2021 Book Stats

Total Books Read: 129

Fiction- 66
Nonfiction- 61

Fiction  breakdown:

Fantasy/Sci-Fi- 16
Juvenile Fiction- 34
Young Adult- 8
Animals Fiction- 15
Classics- 1
Poetry- 1
Historical Fiction- 6
General Fiction- 9

Nonfiction breakdown:

Memoirs- 19
Gardening/Food- 10
Juvenile NonFic- 1
Nature- 9
Animals Nonfic- 29
Medical/Health- 9
Other- 6

Formats:

Short Stories- 6
Graphic Novels- 24
E-Books- 0

Sources:

Owned- 76
Borrowed from the Public Library- 52
Borrowed from a Friend- 1
Received from Publisher or Author- 2

Re-Reads- 10
Abandoned- 2

This felt like a better reading year. At least, I gave more books five stars! So many good books. They keep me sane and give me something to smile about (or even laugh) in this glum strain of living in an ongoing pandemic. Just glancing from one year to the next, my overall numbers are about the same. I read a few more books, because my ten-year-old kept putting her graphic novel choices into my hands. Enjoyed them a lot. I did use the public library more than last year, but also made some good headway into reading books off my own TBR shelves, without adding too much more to their numbers (I supported a local indie bookstore with purchases, and splurged on my birthday, but there was no friends-of-the-library sale this year, and I once again skipped my annual trip to The Book Thing).

Some places I traveled to in the pages: Japan, Europe, Mexico, Canada, Australia, the island of Malta, Singapore, Bosnia, Guinea, South Africa, Greece, Scotland and the skies of Pern! That last is a fictional planet, from a sci-fi series I really enjoyed re-reading. In fact, I did a lot more re-reading this year, which was fun and also very comforting.

Favorites:

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer- beautifully written book about caring for the land and living in harmony with nature. From a Native American perspective.

Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell- so glad I finally read this classic. Even though I didn’t like the main character very much!

Stitches by David Small- amazing graphic memoir, but full of heartache. One that’s hard to look away from.

Animal Liberation by Peter Singer- powerful arguments about why humans should stop exploiting animals and using them for our own ends. Very thought-provoking and a surprisingly easy read.

The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver- wow, what a powerful novel. Frida Kahlo’s household from the inside, but also so much more. You have to read it!

Do No Harm by Henry Marsh- brain surgery. Terrifying and fascinating at the same time.

A Cat Story by Ursula Murray Husted- just so lovely and fun. Two young cats searching for a home across an island, and visually romping through artworks. Delightful!

Spinning by Tillie Walden- another graphic novel memoir, by a woman who was into competitive figure skating. I won’t forget this one easily.

Quiet by Susan Cain- the power of introverts. There’s so much more to us than most people see.

Snapdragon by Kat Leyh- what a weird and awesome graphic novel, and so inclusive!

More titles to mention- on quirky women: Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata and Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman. The Cat I Never Named by Amra Sabic El-Rayess, on living through a siege in Bosnia. The Dark Swallows by Helen Griffiths- historical fiction set during the Spanish civil war. Heart and Blood: Living with Deer in America by Richard Nelson. The Salt Path by Raynor Winn- a middle-aged couple lost everything- home and health- and took a very long hike. Laughing Boy by Oliver LaFarge- even though this book about a young Navajo man had some problems, it was a really good story. And there’s more great reads here!

I hope you all had a good reading year. Here’s looking forward to another.

9 Responses

  1. I love that your daughter shares her graphic books with you. That’s so lovely.

    I’m reading Braiding Sweetgrass later this year as part of a Youtube online bookclub that reads books about nature (it will also do for a Book Bingo challenge I’m doing). Pleased to hear it’s a good book. And Pern is a wonderful place to visit!

    I want to read a few books about whales and dolphins, particularly interactions with humans. Can you recommend anything? I bought Voices in the Ocean by Susan Casey for my Kindle because it looks like the sort of thing I was looking for. Have you heard of it?

    Happy New Year, Jeane!

  2. Hi, Cath! Yes, the graphic novels were great. I like them in general, but would not have read nearly so many this year without my daughter’s insistence! I am eager to hear what you think of Braiding Sweetgrass. Such a good book.

    I don’t think I’ve read Voices in the Ocean, but it looks great so I’m adding it to my list now! Of the books I’ve read on whales and dolphins, some that stood out were: The Grandest of Lives by Douglas Chadwick, Dolphin Chronicles by Carol Howard, Dolphin Days by Kenneth Norris, Dolphin Doctor by Sam Ridgway and Death at Sea World by David Kirby- though this last can be depressing and opinionated. Quite a few of these are older titles, so I don’t know how easy they’ll be to find though. Happy reading!

    1. Braiding Sweetgrass is actually scheduled for November. I might have to read it before then. LOL This month’s book is Under the Sea Grass by Rachel Carson, an author I haven’t read before. Do you know this book? I believe she’s the author of Silent Spring and she’s a classic nature writing US author so I feel rather stupid not having heard of her.

      Thanks for all the recs for books about whales and dolphins. DElighted with those. I’ve made a note of all of them and if some are hard to find then that’ll be a nice little project for me.

      1. Yes, I’ve read quite a few Rachel Carson books- I think the one you mean is Under the Sea Wind? She did write Silent Spring, but I like her other works better, that just describe the life habits of creatures in and around the sea.

  3. You really had a good reading year…thanks to books, most of us seem to have learned to cope much better with the pandemic than we were coping at the beginning. I especially admire your near-even split between fiction and nonfiction…and I suspect that without your daughter’s contributions to your reading list that your nonfiction reading probably topped your fiction reading. I always hope to have a year when that happens for me, but I don’t think I will ever see it happen.

    1. Yes, the books have definitely helped us weather another year of stress. My youngest especially has gotten excited about reading this past year- and without her recommendations I for sure would not have read as many graphic novels and middle grade fiction! They were definitely fun, and raised some good conversations too.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

DISCLAIMER:

All books reviewed on this site are owned by me, or borrowed from the public library. Exceptions are a very occasional review copy sent to me by a publisher or author, as noted. Receiving a book does not influence my opinion or evaluation of it

SUBSCRIBE VIA EMAIL:

Subscribe to my blog:

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

VIEW MY PERSONAL COLLECTION:

TRADE BOOKS WITH ME ON:

ARCHIVES: 

2023
January 2023 (27)February 2023 (23)March 2023 (25)April 2023 (11)May 2023 (17)June 2023 (11)July 2023 (23)August 2023 (23)September 2023 (14)October 2023 (14)November 2023 (26)December 2023 (7)
2022
January 2022 (12)February 2022 (7)March 2022 (13)April 2022 (16)May 2022 (13)June 2022 (21)July 2022 (15)August 2022 (27)September 2022 (10)October 2022 (17)November 2022 (16)December 2022 (23)
2021
January 2021 (14)February 2021 (13)March 2021 (14)April 2021 (7)May 2021 (10)June 2021 (5)July 2021 (10)August 2021 (27)September 2021 (16)October 2021 (11)November 2021 (14)December 2021 (12)
2020
January 2020 (14)February 2020 (6)March 2020 (10)April 2020 (1)May 2020 (10)June 2020 (15)July 2020 (13)August 2020 (26)September 2020 (10)October 2020 (9)November 2020 (16)December 2020 (22)
2019
January 2019 (12)February 2019 (9)March 2019 (5)April 2019 (10)May 2019 (9)June 2019 (6)July 2019 (18)August 2019 (13)September 2019 (13)October 2019 (7)November 2019 (5)December 2019 (18)
2018
January 2018 (17)February 2018 (18)March 2018 (9)April 2018 (9)May 2018 (6)June 2018 (21)July 2018 (12)August 2018 (7)September 2018 (13)October 2018 (15)November 2018 (10)December 2018 (13)
2017
January 2017 (19)February 2017 (12)March 2017 (7)April 2017 (4)May 2017 (5)June 2017 (8)July 2017 (13)August 2017 (17)September 2017 (12)October 2017 (15)November 2017 (14)December 2017 (11)
2016
January 2016 (5)February 2016 (14)March 2016 (5)April 2016 (6)May 2016 (14)June 2016 (12)July 2016 (11)August 2016 (11)September 2016 (11)October 2016 (9)November 2016 (1)December 2016 (3)
2015
January 2015 (9)February 2015 (9)March 2015 (11)April 2015 (10)May 2015 (10)June 2015 (2)July 2015 (12)August 2015 (13)September 2015 (16)October 2015 (13)November 2015 (10)December 2015 (14)
2014
January 2014 (14)February 2014 (11)March 2014 (5)April 2014 (15)May 2014 (12)June 2014 (17)July 2014 (22)August 2014 (19)September 2014 (10)October 2014 (19)November 2014 (14)December 2014 (14)
2013
January 2013 (25)February 2013 (28)March 2013 (18)April 2013 (21)May 2013 (12)June 2013 (7)July 2013 (13)August 2013 (25)September 2013 (24)October 2013 (17)November 2013 (18)December 2013 (20)
2012
January 2012 (21)February 2012 (19)March 2012 (9)April 2012 (23)May 2012 (31)June 2012 (21)July 2012 (19)August 2012 (16)September 2012 (4)October 2012 (2)November 2012 (7)December 2012 (19)
2011
January 2011 (26)February 2011 (22)March 2011 (18)April 2011 (11)May 2011 (6)June 2011 (7)July 2011 (10)August 2011 (9)September 2011 (14)October 2011 (13)November 2011 (15)December 2011 (22)
2010
January 2010 (27)February 2010 (19)March 2010 (20)April 2010 (24)May 2010 (22)June 2010 (24)July 2010 (31)August 2010 (17)September 2010 (18)October 2010 (11)November 2010 (13)December 2010 (19)
2009
January 2009 (23)February 2009 (26)March 2009 (32)April 2009 (22)May 2009 (18)June 2009 (26)July 2009 (34)August 2009 (31)September 2009 (30)October 2009 (23)November 2009 (26)December 2009 (18)
2008
January 2008 (35)February 2008 (26)March 2008 (33)April 2008 (15)May 2008 (29)June 2008 (29)July 2008 (29)August 2008 (34)September 2008 (29)October 2008 (27)November 2008 (27)December 2008 (24)
2007
August 2007 (12)September 2007 (28)October 2007 (27)November 2007 (28)December 2007 (14)
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
1987
1986
1985
1984
1983
1982
1981
1980
1979
1978
1977
1976
1975
1974
1973
1972
1971
1970
1969
1968
1967
1966
1965
1964
1963
1962
1961
1960
1959
1958
1957
1956
1955
1954
1953
1952
1951
1950
https://dogeardiary.com/2022/01/2021-book-stats/
dogeardiary.com
CC-MAIN-2023-50
128914
application/http; msgtype=response
sha1:GGILUWLHPJDF54XSZE32G4H6VBVS6XN4
<urn:uuid:0d06e1ae-5dee-48b4-a548-78cbbaf9365f>
2023-12-11T09:22:56Z
157.230.9.212
text/html
sha1:GS7QMF3SM3XMBPZVJQWCEXPLJGSTT3BD
<urn:uuid:671831ca-9110-4ff5-9a8a-5b6d181daacc>
https://dogeardiary.com/2022/01/2021-book-stats/
response
<urn:uuid:bebb5116-6629-475b-b83f-c4e6b1886deb>
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2023-50
publisher: Common Crawl
description: Wide crawl of the web for November/December 2023
operator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)
hostname: ip-10-67-67-154
software: Apache Nutch 1.19 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)
robots: checked via crawler-commons 1.5-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)
format: WARC File Format 1.1
conformsTo: https://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/