2008 Wrap-Up

For my wrap-up of 2008 reading, I'll borrow this meme from Simon at Stuck In A Book . It covers just about everything! Overall, 2008 was not a very productive reading year.



-How many books read in 2008?

I only read 30 books this year - less than any year since I started keeping track (1998)! There are several factors I'll attribute this to. Primarily, this year has required every ounce of my energy for parenting. The physical demands are low for teenagers, but the emotional needs seem to skyrocket. My oldest daughter graduated from high school this year - meaning we spend lots of time on college visits/applications, senior year activities, graduation parties galore, getting ready for college, being supportive as she adjusted to college and, finally, adjusting to life without daughter#1's daily presence. One of the twins has transferred from the public high school to a private prep school, also requiring lots of extra time and effort in the parental support/understanding department, while the other twin learned how to navigate the high school without her sisters. As a result of all this, my reading choices tended to be somewhat lighter than usual this year.

-Fiction/Non-Fiction ratio?

There were 23 fiction and 7 non-fiction books. This works out to be 23% non-fiction... a bit higher than usual for me.

-Male/Female authors?

I read 10 male and 20 female authors this year. However, judging from my list of favorites, I should read more male authors.

-Favourite book(s) read?

Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo
The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle
The Sea by John Banville
The Painted Veil by Somerset Maugham
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by MaryAnn Schaffer and Annie Barrows
Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day by Winifred Watson
The Day The World Came to Town: 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland by Jim Defede

-Least favourite?

There were several books that I simply tossed aside this year, but my least favorite book that I finished was La Cucina by Lily Prior. It was a light, fluffy book read for a book club when I really wasn't in the mood for a beach read. I probably would have enjoyed this much more had I actually been on a beach!

addendum 1/4/09: My least favorite book of the year was actually The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs...a beach book that I did read on the beach.

-Oldest book read?

The Painted Veil, published in 1925, is the newest 'oldest book' I've ever read! I've always had several titles from the 18th or 19th centuries.

-Newest?

No ARC's this year, but plenty of books published in 2008.

-Longest book title?

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society ...I suspect this will be listed by many book bloggers in this spot!

-Shortest title?

The Sea

-How many re-reads?

Surprisingly, none.

-Most books read by one author this year?

The answer here is two, provided I can count John Banville (The Sea) and his alter-ego Benjamin Black (The Silver Swan) as the same person. I also read two books by Muriel Spark - The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie and Memento Mori.

-Any in translation?

Just one this year, Deafening by Frances Itani. This number is also way down from last year when I read 7 books in translation.

-And how many of this year's books were from the library?

Nine books came from the library, but then I ended up buying my own copy of two.

Thanks for this meme, Simon. It's given me a chance to reflect on what I've read in 2008 and helped me formulate some plans and goals for 2009.