wanted? Did you read what you wanted? Most of all, what will you be reading in 2022?

[Scaly Freak]

1 hour ago, Heidi said:

I spent a lot of time not reading in 2021, courtesy of still healing from my injury TBI. I think I’ve found a pace that works for me, and I’m looking forward to taking this new approach out for a spin in 2022 (are we having a 2022 thread, @Defining?) 

 

If Defining is unavailable for any reason, I volunteer to make the 2022 thread. Just so there is a back-up plan.  

[Asha Phoenix]

On 12/19/2021 at 11:42 AM, Heidi said:

How was everyone’s 2021? Did you read as much as you wanted? Did you read what you wanted? Most of all, what will you be reading in 2022?

Good. I met my goal of 15 books. I actually think I made it over the goal, but I think my GoodReads app messed up on logging one of them. lol. The only book I'm still hoping to finish before 2022 (Ik, I only have like 2 weeks.....) is the Silmarillion. 🤦‍♀️

 

Not sure what I plan to read in 2022 yet, but I definitely have a LONG want to read list to choose from. lol. Having said that, if I don't finish the Silmarillion by the end of this year, then that will for sure be on the top of my list.

 

Hbu?

[Jupiter]

On 12/19/2021 at 9:42 AM, Heidi said:

How was everyone’s 2021? Did you read as much as you wanted? Did you read what you wanted? Most of all, what will you be reading in 2022?

 

Mine was good, I think. I read 65 books out of a goal of 50. So, not too bad. 

[Aquarii]

I hit my goal of 50 books! I did finally cave and use audiobooks for some of them because I just didn't have the time, but in the process, I discovered I actually do like listening to audiobooks and will probably do a lot more of it going forward

[Artemis Prime]

I read more this year than I have in a while - 86 books from a goal of 80. My sister and I have a tradition of doing a Year End Book Review with the following 5 categories:

 

Best Nonfiction: I read more nonfiction than usual this year, and several of them were really good, but the award goes to Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals. It was a brick of a book, but it was surprisingly easy reading, very detailed, and very interesting.

Funniest: All Systems Red by Martha Wells. Haven't gotten to the rest of the series yet, but book one was definitely a winner!

Most Unexpected: A Confusion of Princes by Garth Nix. I went looking for Nix because some people here recommend Sabriel so highly, but this was during the shut down and my library didn't have those as e-books, but they had Princes. Science Fiction isn't usually my jam and I had fairly low expectations for this book, but I ended up really liking it. Still haven't gotten to Sabriel.

Most Disappointing: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. This wasn't at all a bad book, but it wasn't what I thought it was. I thought it was going to be about how to live more in touch with the land, but it was more philosophical musings springboarding off Native American lifestyles. Maybe it's unfair to Kimmerer that I misunderstood what she was planning to do with this book, but I was disappointed.

Favorite: The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. I can't remember how this book ended up on my TBR, but I'm so glad it did. Excellent fantasy with really good female leads. I'm torn between liking that someone wrote a really good fantasy book without feeling the need to spin it out into a 15 book series and sad that there aren't more books coming.

Runner Up: Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo. Objectively speaking, this probably wasn't a 5 star book (I'm really stingy with that 5th star on Good Reads) but it was an enormously satisfying ending to the duology and the Grishaverse. (Although Leigh Bardugo has said she's stepping back from the Grishaverse for now but isn't ruling out returning to it in the future. Again, I'm kind of torn, because as much as I enjoyed them, Rule of Wolves really did an excellent job of concluding things.)

[Defining]

I'm not unavailable, I'm just horribly neglectful.  @Heidi thank you for the ping, but if @Scaly Freak wants to take the helm next year (especially since I did so poorly with keeping up with this thread this year) that sounds awesome! I will still try to participate more than I managed this year.

[Scaly Freak]

2 minutes ago, Defining said:

I'm not unavailable, I'm just horribly neglectful.  @Heidi thank you for the ping, but if @Scaly Freak wants to take the helm next year (especially since I did so poorly with keeping up with this thread this year) that sounds awesome! I will still try to participate more than I managed this year.

 

Not a problem at all. I wouldn't have volunteered if I wasn't happy to do it. This is supposed to be fun, not another chore added to a stressful list, so don't you dare feel bad about not having time or energy to participate.  

 

I will do my best to have a thread up by this weekend, ideally Saturday. 

[Heidi]

I think you did a great job, @Defining! Really, just creating the thread is the best part. 🙂 Take this year to clear out the "shoulda" and drop in to 2022 reading list for fun. It's always good to see you.

 

Thanks @Scaly Freak for offering to helm this. Many hands make light work.

❣️

 

 

[Scaly Freak]

 

[bigm141414]

2021 Summary:

 

So my goal for 2021 was to read ALL the books, in this case I wanted to end the year with one book a week. And I smashed that goal like the kool-aid man through brick walls. I ended the year with 61 books/novellas/graphic novels/comic collections read. Full list below. I did also manage to slightly read outside my comfort zone. I read a romance book, my first ever for the genre, and I finished a book of poetry, and started another one which sits on my beside table which I am reading slowly. I finished 9 non-fiction books which is above average for me, so yay! Since I wanted quantity this year most of my personal reading was sci-fi/fantasy and comic collections.

 

I did finish reading The Expanse series which was bittersweet for me. I am sad that the universe it resides in has no more stories to tell as I enjoyed the characters and plots immensely. I read a lot ore comics and graphic novels this year, which I am relearning quickly to appreciate. I even considered getting a comixology membership to keep up to date with some series like Immortal Hulk and the latest X-Men and to also save space on my overcrowded library shelves.

 

Looking back on the year, it was a lot of words to consume. I am glad I keep yearly lists, because I don't think I could recall the book details without some gentle prodding to remind me what squiggles I put in front of my eyes.

 

Full list in the spoiler below.

 

Spoiler

2021 Books

 

Bold books are non-fiction works.

 

1) A Deadly Education (Scholomance Book 1). - Naomi Novik (Jan 9)
2) The Republic of Thieves - Scott Lynch (Jan 22)
3) Dawn of X Vol 6-8 - Hickman et. al (Jan 24)
4) The Wicked and The Divine Book 4 - Kieron Gillen, Jamie McKelvie (Jan 27)
5) Rogue Protocol - Martha Wells (Jan 30)
6) Exit Strategy - Martha Wells (Feb 2)
7) Network Effect - Martha Wells (Feb 10)
8 ) Sewer Gas Electric - Matt Ruff (March 6)
9) The Bromance Book Club - Lyssa Kay Adams (March 8 )
10) Full Fathom Five -Max Gladstone (March 26)
11) Capital and Ideology - Thomas Piketty (April 4)
12) Godsgrave - Jay Kristoff ( April 4)
13) Darkdawn - Jay Kristoff (April 15)
14) Travel Light - Naomi Mitchison (April 18)
15) The End of the World Running Club - Adrian Walker (April 20)
16) The Profiteers - Sally Denton (April 29)
17) The Left Handed Booksellers of London - Garth Nix (May 2)
18) Fugitive Telemetry - Martha Wells (May 4)
19) Remix - Lawrence Lessig (May 16)
20) Vicious - V.E Schwab (May 23)
21) The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - V.E Schwab (May 27)
22) We the People: A Progressive Reading of the Constitution - Erwin Chemerinsky (May 30)
23) Life On Mars - Tracy K. Smith (May 31) (poety collection)
24) The Light Fantastic - Terry Pratchett ( June 1)
25) Annihilation - James Vandermeer (June 5)
26) Firebreak - Nicole Kornher-Stace (June 15)
27) The Common Good - Robert Reich (June 26)
28) Axiom's End - Lindsay Ellis (June 29)
29) How to be an Antiracist - Ibram X. Kendi (July 5)
30) Dawn of X Vol 9-11 - Hickman et al (July 10)
31) Before They Are Hanged - Joe Abercrombie (July 11)
33) The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet - Becky Chambers (July 15)
34) East of West Vol 1 - John Hickman et al (July 16)
35) Lovecraft Country - Matt Ruff (July 25)
36) Lights Out - The Fall of GE - Thomas Gryta, Ted Mann
37) Gunslinger Girl - Lindsay Elys (Aug 22)
38) City Of Stairs - Robert Jackson Bennett (Sept 12)
39) Kafka on the Shore - Haruki Murakami (Oct 3)
40) City of Blades - Robert Jackson Bennett (Oct 10)
41) The Last Graduate - Naomi Novik (Oct 12)
42) Lux A Texas Reckoners Novella - Brandon Sanderson and Stephen Michael Bohls (Oct 20)
43) East of West Vol 1 - John Hickman et al (Oct. 30)
44) Immortal Hulk Vol. 7 - Ewing et. al (Oct 31)
45) The Hundred Page Machine Learning Book - Andriy Burkov (Oct 31)
46) Farsector (Green Lantern Graphic Novel) - NK Jemisin (Nov 😎
47) Midnight’s Children -Salman Rushdie (Nov 9)
48) Starsight - Brandon Sanderson (Nov 12) REREAD
49) Sunreach - Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson (Nov 14) (Novella)
50) ReDawn - Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson (Nov 15) (Novella)
51) Last Argument of Kings - Joe Abercrombie (Nov 21)
52) Cytonic - Brandon Sanderson (Nov 24)
53) Termination Shock - Neal Stephenson (Nov 30))
54) Leviathan Falls - James SA Corey (Dec 4)
55) City of Miracles - Robert Jackson (Dec 12)
56) The Rhetoric of Economics - Deirdre N. McCloskey (Dec 16)
57) The City and The City - China Mieville (Dec 20)
58) A Closed and Common Orbit - Becky Chambers (Dec 22)
59) Hawkeye: Saga of Bishop and Barton - Matt Fraction et al (Dec 25)
60) Legion, Books 1-3 - Brandon Sanderson (Dec 27)
61) Evershore - Brandon Sanderson and Janci Patterson (Dec 29)