Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Reading Time - February

So I did some statistic checking since my last Reading Time post. I had mentioned that I was bummed about 'failing' my 2017 goal of reading 40 books and 'only' read 25 books. Jana commented that 25 is still 2 books a month and that's more than what a lot of people read.

According to this post on Iris, the average person reads about 4 books a year. A. Single. Year! I can't comprehend. But click through for more details - it's pretty interesting.
  • In 2015, 72% of Americans read a book. (A single book. One.) This includes only reading a book 'in part' so they might not have even finished that book. (That one single book. One.)
  • Educated women tend to read the most (side note: I occasionally go back and read books I should have finished in high school or college. Do you know anyone who reads Kafka's 'The Metamorphosis' or 'The Trial' for fun?)
  • Americans don't read as much as most other countries. (We're lazy.)
And according to this Bookbub post, I have about 2000 books to go before I die. That's a sobering thought and might be why I'm no longer hesitant to DNF a book if it doesn't cut it for me in the first 3 chapters. Every book now is going to be judged on if it's worthy or not to be included in my 2000 books. This kind of reminds me of Lost and when Desmond was carrying around Our Mutual Friend by Dickens to be the last book he ever read. When my aunt passed away 15 years ago, I found out she died while reading a book written by Dickens - her favorite author. The morbid romantic in me did ask if it was Our Mutual Friend (she would have appreciated Desmond's choice and reason) ... but it wasn't and I can't remember which one now.

So anyway ... on to the books:

A is for Alibi - As mentioned last month, I had thought about reading this series before but it wasn't until we were chilling around the house and the news came that local author/celebrity Sue Grafton had passed away that I did some quick searching and downloaded the book. Technology is useful. Very '80s, but good. Not sure I want to put a priority on reading the other 25 ...  (ebook from local library)

Then ...
Promise Me, Dad - Also very good. I teared up in parts of it. Put politics aside, this is a good book about a father and the loss of a son. I was also very interested in reading some of the bits about what was going on behind the scenes during some of the political manuevering. I recommend it. ('real' book borrowed from local library)

Then ...
Sisters First - This must be the month for memoirs. Again, put yo' politics aside. I love presidential history and the families are included in that, (#45 excluded). This was a good book with anecdotes from both Jenna and Barbara and how their lives were before, during, and after their dad was president. ('real' book borrowed from local library)

And this one:
The Book of Giant Stories - One of the check-ins for the 24in48 reading challenge was to find the oldest children's book you have or the one you've held onto since childhood ... and it's this one. I remember crawling up into my dad's lap for him to read this to me over and over. He worked long days and when he'd fall asleep reading to me, I'd continue reading the stories aloud to him - maybe that was his plan. The illustrations are the best - Weekly Reader Books for the win. (book in personal collection and going nowhere - though I need to fix the spine)

Then:
 Everything I Never Told You - After reading Little Fires Everywhere, I put this one in my queue at the library. I think I liked this one better than LFE, but both were hard to put down. 'Familial Dysfunction' is the name of the game with this author. ('real' book borrowed from the library ... and also the ebook borrowed from the library for when I was waiting at an appointment and had forgotten my book. I do feel bad for double dipping when someone else was likely waiting for either copy ... really, I do. Both were returned promptly after finishing.)

Then:
They Both Die at the End - Pretty good story. What would you do if you got the call that you'd be dead within 24 hours? (another e-book from local library)

And then:
The Hazel Wood - I was mainly drawn to this because it's the name of my kids' school. But the plot was interesting too. YA fairy tale - so there's teen angst involved -- and guess what .... another e-book from local library.

Currently reading: Sing, Unburied, Sing

So much for my goal of reading through the stacks of my own books ... most of what has been read so far in 2018 has been from the library (real and e-books).

Be sure to check out Jana and Steph's link-up and see what other books everyone's discussing. You can pretty much guarantee that I'll be on Goodreads throughout the next couple days adding still more books that I want to read but may never get to.

Thoughts on the stats or have you read any of the books listed? What are you reading?

15 comments:

  1. I intend to read Sue Grafton's books too. A series that long is a bit daunting but I think I can slowly pick away at them!! I need to get to Everything I Never Told You sometime soon because I loved LFE.

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  2. I own They Both Die at the End and HOPE to finally read it soon. I love Adam Silvera's other two books, so I recommend if you haven't read those.

    I'm curious about Sisters First and Promise Me Dad too! I'm glad you enjoyed both.

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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    1. I'll definitely check out Silvera's other books - that was the first I'd heard of him and I was impressed!

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  3. Everything I Never Told You was one of my top reads last year! I agree that it was a little better than LFE for me (which I read this month) but both are very solid reads.

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  4. I am currently reading LFE, and I agree with you, Everything I Never Told You was a lot better. I'm having a hard time keeping with so many different characters on Little Fires.

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    1. YES! With LFE, if I put the book down for any length of time, it'd take me a bit to figure out who was who again. Once I got really into the book though, it got better.

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  5. I read a few of the Alphabet books and enjoyed them but not enough to really prioritize them either. I really liked The Hazel Wood. Teen angst definitely but I like dark fairy tales and wish she had spent more time in The Hazel Wood. I can't imagine living in the White House as a child with a huge spotlight on you. They Both Die in the End is on my TBR. Glad you enjoyed it!

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    1. All these YA books full of angst and I'm pretty thankful for a relatively angst-free childhood. :)

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  6. I set the reading bar low at 20 books last year because I had "failed" the year before, but wound up reading 24. Those are some pretty surprising statistics! I only started "allowing" myself to DNF last year- ain't nobody got time for a book that doesn't grab you! I loved Little Fires and added Everything I Never Told You directly after, so I'm bummed to hear it wasn't as good. They Both Die At The End and The Hazel Wood have really intriguing premises- adding to my TBR!

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  7. i totally 'double dip' with library books sometimes. no shame lol. if it's there, i'm gonna read it. haven't read Everything I Never Told You yet but it's on my list.
    The Hazel Wood is on my TBR. glad you liked it.
    I get kind of upset when I think about how many books I will miss out on because I can't read all of them before I die. I need to be better about DNFing books too but I am pretty good about just not picking them up if I don't think I will like them. But still. I can't comprehend only reading 1 book a year, but I am sure people look at me and can't figure out why I read so much, and why I don't watch TV or go hiking or whatever lol. each to their own and all that jazz.

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  8. So many good ones on your list this month! Thanks for helping me add to my Goodreads list! ;)

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  9. Jana made a very valid point, 25 is more than many people read in a year. It's more than my husband has read in the last decade (maybe even decade and a half)!

    I liked both Everything I Never Told You and Little Fires Everywhere. I've put Ng on my list of authors to consistently check out.

    I saw a television special on Joe Biden and I tell ya what, in those 30-60 minutes, however long it was, I became very impressed with him and he earned a great deal of my respect. I may have to check out that book sometime.

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  10. Thanks for sharing the statistics about the number of books most people read in a year. I love reading that kind of stuff.
    Add me to the list of people who read books I should have read in high school but didn't. Or at least I try to. Ever since I watched Happy New Years Charlie Brown (in which Charlie Brown's teachers makes him read War and Peace over Christmas break and the book is so big he has to carry it around in a 2 wheeler) I have wanted to read that book. I've tried to read it twice, but I haven't made it all the way through yet.

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  11. I recently added The Hazel Wood to my TBR list. Promise Me, Dad sounds sweet. I think I'll be adding that, too.
    Those book statistics are insane! I read 32 books last year (I think) and that's the most I've read in probably 10 years. The year before I hit 20, the year before that I think I read 4. It's been a very conscious growth.

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  12. i'm STILL waiting for both celeste ng books from the library and it's been MONTHS. actually, closer to a year #rude

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