End of Year Book Survey

Hosted by Jamie @ Perpetual Page Turner, I like how this survey delves into the specifics of books read. I did remove some of the questions that don’t apply to me, so be sure to visit the original post if you’d like to complete the survey. My annual overview will go live on January 2nd as I want to wait until the Cybils shortlist is announced.

2016 Reading Stats

• • Number of books read – 114. I smashed through my goal of 84 (largely due to my role as Cybils round one panelist). I’ve also never read 100+ books in a year. So proud of myself~
  • Number of re-reads – 5 (White is for Witching, A Darker Shade of Magic, Charlotte’s Web, The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender, The Lost Flower Children)
  • Genre you read the most from – I don’t keep track by genre, so here’s the middle grade/young adult/adult/non-fiction split: 56 (49%) MG, 12 (11%) young adult, 27 (24%) adult, 19 (17%) non-fiction. I read more non-fiction than I thought, and less ‘adult’ than I had initially planned.

Best in Books

• • Best books read in 2016 – Last year I broke this down by genre. This year I’m just going to pick a bunch 😛
    1. Uprooted by Naomi Novik (fantasy)
    2. The Witches of New York by Ami McKay (magical realism/historical fiction)
    3. The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill (middle grade fantasy)
    4. Melissa’s Story by Alex Gino (middle grade contemporary)
    5. What is Not Yours is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi (short stories)
    6. Solving the Procrastination Puzzle by Timothy Pychyl (non-fiction)
    7. The North Water by Ian McGuire (historical fiction)
    8. The Ice Master by Jennifer Niven (non-fiction)
  • Book you were excited about and thought you were going to love more but didn’t – The Shadow of the Wind. Totally fell flat for me. Wasn’t really what I was expecting/hoping for.
  • Most surprising book read –  I enjoyed Allie, First at Last, a lot more than I expected (nominee for the Cybils middle grade fiction).
  • Favourite author discovered – Kelly Barnhill. Looking forward to more of her middle grade fantasy!
  • Best book from a genre you don’t typically read – The North Water
    is from a genre that I sometimes enjoy (historical fiction) but it was hyper-masculine, which is not something I typically look for in my books.
  • Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book – Scythe is the newest release from Neal Shusterman, one of my favourite authors. There’s something about his prose that makes me want to blaze through his work.
  • Most likely to reread next year – Uprooted by Naomi Novik
  • Favourite cover – I read a lot of books with great covers this year. My instinct answers The North Water, The Witches of New York, and Two Naomis.
    
  • Most memorable character – Eleanor St. Clair from The Witches of New York. I love all the ladies in this book, but Eleanor struck me as someone I would connect with.
  • Most beautifully written – I can actually think of a few different books that could be described as beautifully written this year. The girl Who Drank the Moon probably tops the list.
  • Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2016 to finally read – I started The Silmarillion…
    
  • Shortest book – Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl (96 pages)
  • Longest book – The LotR aside, A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab (509 pages)
  • Most shocking book – The North Water for its graphic descriptions
  • OTP of the year (you will go down with this ship!) – Don’t really have one this year. Perhaps Adelaide and Dr. Brody in The Witches of New York.
  • Favourite non-romantic relationship – Also have to go with The Witches of New York for the camraderie between Adelaide, Eleanor, and Beatrice.
  • Favourite book read by an author you read previously –What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi
  • Best book read based solely on a recommendation from somebody else/peer pressure –  The Girl Who Drank the Moon. I believe I read this after reading Briana’s review.
  • Newest fictional crush – Dr. Brody from The Witches of New York. What a gentleman! *-*
    Best 2016 debut –  A Song to Take the World Apart by Zan Romanoff (I think it’s the only 2016 debut I read…)
  • Best world-building – Scythe. I always enjoy how Neal Shusterman works world-building into his novel, especially how he modifies language.
  • Most fun to read – Insert Coin to Continue by John David Anderson. Boy wakes up one day to find his life now resembles a video game.
  • Book that made you cry – Ms. Bixby’s Last Day by, coincidentally, John David Anderson. That epilogue!!
  • Hidden gem – Based on a low number of Goodreads ratings (110), The Last Cherry Blossom by Kathleen Burkinshaw
    

    Your Bookish Life

• • New favourite book blog discovered – I will pick the one that was mostly recently updated at the time of drafting this post and go with Les Reveries de Rowena.
  • Favourite review on your blog – The Evolution of Alice by David Robertson
  • Best event that you participated in (real or virtual) – Attending bookish panels at NerdCon: Stories, including one on mental health in YA literature.
  • Best moment of bookish/blogging life – How about meeting picture book illustrator/author Jon Klassen with my best friend of the same name? That was an excellent moment.

Met my doppelgänger @burstofbeaden today at @mcnallyrobinson https://t.co/vpIeDsd8pX

— Jon Klassen (@JonKlassen1) December 11, 2016

• • Most challenging thing about blogging/reading life – Maintaining a regular blogging schedule when the rest of my life doesn’t have a regular schedule.
  • Post you wished got a little more love – 6 Books on Dying in Modern Times
  • Completion of challenges/goals – Well. Nevermind that haha. (More on completion of goals in my January 2 post).

Looking Ahead

• Book you are most anticipating (debut) – The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
• Book you are most anticipating (sequel) – A Conjuring of Light (ADSOM conclusion) by V.E. Schwab
• One book you didn’t get to in 2016 but will make a priority in 2017 – Don’t want to break with tradition, so I have to say  Tolkien on Fairy Stories 
• Book you are most anticipating (non-debut) – Borne by Jeff Vandermeer
• One goal for your reading/blogging life –I’ll post more about goals in a couple days, but I would love to read 100+ again next year.
• 2017 release you’ve read and recommend – I have three ARCs of 2017 releases that I haven’t read yet…I’m most looking forward to Minds of Winter by Ed O’Loughlin.

And that’s a wrap on 2016! I finished off the reading year with White is for Witching, my favourite book. Now I’m off to a New Year’s Eve dinner and party. See you all on the other side 🙂