Analysis of the Books I Read in 2013

For a few years now, I have been collecting data on the books I read and then analyzing the information I collected. Over the years, I have curated the list of questions you'll see below.

In 2013, I put together a spreadsheet that allowed me to record even more information: book title, author, star rating, category and sub category, publisher, publication date, which month I read it, whether I owned it or borrowed it, whether I was re-reading it, and if someone recommended it. For a complete list of my books, go HERE.

Without further ado, here are the stats...

How many books did you read in total?

109: an average of one book every three days. I read 173 books in 2010, 144 books in 2011, and 148 in 2012. So this was a slow reading year for me.

What was the average star rating?

3.9 (where ratings were from 1 to 5, with 0 for DNF (didn't finish)). This is a rather high average, which I blame on all the re-reads, in addition to, new books by authors known to me.

How many works of fiction and how many non-fiction?

Nonfiction: 7, Fiction: 102 (wince), a ratio of 1:15. In 2010, the ratio was 1:57, in 2011, it was 1:15, and in 2012, it was 1:18. Hopefully, there will be more nonfiction in 2014.

Which percent of male versus female authors did you read?

Male: 5, Female: 104 (double wince). So the male authors read were about 5% of the total. In 2010, the number was 3% of the total, in 2011, it was 5%, and in 2012, it was 7%. All of the five books by male authors were nonfiction.

How much romance versus all other genres?

13 non-romance vs. 96 romance, which is 88% romance of the total number of books read. In 2010, I read more than 85% romance, 79% in 2011, and 82% in 2012. All the non-romance books were in the following categories: children's and young adult fiction, literary fiction, mystery, poetry, and non-fiction

What were the categories of the books and how many books did you read in each category?

Medieval (1), Georgian (2), Regency (66), Victorian (10), Western (7), Contemporary (5), Mystery (2), Chick-Lit and Women's Fiction (1), Literary Fiction (2), Children's & Young Adult (1), Novellas (12), Poetry (1), Memoirs (1), Parenting (3), and general nonfiction (2)

How many books did you read each month?

Jan (8), Feb (8), Mar (10), Apr (5), May (15), Jun (12), Jul (9), Aug (16), Sept (8), Oct (10), Nov (5), Dec (2)

Did you mostly buy, borrow, or re-read?

I borrowed marginally more books from the public library than re-read from my personal library. I borrowed in the first half of the year and re-read in the second half. I bought very few books this year, as compared with other years, when I mostly bought most of my books.

Which was your top favorite book?

"Hampshire Hoyden" by Michelle Martin

Which was your surprise favorite book and why?

"The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan. It was my first middle-grade novel, and I was surprised by the complex world-building, which remained true to the historical facts of the relevant time period.

Which were the oldest and newest books, by pub date?

"Imprudent Lady" by Joan Smith (Sept 1978) and "The Countess Conspiracy" by Courtney Milan (Dec 2013)

Which were the longest and shortest book titles?

Longest Book Title: "What Would Michelle Do? : A Modern Day Guide to Living with Substance" by Allison Samuels

Shortest Book Titles: "Frederica" by Georgette Heyer, "Arabella" by Georgette Heyer, "Isabella" by Loretta Chase, "Unlocked" by Courtney Milan, "Defiant" by Pamela Clare

Which were the longest and shortest books?

"Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron and "Amarillo by Morning" by Jodi Thomas

Who were the most-read authors of the year?

Joan Wolf (6), Jodi Thomas (6), Michelle Martin (9), and Georgette Heyer (13)

Which authors were new to you in 2013? Would you want to read their entire backlist now?

Would love to read Elizabeth Chadwick's, Carla Kelly's, Emma Jensen's, Michelle Martin's, and Dorothy Sayers's backlists.

The other new-to-me authors were: Kasey Michaels, Joan Smith, Shannon Stacey, Allison Samuels, Gillian Flynn, Nonnie St. George, Nancy Butler, Elizabeth Chadwick, Narjorie Farrell, Michelle Martin, and Charlotte Louise Dolan

Any books in translation?

None

Any re-reads?

Books Georgette Heyer, Loretta Chase, Joan Wolf, Michelle Martin, and Joanna Bourne by among others

Which books you wouldn’t have read without someone’s specific recommendation?

I wouldn't have discovered Michelle Martin without @younglibrarian's recommendation. @janga724 recommended the most number of books (6) and then @redrobinreader (3). Overall, I read 20 books on recommendations from friends.

Did you read any books you have always been meaning to read?

Georgette Heyer's backlist

Which publishers' books did you read the most?

Signet (18), Avon (14), Berkley (13), Harlequin (11), Sourcebooks (8), Fawcett (8), and Zebra (7)

How many self-published books did you read?

5

Which books that you read in 2013 do you think you will re-read in 2014?

Books by Joan Wolf, Jo Goodman, Meredith Duran, Georgette Heyer, Michelle Martin, and Loretta Chase among others

Which authors do you predict you will glom in 2014?

Continue with Georgette Heyer and re-read Laura Kinsale

Which types of books would you like to read more of?

Nonfiction and by male authors

What information are you missing in your data collection for 2013 that you'd like to add to 2014?

Whether the books came from my TBR (to-be-read) mountain and the number of pages in each book