Wednesday, January 01, 2014

Oh, 2013, Where in the World Have You Gone?


So, it's New Year's Day, 2014.  Wait a minute.  What?  How in the heck did that happen?  Honestly, these last few weeks have flown by in a haze of travelling and recovering from travelling.  I've been reading (I never really stop), but I just haven't had time to tackle the long list of reviews I need to write nor the pile of books I need to read.  I need to catch up.  A lot.  For now, though, I'm going to pretend I'm still sitting in front of that gorgeous view above, with my feet up and a book on my knee.  Serene, isn't it?  Believe it or not, this is a scene I got to enjoy just about every day for the first 18 years of my life.  I don't get to see it much these days, but when I do return to the Motherland (the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon/Washington), it still takes my breath away.  Just because I love it so much, here's another shot (taken on a clearer day):


Ahhh, my happy place.  Why did I ever come back to reality?

Since I'm here, how about a little year-end recap?  The stats are a bit pathetic (I blame games that end in With Friends), but here you go:

Total Books Read:  136 (*cringe*—my goal was 200)

Number of Fiction Books Read:  125 (92%)
Number of Non-Fiction Books Read:  11 (8%)
Number of Adult Books Read:  58 (43%)
Number of YA Books Read:  55 (40%)
Number of Middle Grade Books Read:  23 (17%)
Number of Books Read by Female Authors:  113 (83%)
Number of Books Read by Male Authors:  23 (17%)
Number of Books Read by LDS Authors:  20 (15%)
Number of Books Read from personal collection:  25 (18%)
Number of Books Read, review copies:  80 (59%)
Number of Books Read from library:  31 (23%)
Reading Challenges Joined in 2013:  2
Reading Challenges Completed in 2013:  O (ahem)  

What does it all mean?  Well, I read 21 fewer books than last year (21!), but I did read some really good ones.  Also, I need to enjoy more non-fiction.  My goal in 2014 will be (once again) to read 200 books.  We'll see if I can do it this year.  Other than that, I'm just planning to catch up on reviews, read more good books and keep on doing what I do.  Simple, right?  I hope so!

Thank you to all my readers for your generous support in 2013.  I love talking books with you—those conversations are what make book blogging so much fun for me.  I'm looking forward to a lot more of them in 2014.  Happy New Year!

3 comments:

  1. Those pictures, gorgeous..... happy place for sure.

    I giggled at the challenges, lol. I didn't even do any last year but I am considering 1 or 2 this year.

    I aim for 50 books and only completed 30, a really stressful full of 'life' year, look forward to this one.

    Happy New Year Susan

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  2. Bravo!!!
    Here's to a great reading year!

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  3. The pictures are gorgeous. Enjoy! :)

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