The last day of 2010 is upon us; that means I have ahead of me the very difficult task of choosing my favorite books for the year. I’ve seen others’ lists going up since at least late November, but I hesitated, because for me that next gem could always be around the corner. I didn’t want to post my list before the year was nearly up. And while I may finish another book before midnight tonight, I doubt it will be as worthy as the ones that follow. I’ve chosen ten fiction and five non-fiction, which I think works for the proportions I read them in. There is no way I could whittle the fiction list down to five!
Fiction
- The Children’s Book, A.S. Byatt
- Speak, Laurie Halse Anderson
- The Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews; this year I read Magic Burns, Magic Strikes, and Magic Bleeds.
- The Sparrow, Mary Doria Russell
- Under Heaven, Guy Gavriel Kay
- Brooklyn, Colm Toibin
- Monsters of Men, Patrick Ness
- Mistress of the Art of Death, Ariana Franklin
- The Tiffany Aching quartet by Terry Pratchett (The Wee Free Men, A Hat Full of Sky, Wintersmith, and I Shall Wear Midnight)
- Delirium, Lauren Oliver
Non-fiction
- The Decisive Moment, Jonah Lehrer
- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot
- The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid, Bill Bryson
- Bess of Hardwick, Mary S. Lovell
- Cleopatra, Stacy Schiff
I wholeheartedly recommend each and every one of these books to you; they are simply incredible each in their own way.
In terms of statistics, I read:
- 253 books in total by 198 different authors
- 89,895 pages (may be inaccurate – some were ebooks)
- 101 books for review, 98 books of my own, and 54 library books
- 43 non-fiction books (17%)
- 170 books by women (67%)
- 19 were ebooks (7.5%)
The authors I read the most by this year were Anchee Min and Ilona Andrews with 5 books each.
Overall, I think it’s been a good year. I aimed to read deliberately and for the most part, I feel I truly did. Tomorrow, I’ll be back with a few of my goals for 2011. I’ll still be reading deliberately, I can tell you that.
How was your reading year in 2010?
I’ve read a lot of Bill Bryson, but I haven’t read that one yet for some reason…and I work in a library and we have it, so I have no excuse. One of my goals for the new year is to read more non-fiction books than I did this year, which was abysmal.
unfinishedperson´s last post …My Best of 2010 in Books
Your reviews have inspired me to try some very different genres this year, and I have enjoyed reading about all the things you were excited about, and also the things that you weren’t so excited about! I bunch of the books that ended up on your list are books that I hope to read in the new year, and I am really looking forward to some of them!! Happy New Year to you!!
zibilee´s last post …Top 5 Reads of 2010
Wow, 253 books! That’s fabulous
Good work. I am glad you enjoyed I Shall Wear Midnight. While I enjoy Tiffany Aching, I didn’t love Wintersmith, so I am hoping I like the midnight book more. I also adored The Sparrow and hope to read its sequel.
Aarti´s last post …2010- The Year in Review
Chaos Walking series was just so fab. A reread for years to come I’m sure.
Lenore´s last post …Audio Book Review- Zombies Vs Unicorns by Justine Larbalestier and Holly Black
What a great reading year you’ve had. Completely agree with Monsters of Men and the Tiffany Aching books.
I’m hoping to reading some more Guy Gavriel Kay this year!
Darren @ Bart’s Bookshelf´s last post …Immortal Beloved Giveaway
What a fabulous reading year — working hasn’t slowed you down much. You have several on there that I still need to get to.
Next year I have to pay attention to hours listened and pages read — fun stats to keep.
Beth F´s last post …Imprint Friday- Benny & Shrimp by Katarina Mazetti
You had a great year! I just ordered Monsters of Men, but still haven’t read book 2 – must get on that! And so happy to see The Sparrow on your list – I love that book. Brooklyn is one of my must-reads for 2011.
Carrie K.´s last post …First lines of 2010
253 books? You are blowing my socks off! A lot of these books are intriguing me if I don’t already have them on my wishlist. I loved seeing your stats too. I wish you mush reading happiness in 2011!
Amused´s last post …Looking Back and Forward
Congrats on a fantastic year! Really interesting stats and best of lists. I’ll have to look up some of the books! Happy 2011.
Amy´s last post …A Plan for 2011
Reading everyone else’s lists makes me add so many books to my own TBR list. Thank you.
Mystica´s last post …Review Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden by M C Beaton
Oh no, I haven’t read anything on your list except for “Speak!” Must…get…reading…
Jen – Devourer of Books´s last post …The Books I Gushed About in 2010
I stopped by to wish you a Happy New Year, Meghan!
I hope to make 2011 a year of purposeful reading. I plan to take some time this weekend to flesh out the reading goals.
Molly´s last post …My Perfect Day – an exercise
I absolutely ADORE Terry Pratchett, but I have yet to read his Tiffany Aching books yet! I need to fix that, especially because the last one just came out this year (right?).
Anastasia´s last post …The End of the Year Post- Part 1- Totals
I’ve got to read the Kate Daniels series this year. Everyone seems to rave about them!
253 books is amazing! I just finished Mistress of the Art of Death on 1/1. I really enjoyed it as well. I am thinking I will have to pick up the second book in the series.
Stephanie´s last post …The Sunday Salon- 1-2-2011
So glad to see that you have Mistress of the Art of Death on your favorites list! It’s sitting on my shelves, begging me to pick it up and read it!
Coffee and a Book Chick´s last post …Ahhhthe Nook Color
This is a great list! I haven’t read a lot of these, so I’ll be checking them out.
S. Krishna´s last post …Book Review- The Pericles Commission – Gary Corby
Glad to see Cleopatra made you list. I really want to read that one.
Anna´s last post …The Best Books I Read in 2010
I read 48 books last year, nothing compared to your amount, but for me that was pretty good and I am proud of the fact that I managed to review all of the books I read as well as some fantastic adaptations.
I’m a big fan of Terry Pratchett I will certainly be adding The Tiffany Aching quartet to my tbr, thank you.
jessicabookworm´s last post …Challenges 2011