2011 Reading Goals and 2010 Reading Stats

Last year I only set two reading goals for myself.

- Read 52 books.
- Reduce the TBR.

I failed the first one, topping out the year at 37 books. I did remarkably well on the second though as I gave away a ton of books.

Here's how they broke down:

-7 Non-fiction
-11 Young Adult Titles
-5 Paranormal adult fiction
-3 Fiction
-11 Romance novels

-4 by men
-31 by women
-2 by multiple authors

-31 from the library
-4 that I owned
-2 from the publisher

-15 published in 2011
-11 published in 2010
-3 in 2009
-3 in 2008
-2 in 2007
-2 in 2006
-1 in 2003

15 new-to-me authors.
-Clinton Kelly
-Jenny Han
-Elizabeth Scott
-Kathleen Flinn
-Laurie David
-Dani Shapiro
-Karen Marie Moning
-Kristan Higgins
-Lisa Quinn
-Lenore Skenazy
-Tana French
-Karleen Bliss
-Veronica Roth
-Susan Mallery
-Jonathan Safran Foer

I didn't read any books that were flat out awful. I have some I didn't finish, but none that I just hated. This is probably because I tend to stop reading early when they don't grab me.  I also didn't have many stand out terrific books. It was a long year and I read a lot of books that were easy and pleasant and that I knew I'd like, even if I didn't love them.  Topping the list were Divergent by Veronica Roth and The Kitchen Counter Cooking School: How a Few Simple Lessons Transformed Nine Culinary Novices into Fearless Home Cooks by Kathleen Flinn. I did enjoy both of those tremendously, and had a hard time not talking about them to anyone who would listen. Patricia Briggs's latest (River Marked (Mercy Thompson, Book 6) ) was also good, as was Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins. I picked up a Susan Mallery Fool's Gold romance on a whim, and found myself whipping right through 5 of 6 of them (and then waiting forever for the one I hadn't read.) They started out strong, but by the end they felt very repetitive. I also read and enjoyed Nora Robert's latest (The Next Always: Book One of the Inn BoonsBoro Trilogy ) and was predictably charmed. I wish the entire series was already out.


For 2012 I'd like to add a couple goals back into the list.  I hope to:
-read 52 books (hope springs eternal)
-read at least one really great book that hits my mental Best Of Forever list.
-participate in one very personal reading swap with a couple friends (I'll post about it, it's just not open to the general blogging public.)
-read all of the books on Janssen's best of 2011 list. Though Room scares me to death. I might give myself an out on that one.
-read at least one book from several on-going series (JD Robb's In Death series, Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden, Rachel Caine's Weather Wardens, and Kim Harrison's witch series.)
-get back to reviewing what I read



What about you? What are your goals for 2012? Were you happy with what you read in 2011?

I have a couple more retrospective posts for 2011 that I'd like to get done in the next week or so- some more sewing, some more reading stuff, a handful of reviews. I'm pretty excited by a fresh new year and can't wait to get going on it.