The only upside to the crummy outside weather is that it means cozy indoor reading while the wood furnace runs. I'm trying to keep my mind on that and not all of the ick that is on its way. This is the time of year when "why do we live here?" is a frequent question we ask ourselves.
Anyway...let's talk about October and all the reading that got done. Let's talk about the AMAZING books I managed to read in what was my best reading month of the year so far.
Reading Stats
Are you seeing this graph? Whoa. After the relatively low reading of September, I came back last month with a vengeance. I attribute this to the quality of the books I read, but I completed a total of FOURTEEN books in October, my highest number for the year. I'm pretty thrilled with that...and a little surprised. I knew I had read a lot, but I didn't realize that it topped out every other month.
With so many books completed, this post would be destined to be mammoth if I went through every book in a mini-review in addition to these stats in my usual form. So I have chosen this month to split the wrap up into two parts. This is strictly stats, the actual reviews will be along tomorrow.
I have to admit that this graph is getting a little ridiculous. I have far exceeded any other year in the last decade and I am inching my way to over 100 books read in 2019. That's insane. I should easily hit that mark this month.
This set of stats took the wind out of my sails just a little bit. Yes, I read more books than any other month, but apparently they were shorter on average. I finished at a total of 4,024 pages for the month. This is the second highest for the month, beat out by August, in which I read 4,078 pages. So really still pretty darned close. It bothers me more than it should. Because I'm a competitive nerd with myself, apparently.
Those 4,024 pages averaged out to a reading total of 129.8 pages per day, again running second to August, which averaged 131.5 pages per day.
TBR Completion
So I did really good with reading and completed a lot of books in October, but if you remember...I set myself a ridiculous TBR back at the beginning of the month. I decided that I need to start holding myself accountable for setting a TBR, so I'm going to start tracking how much of my TBR I actually accomplish.
Last month, I set myself a TBR containing 12 print novels and 4 audiobooks. A total of 16 books. Clearly I did okay in terms of number since I completed 14 books. However, I skewed away from the print TBR just slightly. I did finish 3 of the 4 audiobooks I set for myself, but only 8 of the 12 print novels. So...where did the other 3 reads of the month come from? Well...I took on 2 previously unplanned audiobooks (which I'd been waiting on via my library) and I moved up 1 book that was originally supposed to be in this month's TBR. I just couldn't wait.
That means that I completed 68.75% of my originally planned TBR. I'm going to be designing a way to track this in my spreadsheets...surprise, surprise...so I should be able to have some form of tracking graph by next year. I have to decide how I want to go about it.
Book Stats
In the pile or reads there were: 6 ARCs, 1 Book Club read, 1 previously unfinished read, 2 library holds, 1 book that is the first in a series where I have the 2nd book as an ARC, and 3 audiobooks I put on the TBR last month based solely on availability and a desire to read.
In that group, the ratings were as follows:
DNF : 0 books 1-star: 0 books 1.5 star: 0 book
2-star: 2 books 2.5 star: 1 book 3-star: 0 books 3.5 star: 1 book
4-star: 3 books 4.5 star: 3 books 5 star: 4 books
Four 5 star reads in ONE MONTH. That's so incredibly nuts...and wonderful.
There were:
4 sci-fi reads
3 fantasy novels
3 adult contemporaries
2 YA contemporaries
1 historical fiction
1 magical realism
The 5-star reads for the month spanned three of these genres.
A total of 6 of the books were intended for adult audiences, I considered 4 of them to be new adult, and 4 as YA reads this month. The line between new adult and YA is a blurry one, so my classifications may not be agreed to by all, but that's where I'm putting things.
A whopping 10 out of the 14 were diverse reads in one way or another, with the majority of those being due to some form of diverse race representation.
A whopping 10 out of the 14 were diverse reads in one way or another, with the majority of those being due to some form of diverse race representation.
Books I Read
As mentioned earlier, the mini-reviews for each novel will be in a separate post. For now, here is a list of what I read along with their genres and ratings.
Maternal Instinct by Rebecca Bowyer (SciFi): 4 stars
Conclusion by Peter Robertson (SciFi): 2.5 stars
The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert (Fantasy): 5 stars
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander/J.K. Rowling (Fantasy): 4 stars
My Crazy (Sick) Love by Drica Pinotti (Adult Contemporary): 2 stars
5 Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott (YA Contemporary): 4.5 stars
The Weaver by Heather Kindt (Fantasy): 3.5 stars
When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore (Magical Realism): 4 stars
An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green (SciFi): 5 stars
The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes (Adult Contemporary): 2 stars
Scars Like Wings by Erin Stewart (YA Contemporary): 4.5 stars
The Grace Year by Kim Liggett (SciFi): 5 stars
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett (Adult Contemporary): 4.5 stars
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris (Historical Fiction): 5 stars
Have you read any of my October reads? Were your ratings similar to mine?
In part two of this wrap up I'll go through each book review in a little more detail. Maybe you'll be able to find a book or two to add to your own TBR!
In part two of this wrap up I'll go through each book review in a little more detail. Maybe you'll be able to find a book or two to add to your own TBR!
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