2020 End of Year Book Stats & Overview

Now that we've covered the most important end of year posts with the best books lists, it's time to jump into one of my favorite posts of the year--yearly stats! I am once again using some information from the Goodreads 'Year in Review,' since it does a fairly good job of capturing some finer details (which also means that some of these, such as my average star rating and the highest rated book are unique to the Goodreads community only and not reflective of other sources), and I am also still keeping a spreadsheet of the books I read and some info about genres, author info, formats, sources, etc. If you have any end of year posts/surveys/best books lists that I haven't seen yet, please do leave them in the comments so I can come visit!

 

Previous end of year stats & overview posts: 2018, 2019

 

Much like last year, I've opted not to include most of the books I read for grad school so as to keep them separate from my pleasure reading, although I did enjoy most of what I read so perhaps I should revise that one day... Nonetheless, 160 is far beyond anything I expected to read this year! This year was busy and anxiety-inducing as hell and there were so many times where I felt I was barely getting through any books, so I'm very excited about that. It beats last year's 150, but I have no intentions to try to beat 160 next year. I also think 65,000 pages is a bit mind-boggling to consider in the grand scheme of things, especially when I then factor in the sheer number of articles I had to read for school and... I think I need to give my eyes a break.  

I am a little surprised that 112 pages was the smallest book I read this year, but then I really didn't read very many novellas so I suppose it does make sense. It's also hard to believe that it was this year that I read Silver in the Wood when it feels like ages ago because I read it in our old apartment before we moved, haha. Imaginary Friend was indeed quite chunky, and since I didn't end up getting to my usual special 1,000+ page book of the year, I suppose it can take that place. The average book length also seems pretty on par with average book lengths in general and similar to last year's (405). 

This rating is always inflated on Goodreads since I can't do half or quarter stars, and I did a lot of those this year. Still, it's fun to see!

 

This feels unsurprising, I'm almost more curious what the most popular would be if I hadn't re-read The Fellowship of the Ring.  Also, Gatekeeper was a delight and I'd highly recommend it!

In case you can't read that tiny font, that's a 4.67 average, which is pretty damn good! I'm glad this trilogy is getting the love it deserves.

Stats:
Now we can dive into some of the fun (to me, anyway) stats! As with previous years, I'd like to apologize for some of the font/color sizes on these--Google Sheets remains my free option of use, and it's frustrating to use sometimes. I started keeping track of stats about two years ago and I've enjoyed it so much! I'm very much a mood reader and can't necessarily plan out too much of what I intend to read, so I always find these an interesting way of seeing where my moods lead me each year and if there are any big changes.

Genre

This is probably the first time that straight fantasy (48.8%) has been more than half of my reading. Speculative fiction as a whole, however, including horror (9.4%) and science fiction (6.3%) does reach over the halfway mark, though, which makes more sense. I am pleased to see that I managed to read more historical fiction (15.6%) this year, which was something I wanted to do since I am a big fan of historical fiction in general. This was partly due to the fact that when my anxiety was skyrocketing when my husband and I were moving earlier this year historical fiction turned into my comfort read genre for the time? It was a surprise to me as well, but I ran with it. I'm glad to see more horror this year, and I'd really like to check out even more next year, as well as more sci-fi, perhaps. 

Target Audience

There aren't too many surprises on here. I enjoy a young adult book here and there, but overall I tend to read mostly adult (80%) books. I do still love my middle grade, though, and I'd almost prefer to read more middle grade (6.3%) than young adult (13.8%) these days! I mainly read middle grade at night, which is why that percentage tends to stay low. I've really been struggling with young adult fantasy these past two years or so, and I keep finding myself disappointed more often than not, so I'm not sure if it's just me or something else. 

Format

This is such a close mix this year of formats! I have concluded that paperback (31.9%) is probably the most comfortable to read, and that makes up about half total (including Physical ARCs). I am not a huge fan of reading on my Kindle (eARCs, 20%), but since that is how I am able to read NetGalley books and the like, I am happy to do so! Those also tend to the be the only books I read on my Kindle, though I do occasionally snatch up some Kindle deals now and then.

Book Source

This was one of the stats that I was most interested to see this year since all my local libraries were closed for eight (!) months year due to COVID. It was rough, but it also made me thankful for how many books I've accumulated over the years and was able to dip into (purchased category)--and in the end, I'm really glad I've had the opportunity to focus on the books I already owned, plus some I bought to try to support authors this year. It also gave me an opportunity to read a lot of older ARCs that I, uh, hadn't gotten around to... so that's why the publisher category is a bit bigger, since publishers weren't sending out as many physical ARCs this year. 

Page Count

This feels pretty on par with the fact that most books (especially in fantasy) tend to average 300-500 pages (63.7% together). That tiny sliver there is 900+, in which I only read one book this year. I don't have too much to say about this chart because it feels very reasonable and a bit predictable, haha. Is it just me, or do fantasy books these days often seem bigger in general or is it just me??

Tell me about your year in books! Do you keep track of information for stats like this? (If you do and you made a post that I haven't seen, leave me a link because I love looking at them! Or if you have any 'end of year' sort of post, link that also so I can check it out!)

Best Books of 2019 Pt. I -- Backlist and 2019 Debuts!

Happy New Year's!
I hope you all had a wonderful New Year's Eve and that your new year is off to a great start. The beginning of a new year still manages to make me anxious, but I know how excited most people are about the prospect of what is often seen as a fresh slate, so I hope it's going great for all of you!

Now that we've got the most disappointing books out of the way, we can finally move onto the best books of 2019! I read a total of 150 books this year, so my favorites lists always tend to get a bit, uh, out of control and I end up having to split them up. 

Today I'm sharing my favorite backlist titles that I read this year as well as 2019 debuts (simply meaning no previous books from these authors) and tomorrow I will be sharing all of my favorite 2019 releases (non-debut)! I decided to highlight a few titles in yellow to indicate they are ones I especially loved this year and would highly recommend. I'll have the rest of my favorites up tomorrow, so in the meantime let's jump into these favorites!

Top 5 Backlist Titles:

1. Vita Nostra by Marina & Sergey Dyachenko: This book was so brilliant and unexpected and unpredictable. It was truly unlike anything I've read and I really want to re-read sometime soon and immerse myself in this weird story that doesn't quite make sense, yet somehow still completely pulls me in. I highly recommend this book if you like things a little on the metaphysical side (even if you don't, it's completely worth it!). (Review)

2. Night Film by Marisha Pessl: I meant to read this when it first came out years and never did, so this year when I finally got around to it I was so frustrated with myself for not reading it before because I was enraptured by this incredible book. The mixed media components added so much and I loved the explorations of darkness and unpredictability of people. This seems to be a really polarizing book for a lot of people, but I fell for it--hard. (Review)

3. Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire: This book was written for me, I think. All of McGuire's Wayward Children books have been great, but this one easily takes the cake for me of the ones I've read. It follows Jack and Jill as they first enter their fairy tale land and it just had the most incredible atmosphere and a plot that I was so engrossed in. (Review)

4. Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing: When I picked up this book, I knew it would be interesting, but I had no idea how much I would actually love it. Ernest Shackleton is incredible (a fitting title!) and this true story of how his entire crew survived lost in the Antarctic for over a year is astounding. I now plan to read everything I can about Shackleton (including his own account of the wreck, which I didn't know existed until after reading this!) and this horrible yet inspiring story of survival. It's really something special and I would encourage anyone to read it.

5. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern: It took me a while, but I finally got around to reading The Night Circus as well. It was almost exactly what I expected in terms of prose and it was beautiful. I love the aesthetic of the circus itself and all of the little tidbits of magic that inhabit it. This book is about the characters, yes, but it's also equally (or more) about the circus and the magic as characters as well. 

Top 2019 Debuts:

1. The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H.G. Parry: This book came up on my radar out of nowhere from Orbit and as soon as I saw it I knew I wanted to read it. It was so fun while also being surprisingly deep and full of really interesting themes relating to life, literature, human nature,and so much more. It's incredibly imaginative and I couldn't put it down while I read it. (Review)

2. House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig: 'The perfect dark fairy tale retelling' is the most accurate description of this book that I can think of. I loved the characters, the atmospheric setting, the plot, the twists--truly, I loved everything. This book was a genuine joy to read and I can only hope that Craig continues to write books that grab me as much as this one did. (Review)

3. Nottingham by Nathan Makaryk: This has easily become one of my favorite Robin Hood-inspired tales and I'm so excited by the innovative qualities Makaryk brought to the story. It's a serious story while at the same time it somehow doesn't take itself too seriously and there is plenty of humor and sarcasm and wittiness that makes this not only an interesting book, but also a highly entertaining one. I had a fantastic time reading this and I really can't wait to see what's next. I believe there is a sequel coming out in 2020 and I will absolutely be checking it out! (Review)

4. The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling: This was one of my favorites because of how engrossing and unique it was. I'd never really read any fantasty/sci-fi books centered around a cave diver-especially one cave diving on a different planet. I loved exploring this underground world along with the protagonist while also learning about the safety, steps, and courage needed to undertake this job. There were so many twists and turns in this book and I genuinely enjoyed every second of it. (Review)

Have you read any of these books? What were some of your favorite backlist titles you read this year and/or debuts!?