Sunday, February 9, 2020

2019 Reading Wrap Up: The Best & the Worst...The End of the Year Survey

Yes...it's February and I'm still wrapping up my 2019 reading. Are we really all that surprised? No. No we're not. I do this every year. The good news is that we're making creeping, crawling progress.

Today, it's time for the End of the Year Survey, originally created by Jamie at Perpetual Page Turner. It brings together the best and the worst of the year's reading and gives you the breakdown beyond the numbers.

Ready?

Let's do this!

The Quick Stats

Number of books read: 116
Number of rereads: 4
Genre I read the most from: Contemporary (25 adult reads, 7 YA reads)

If you love the numbers and graphs, but missed my stats wrap up, you can find all that nerdy wonder here.

The Best & the Worst

1. The best book read in 2019?

Well...this one I won't quite answer yet. Because this will be answered during the 2019 Book of the Year Bracket, which will be coming up in the next few posts. But...I will tell you my favorites for each of the months. This doesn't mean that these are my absolute favorites of the year, these are just the top reads for each of their respective months.


January: Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah
February: Midnight at the Tuscany Hotel by James Markert
March: The Life We Bury by Alan Eskens



April: The Book of the Unnamed Midwife by Meg Elison
May: Not So Long Ago, Not So Far Away by Trisha Slay
June: The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan



July: Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
August: 100 Days of Sunlight by Abbie Emmons
September: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr



October: The Grace Year by Kim Liggett
November: Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
December: Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

2. Best 2019 release



3. Best backlist read


4. Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love more, but didn't?


5. Most surprising read?



6. Most disappointing read?


7. Book you "pushed" the most people to read (and they did)



8. Best series started in 2019?


9. Best sequel of 2019?


10. Best series ender of 2019?

Disclaimer: This was a good read, but it was also the only series ender I read in 2019.

11. Favorite new author discovered in 2019?

 

12. Best book from a genre you don't typically read?


13. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?


14. Book read in 2019 that is the most likely to be reread?

15. Favorite cover of a book read in 2019?


16. Most memorable character of 2019?
Auggie


17. Most beautifully written book read in 2019?


18. Most thought-provoking/life-changing book of 2019?


19. A book you can't BELIEVE you waited until 2019 to finally read?


20 Favorite passage/quote from a book read in 2019?


I'm terrible at tracking quotes from books (maybe that should be a change I try to make with 2021's reading), so I'm skipping this one.

21. Shortest book read in 2019?

97 pages

22. Longest book read in 2019?

543 pages

23. Book that shocked you the most?



23. OTP (One true pairing) of the year (you will go down with this ship)

Stella & Will


24. Favorite non-romantic relationship of the year

Charlotte & Wilbur


25. Favorite book read in 2019 from an author you've read previously


26. Best book read in 2019 that you read based on a recommendation from someone else/peer pressure/bookstagram,etc.


27. Newest fictional crush from a book read in 2019

Tric



28. Best 2019 debut?



29. Best world building/most vivid setting you read this year?


30. Book that put a smile on your face/was the most fun to read?


31. Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2019?


32. Hidden gem of the year?



33. Book that crushed your soul?


34. Most unique book you read in 2019?



35. Book that made you the most mad (doesn't necessarily mean you didn't like it)


I feel like I have to quantify this one. My anger was based on the fact that it felt like the author appropriated the story. Though Laura was definitely a part of what took place, this is Maurice's story and I wanted him to get more credit for that. This was a book club book and our discussion resulted in a bit of venting about this from me and agreement from the majority of those around the table. (Side note: I rated it as a 3.5.)

Blogging/Bookish Life

1. New favorite book blog/Bookstagram/YouTube channel you discovered in 2019?



Gavin is a hilarious goof ball and the reading mastermind behind the Believe in Yourself Readathon (AKA Believathon). He's a TON of fun to watch.

2. Favorite post you wrote in 2019?

I don't really know. The blog is still in a bit of flux and nothing really sticks out. However, I think my favorite posts to write every year are my Book of the Year posts, so we'll go with last year's finale bracket.

3. Favorite bookish related photo you took in 2019?

4. Best bookish event that you participated in?

The two main Magical Readathons, hosted by G at BookRoast. The OWLs in April and the NEWTs in August.


5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2019?

I have no idea. There were a lot of things that happened last year.


6. Most challenging thing about blogging or your reading life this year?

I don't have a lot of time to blog with the two kids running around the house all day and the oldest deciding that he will no longer take naps. By the time I get around to it, I'm often either wiped out or just plain brain dead.


7. Most popular post this year on your blog?

This was a little bit of a surprise and I'm not quite sure what set off it's popularity, but apparently people liked my review post for The Murmur of Bees by Sofia Segovia.


8. Post you wished got a little more love?

I don't really know. I think maybe all of my content is just about even in my eyes.


9. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?

Book Outlet. It may be both my best and worst discovery in 2019. My physically owned TBR has grown exponentially over the last year. But...on the upside, I spent only a teensy bit more than I would have spent buying my books used and they're all in fantastic condition. I always love a Book Outlet delivery day


10. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of the year?

Yes I did! I had a whole pile of them. You can read all about my 2019 progress here and see a list of all of my challenges here.


Looking Ahead

1. One book you didn't get to in 2019, but will be high priority in 2020?

Oh man. I have a whole pile of them. But...I am itching to read a few...



2. Book you are most anticipating for 2020 (non-debut)?




3. Most anticipated 2020 debut?



4. Series ending/sequel you are most anticipating in 2020?




5. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging life in 2020?

I'm focusing on trying to keep up with my stats tracking as well as regular book related posting to my Instagram account. I'm hoping that I can revive my love for the blog and find some creative ways to present more bookish content. I've toyed with the idea of changing from a blog to a YouTube channel, but (1) I'm not a big fan of myself on video and (2) I'm not sure I'll have enough time for the necessary editing.

6. A 2020 release you've already read & recommend to everyone (if applicable)?



Phew! That's a lot of bookish chatting. With any luck, I've given you a new book or two to check out. If not, never fear...the Book of the Year bracket is coming up in the next few posts. With 116 books read in 2019, there will be a lot of heavy competition. Aaand...when it's all said and done, I'm going to attempt to put every book read in 2019 in order from the worst to the best. That should be interesting.

Until next time...happy reading!

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