I have to admit, this was my worst year yet since finishing grad school back in 2011.
Since then, I've made it a goal to read at least 50 books a year (approximately 4 a month). This may seem like a lot, but it's really not. What I've found in the last couple years of being back in Kansas City, however, is that it's become more difficult to reach these numbers for a few reasons...the first one being the most important:
- I no longer take public transit everywhere. Since I drive my own car wherever I need to go, my face isn't buried in a book while I travel. I would spend AT LEAST an hour every day on a bus or train while living in San Francisco. This made for easily getting through my reading list.
- I spend more time working on my writing and hanging out with people from my past who I haven't seen since moving back to KC. I had a few friends commit suicide during my first year back, so I'm especially cognizant of the time I spend with people; it's grown rather than decreased because of those deaths.
Anyway, despite being laid up after back surgery, I didn't write or read nearly as much as in previous years, which is disappointing. Without any fanfare at all, here's the disappointing list from 2017.
December
01.) Bo Fowler - "Scepticism, Inc." (256pgs)
(256 pgs)
January
02.) Patrick Ness - "A Monster Calls" (205pgs)
03.) Roberto Bolano - "The Insufferable Gaucho" (164pgs)
(643 pgs)
February
04.) Amber Sparks - "The Unfinished World and Other Stories" (223pgs)
05.) Matthew Johnson - "Irregular Verbs and Other Stories" (340pgs)
(563 pgs)
April
06.) Steven Millhauser - "In the Penny Arcade" (164pgs)
07.) Steven Millhauser - "Voices in the Night" (290pgs)
08.) Phantom Drift Vol. 6: "The Impression of Irreducible Strangeness" (172pgs)
10.) Joshua Mohr - "Sirens" (179pgs)
(805 pgs)
June
11.) Carlos Ruiz Zafon - "The Midnight Palace" (301pgs)
12.) Don DeLillo - "Zero K" (274pgs)
13.) Carlos Ruiz Zafon - "The Watcher in the Shadows" (288pgs)
(863 pgs)
August
14.) Margaret Atwood - "The Handmaid's Tale" (311pgs)
15.) David Lagercrantz - "The Girl in the Spider's Web" (400pgs)
(863 pgs total)
September
18.) Matt Bell - "A Tree or a Person or a Wall: Stories" (400pgs)
(400 pgs total)
18 Books
4,393 Total Pages
I need to check out some of these titles. A couple of familiar names, but these are mostly new to me.
Your 50 a year is a large target, but like you say, if the circumstances allow for it then it is very doable. For the first time this year I have set 50 as my target. So this list may come in handy.
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it's large, but easily doable if one is serious about it. i once got 86 books; i was pretty proud of that.
if you'd like a list of recommendations, let me know what you're looking for specifically and i'm more than happy to put something together for you! i've done a ton of reading across most genres, though i'm less keen on nonfiction or autobiographies unless they're of musicians (the peter hook memoir "unknown pleasures" about his time in Joy Division and New Order was fucking excellent).
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I appreciate the offer to assist. Although I'm still trying to work out exactly what I like, I have come from a predominantly SciFi back ground. But not Space Opera, more Philip K Dick style. Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan is a modern SciFi I liked. More towards the CyberPunk end of things.
Some Urban Fantasy style or Thrillers. And even Surreal can be interesting.
I have quite a few books on my reading list, and many classics in those genres, but from there I wouldn't mind branching out into some lesser known authors and find some new and exciting books to read.
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For the first time this year I am setting a goal on number of books to read. I'm setting it at 24 or 2 per month. I have a feeling I will read more than that but I think it's a generally fair goal.
Yesterday I posted a list of the books I read in 2017 here: https://steemit.com/books/@saronym/books-i-read-in-2017
On a related note I hope to read the Handmaiden's Tale this year. I have enjoyed the Hulu series and I'm interested in reading the source material. I'm also reading some Star Wars novels this year lol!
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atwood is fun! if you haven't yet, give the Maddadam trilogy a read. fun dystopian romp that moves at a quick pace.
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I need to start my list too! I never count how many books I read during the year, but I should start! It's on my new year's list of things to do! :)
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it's been a weird, but solid tradition for me. the visual list can actually end up shaming me into reading again if it gets too anemic. not sure how it didn't work this time around, but yeah...it's a nice reminder of the year too. :)
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Read a lot of book it’s like you take many brain from another people put in your brain and will get more stmart keep going I would like to do the same
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Thank you for the list. What was the best one?
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i always tend to love Bolano, but i have to side with my old professor's latest memoir, "Sirens" by Joshua Mohr (who's also slated to write the foreword of my next collection of stories coming out later this year). phenomenal (and super fast) read. that i know him personally also made it more enjoyable as memoirs/non-fiction aren't normally my thing.
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i love to reading book
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wow this is mazing i hope you have learn many things which you will share with us
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