![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
what I've read in the last year
At this point it doesn't look like I will actually finish the book I'm currently reading, a biography of Charles Fourier, before the end of the year. Assuming that, I'll do my summary today, because I feel like it. During the year I've read 82 books varying in size and difficulty from "Peter Rabbit" to "Cryptonomicon" (clicking on the "reading" tag to browse the list. I surpassed my stated goal of a book a week by a wide margin, but did not reach my unstated secondary goal at the century mark. What made the total so high was a spate of kid books in the summer, but I also read some pretty weighty stuff this year.
Best new book of the year: Walter M. Miller, Jr. "A Canticle for Leibowitz"
That choice was easy. The book provides enough challenge that it's not easy. It has depth and humor. It is light and dark. An incredible book.
Hardest to read: Olaf Stapledon "Star Maker"
There was a lot of competition in this category this year, but I think Stapledon managed to squeak it out in the last millennium.
Least worthwhile book of the year: Christopher Moore (not the same Christopher Moore, but a different one) and Pamela Johnson "Santa & Pete"
To quote The Critic, "It sucks!" Best argument for book burnings I've encountered all year. Parents, don't let your children grow up to be as boring as you are.
What of next year? Although I'm very happy with what I've read this year, I think the book a week pace is good for me. I'm comfortable doing more in the winter and less in the summer and averaging out to one a week. I don't think I'll try for 100 a year even though my "to read" pile is huge. Life is too full of other things I enjoy.
I have committed to reading books on the ebook this year, so my physical backlog will probably grow even worse in the coming year. I welcome suggestions on what to read and what to avoid: (The List, not current, but only missing about 50 items.)
Best new book of the year: Walter M. Miller, Jr. "A Canticle for Leibowitz"
That choice was easy. The book provides enough challenge that it's not easy. It has depth and humor. It is light and dark. An incredible book.
Hardest to read: Olaf Stapledon "Star Maker"
There was a lot of competition in this category this year, but I think Stapledon managed to squeak it out in the last millennium.
Least worthwhile book of the year: Christopher Moore (not the same Christopher Moore, but a different one) and Pamela Johnson "Santa & Pete"
To quote The Critic, "It sucks!" Best argument for book burnings I've encountered all year. Parents, don't let your children grow up to be as boring as you are.
What of next year? Although I'm very happy with what I've read this year, I think the book a week pace is good for me. I'm comfortable doing more in the winter and less in the summer and averaging out to one a week. I don't think I'll try for 100 a year even though my "to read" pile is huge. Life is too full of other things I enjoy.
I have committed to reading books on the ebook this year, so my physical backlog will probably grow even worse in the coming year. I welcome suggestions on what to read and what to avoid: (The List, not current, but only missing about 50 items.)