2023 Reading Year in Review

Favorite books of 2023 covers; titles are in the post below.

I read 61 books this year, but I cannot claim it was a standout year in terms of reading. Many of the books I read were not all that memorable, and some were not very good.

I usually like to compile some statistics about my reading. According to my Goodreads Year in Books, I read 19,146. I don’t know how it figures in audiobooks, so that may be pretty inaccurate. The average length of the books I read was 313 pages. My average rating was 4.4 stars, which surprised me since I didn’t feel like it was all that memorable a reading year. Here is a breakdown of genres:

  • 38 works of fiction (novels)
  • 3 poetry collections
  • 19 works of nonfiction, including 5 memoirs
  • 1 graphic nonfiction
  • 3 re-reads
  • 9 books that had been on my TBR for more than a year

Probably my favorite book this year was Emily St. John Mandel’s Sea of TranquilityHowever, the following books also made my favorites list:

  • To the Bright Edge of the World by Eowyn Ivey
  • Country by Michael Hughes
  • Weyward by Emilia Hart
  • The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré
  • How to Be Perfect by Michael Schur
  • The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold
  • Tastes Like War by Grace M. Cho
  • Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
  • Above Ground by Clint Smith

Reading Stats

Now that we’re closing in on the middle of July, lots of book bloggers are reviewing their 2008 statistics, and I didn’t want to be left out of the fun [via Bookgirl].

  • Books read: 14 (which makes me feel woefully inadequate next to Bookgirl’s 48)
  • Mysteries: 1
  • Fiction: 12
  • Books by women: 8
  • Library copies: 1
  • Books I have, will, or might teach this year: 4
  • Books I didn’t like: 1
  • YA books: 2
  • Classics: 5
  • Online (DailyLit): 1
  • New-to-me authors: 9
  • Books published this year: 2
  • Average Goodreads rating (out of 5 stars): 4.21

I am a little surprised about the high rating.  My overall Goodreads rating is 4.36.  I think that’s because I rarely finish I book I don’t like, and I don’t review or rate books I don’t finish.  Therefore, all of the books I’ve read this year (with one exception) received 4 or 5 stars.

What are some of your reading stats for this year?