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Tuesday, January 17, 2017

My 2016 Bookish Stats

For three years now, I have been keeping track of my bookish stats in an extensive spreadsheet so that I can compile the data at the end of the year, make some graphs, and keep track of the trends in my reading (see my 2014 bookish stats and my 2015 bookish stats). Yes, I am a nerd. But I will not deny my unabashed love for Microsoft Excel and all its many uses... 


So. In 2016 I read 175 books. I am proud not only of this number, but of the fact that I have been steadily increasing my number of books read every year by 25 books since 2011. So of course now that I am so close to *200 books* read in a year, I feel like I just have to challenge myself to do it, you know? Of course, I will need to read a bunch of shorter books this year to have a shot at meeting such a goal... We'll see what happens.



I consider it a good reading year when the majority of books I read are 4 stars and above. So I am happy to say that 2016 was a very good year for me in books as roughly 75% of books I read were 4 (or 3.5 rounded up) stars to 5 stars, with only a few duds.



Here is a breakdown of books read by genre from 2014 to 2016. Fantasy reading is back on top for me after that weird anomaly in 2015 when contemporary reads actually surpassed fantasy reads. I also read a lot more dystopians in 2016 (I read a few backlist series that I've had on my TBR forever, like the Uglies Series by Scott Westerfeld and the Shatter Me Trilogy by Tahereh Mafi). And I've really been embracing and enjoying non-fiction a whole lot this past year.



I read zero review books in 2016, nor did I purchase any books. All the books I read in 2016 were either borrowed from the library or gifted to me (i.e.. FREE). Now this might be the stat I'm most proud of, and my wallet thanks me! Occasionally I do miss the days of receiving advanced books for review from publishers and all the excitement that went along with that, but overall I find I'm happiest not reading and reviewing on anyone's schedule but my own.



Only three data points here, but I'm pleased that I've managed to meet my goal to read more diverse books: in 2016, almost 25% of the books I read had a MC who was a person of colour.



I've also managed to read more books with an LGBT representation, with over 15% of books read in 2016 featuring a LGBT MC.



And finally, I've managed to increase the percentage of standalones I read in 2016 to almost 50% (probably all those non-fiction reads I read). I still love me a good series read, but I was getting a bit overwhelmed with the number of series I was taking on so I am happy I decided to do less series-reading in 2016.


So there you have it (if anyone did indeed read this post to the end...)! In 2017, I would like to continue to read more non-fiction as I really enjoyed it in 2016. I would also like to read more diversely and limit the number of series I have on the go. I am considering taking up e-galley reading for publishers again (though not in any major capacity), and I plan on maintaining my book buying ban for 2017. Here's to a good year in reading!

24 comments :

  1. "But I will not deny my unabashed love for Microsoft Excel and all its many uses..." Haha, same! Spreadsheets and graphs are my BFFs, no shame.

    Looks like you did a great job on working towards your reading goals this past year. I am SO impressed that you managed to not spend any $ on books!

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    1. Yes, well I am quite lucky to get gifted a lot of books that I want, which really eliminates my need to buy any more books myself!

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  2. YAY to a great reading year! I always find that the reading goal becomes much easier after you read a string of 4 stars or above books in a row. Last year I paid particular attention to the review journals instead of the hype on the blogosphere and had great results (although some of the heavily starred books were just meh) so I'm going to continue that route. Hope 2017 is another great reading year for you, Aylee!

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    1. Hmm yeah that's a good point. I've definitely been being more discerning of the books that I pick up to read than I used to be. I used to just read any book that a blogger mentioned that had a pretty cover, and it often led to disappointments and reading slumps. I much prefer the way I do things now.

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  3. Good post. Got me thinking about my reads for the coming year. I do keep tabs of books read and heard. But have not broken it down like this. I had a mostly 4 star year too which is indeed a good thing ;-)

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  4. I love these posts!! I love that you keep track of all of these things. I do really well on LGBT+ characters, but I do want to try and read more books with POC. I don't intentionally seek or avoid these books, but I want to try and pay a bit more attention this year. I also want to read more of my own books so I'm trying to avoid accepting or requesting TOO many review books this year.

    -Lauren

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    1. Thanks, Lauren! I would love to see whatever stats posts you can come up with if you decide to start keeping track!

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  5. That's so amazing that you didn't purchase any books!! I cut back quite a lot but still want to cut back more. Love the library and my own shelves haha. Congrats on so many books read as well!! 2016 was my best reading year ever with 106 books, and lots of high ratings too; I've gotten better at finding "Morgan" books I guess :) I like the graphs you made, fun post!

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    1. Thanks! I've gotten better at finding "Aylee" books too :)

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  6. These are some impressive stats! (And your Excel skills are amazing, I am jealous.) I bought way too many books in 2016 so I'm going to try reduce that this year (it's awesome you managed to buy none in 2016!). And I want to read more non-fiction too! I read a few non-fiction books in 2016 and realised that I actually quite liked them. Thanks for sharing :).

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    1. heh thanks. It helps that I often get gifted books by thoughtful people!

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  7. I read 159 books in 2016. Couldn't squeeze that last one in to make an even 160 lol

    That's actually down for me. I used to read over 200 but I've hit a few slumps the past few years so I'll take whatever I can get. And 159 is still a LOT of books.

    Karen @For What It's Worth

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  8. You had a great reading year! I tried keeping an excel spread sheet but I lost the will power to keep tracking my reading and relied on goodreads lol. Happy reading in 2017!

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    1. Heh, I guess it gets easier keeping up the habit the more you do it, or something.

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  9. Way to go Aylee! I read about 100 books this year. I'd like to do more than that. I'd also like to get at least 25-33% POC books. I'm doing more than I used to, but I can still do better. Lots of work to do in 2017!

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  10. I love that you keep stats. I don't usually. But I think it would be fun to take on. I love that you had such a great reading year in 2016- I am impressed with the number of 4+ star reads. I am also super impressed that you managed not to buy ANY books, and plan to keep that up in 2017.

    I am so excited to see you read 200 books this year. I would bow down at your feet. Hahah, this is the year I aim for 100, we shall see.

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    1. Heh, thanks Sara. If I do manage 200 books, it will be mostly made up of shorter reads I think.

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  11. I always enjoyed checking out your stats! I didn't read a single review book in 2016 either but that's because I was doing lots of audio and catching up on the books I already own. I think I might be mostly done with review books honestly (with some exceptions). I just want to read for me, you know?! So good job on that front for sure :) Oh and I like that your LGBT representation is increasing - I need to work on that but Fantasy/Sci-Fi can be a bit limited on that front. I'm rooting for you to read an EPIC 200 books this year :D

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    1. Thanks Miche :D:D And yeah, I prefer reading for me, too. As far as representation of LGBT and POC characters in fantasy/sci-fi, I find that graphic novels are where it's at! Way ahead of the curve compared to other forms of reading.

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  12. Wow, it looks like you had a fantastic reading year! I'm kind of jealous you have so many years of stats in the same format. I'm mixing it up or falling behind all the time :)

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  13. Yay for awesome bookish stats :D Congrats on reading so so many books. <3 And yay for most of them being amazing :) Thank you for sharing Aylee. <3 Hope you read tons of great books this year too :D

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