2023 Reading in Review

I really enjoy doing this blog post each year even though I feel overwhelmed when I first sit down to begin it. 2023 was a pretty good reading year for me with a slump in October that morphed into a string of books that were just ok and a December with nothing much read as my daughter was home. I read more books than last year, which is a total shock and enjoyed the books that I read for the most part.

Here's a wrap up of my reading in 2023:

Goodreads reading challenge (note: I actually read 124 books, but a few re-reads don't show up in 2023 and one book wasn't in Goodreads)

Number of re-reads: 3

Non-fiction: 20 (16%) and Fiction: 104 (84%)--talk about an imbalance! 

Adult books: 89 (71%) and YA/children's books: 35 (29%). I realize this is because I read so many YA/children's graphic novels as a CYBILS judge.

Shortest and longest books

Most and least popular on Goodreads 

Countries visited through reading: 45 You can see where I read at my 2023 Google Map.

Afghanistan, Albania, Australia, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Czech Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, Finaland, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Guyana, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, North Korea, Norway, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Sudan, Sweden, Syria, Taiwan, Trinidad, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Vietnam, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

US states visited through reading: 35. You can see where I read at my 2023 Google Map.

Alabama, Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawai'i, Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Washington, DC.

Best book of 2023?

I have never been good at picking one favorite book so I have listed my YA and adult favorites. 

 I also had a ton of 4.5 rated books and when I look back on them I have fond memories of reading these books as well.

Book you were excited about but didn't love as much as you expected?
I was really looking forward to reading People Collide by Isle McElroy, but it just didn't do it for me. I sitll thought it was cool when I met the narrator (Daniel Henning) of the book at a party.

Most surprising (in a good way) book of 2023?
I have three in this category this year: Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow (gaming, not usually my thing) and The Wishing Game because it involves some magical realism which is also not my usual thing.

Book you pushed most people to read in 2023?
This year the book I've told most people about is The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor. I found it super interesting and have implemented many of the ideas in it into my own life/practice with success.

Favorite new author you discovered in 2023?

I don't really have a favorite new author from 2023, but I will mention Angeline Bouley, Lisa See, Katherine Center, Thrity Umrigar, Darynda Jones, and Dashka Slater here since I was reminded of how great they both are. in this category since I really enjoyed her books XXXXX.

Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2023?

Hmmm. This is a tough one because I read a number of books that I wanted to keep reading into the night. Instead of choosing just one, I am choosing a few:

Favorite cover of a book you read in 2023?
I am all about covers and am definitely a visual person when it comes to choosing books. The covers I liked the most this year were ones whose colors appealed to me, they were evocative of a the novel's contents, or they just made me smile. I think, though, that these are not as amazing as last year's covers.

Most thought provoking or life-changing book of 2023?

I didn't really have any life changing or most thought-provoking books in 2023. But I will say that Yellow Face by RF Kuang got me thinking a lot about publishing and cancel culture. And African Town by Irene Latham and Charles Waters which showed a piece of history I didn't know about.

Book that put a smile on your face?

The book that put a smile on my face this year was What you are Looking for is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama. It wasn't one of my favorites this year, but I really delighted in the idea of this odd librarian who gave people felt bits and book recommendations that set their lives on the right path

Book that made you cry in 2023?
It is not difficult to get me to cry while reading a book. And I usually cry about the good stuff, the touching stuff. But this year, I sobbed at the end of The Last Love Note by Emma Grey. This book just hit a personal note with me.

Best bookish photo you took in 2023?

My favorite bookish photo that I took this year is my new bookshelves that were finally finished earlier this year. They make me happy.

Best event you participated in?
As always, I will choose participating as a round 2 judge for the CYBILS Awards. I have not signed up to be a judge in January 2024 as I knew my daughter would be in town for most of the month and I don't read much when she is here.

Reading challenges completed in 2023? Here's a link to my challenges page and while I didn't necessarily complete them all, I did pretty well.

Books you are most anticipating in 2023?

I don't have a most anticipated, but I am looking forward to reading these three books that are on my TBR shelf. I think I'll do one of them for my first book.