Happy 2014 everyone!
2013 was a game-changer because of baby David, but other great stuff happened as well. Here are some highlights:
- Added two new countries to my list: Lithuania and Uzbekistan
- My team was top 3 on pub quiz a record number of times
- Ate jelly-fish, yam and shurbo dushpera for the first time
- Met Margaret Atwood
- Began drawing again
- Managed to keep a plant alive for more than 6 months (and counting)
Reading-wise, this was one of the years I’ve read less. It was expected, that’s why my 2013 Plan was to have no Plan. I’ve only read 54 books, 30 less than 2013, a 36% decrease. Still, it’s an average of a book a week, which, as everyone keeps telling me when I sound disappointed, it’s an accomplishment with a newborn.
As last year, here are the customary geeky stats. In parenthesis the difference compared to 2013 (it would make more sense to include the percentage, but I’m lazy). I’ll post the best books of the year tomorrow.
Format
As in last years, paper still rules, but percentage-wise audio continues to rise. I wonder if 2014 will be the year it reaches the top for the first time. The decrease in ebooks is related to the fall in the number of Classics I’ve read. For me, ebooks = Project Gutenberg.
Fiction vs. Non-fiction
Although fiction still has the clear majority, in terms of percentage non-fiction’s weight actually increased. When my head is mush, fiction is usually the remedy but at the hight of baby-madness, I was drawn to non-fiction, mostly via audiobooks.
A closer look at Fiction
Who’d say I’d EVER read more poetry (can I consider it “fiction”?) than graphic novels? It was one of the surprises of the year, although by an almost insignificant difference. I have the wonderful Shel Silverstein to thank for it.
The surprise of the year was the drop in Classics. In 2013 Classics was at the top of the list and now it’s 6th. I think it’s the result of a lack of challenges, read-alongs and bookclubs. Also, there’s the general decrease in concentration and patience that most classics demand.
It’s also interesting that the need for “easier” books led me to increase Crime, but at the same time I haven’t read a single Romance or Chick-lit. Psychologists, please analyse.
A closer look at Non-fiction
In the middle of so many decreases, it’s good to see a category with only one! Parenting books were a new thing, but some of the most rewarding reads of the year.
Languages
#FAIL. Need to fix it this year and invest some brain power into reading in French and Spanish.
Translated vs. original
#DOUBLEFAIL. Must become a 2014 project.
PLANS FOR 2014
I’m going to risk it and actually making reading plans. As the baby grows and becomes more independent I’m also gaining the sense of actually being in control of my time again. I don’t want to be too ambitious, so I won’t set an overall number of books I want to read, but I’d still like to:
1. Come back to book blogging
It’ll be a challenge, but I want to do at least 1 post a week. I also want to go back to visiting and commenting other blogs. I’ve missed it.
2. Participate in book blogging events
I’m thinking in particular about the Ada Lovelace Day, Armchair Audies and RIP. I’d also like to join a couple of read-alongs, if they fit the plans below.
3. Try non-fiction in graphic-novel format for the first time
Have a couple of Guy Delisle’s travelogues in the TBR and they’ll do nicely.
4. Read more translated fiction and non-fiction
Let’s say 10% of all 2014 books. Does anyone know of a Challenge that’s about books in translation?
5. Read more in the original
At least 5 books in Portuguese, 3 in French and 2 in Spanish.
Looking forward to reading about your own reading plans – did you make any?
27 comments
Comments feed for this article
January 2, 2014 at 9:08 pm
Kailana
It looks like 2013 was a great year for you even if you didn’t read as much. Good luck with your goals for 2014!
January 3, 2014 at 9:55 am
Alex
Good luck to you too Kailana! Thanks for stopping by!
January 2, 2014 at 9:36 pm
readingwithtea
Good to see you coming back – David looks JUST like you!!!! Hope to see you around a bit more.
January 3, 2014 at 9:56 am
Alex
Right?! It’s an ongoing discussion between Andre and me. The eyes are ALL mine and that’s what people notice more 🙂
January 3, 2014 at 11:11 am
readingwithtea
Also I don’t know what Andre looks like so it’s much easier for me to spot resemblance to the person I’ve met!
January 2, 2014 at 9:51 pm
Andre
What a great year it was.
January 3, 2014 at 9:57 am
Alex
*a toast to this one!*
January 3, 2014 at 12:24 am
Nari
54 is a really high number of books with a newborn on board. I had my son in February, and I barely managed to squeak by with 27 books this year, most of which were parenting. Although if you count the number of books i started then stopped reading…well that will definitely increase by book count for 2013.
Out of curiosity, what were your favorite parenting books this year? I read Brain Rules for Baby by John Medina, which I really enjoyed, but haven’t found anything else that’s as captivating or informative.
January 3, 2014 at 10:02 am
Alex
I’d love to discuss this with you! All four I’ve read were fabulous:
– How Eskimos Keep Their Babies Warm: And Other Adventures in Parenting (because I’m very curious about parenting across cultures. This was an eye opener!)
– What Mothers Do: especially when it looks like nothing (a life-saver during those first few months when I had no idea what I was doing… or so I thought!)
– Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting (probably the one I enjoyed the most. I know all these French-do-it-better books are bordering on the annoying, but I’m Portuguese and noticed how my parents raised me in this way. It feels so instinctive, so right!).
– How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character (good, but not as great as I was expecting.)
January 3, 2014 at 12:41 am
Jay
I was going to say that I was most impressed with your pub trivia prowess (and I’ll be taking the online Jeopardy! tryout again next week) but then I saw that you met Margaret Atwood. Awesome.
P.S. that’s an awesome pic of Little Sleepless. Love your stats too.
January 3, 2014 at 10:04 am
Alex
Hi Jay, pub quiz rules and keeps me grounded when everything else is insane. I’m ashamed to tell you how soon after having David I returned… 😛
January 3, 2014 at 4:24 pm
Larissa
David looks adorable! We really should have our sons meet each other at some point 😉
54 books read the year you had your first baby, that’s about 50 more than what I did when I had my first child, so congrats!
And… Guy Delisle is always a good choice. Have you read his “Guide du Mauvais Père”? Takes 5 minutes to read, which were 5 minutes of uninterrupted laughter for me!
January 4, 2014 at 12:41 am
Alex
I knew you’d approve of my choice of Delisle! You’re not the first person to recommend the Guide. Maybe I can borrow it from you when we meet on the 21st?
January 3, 2014 at 4:26 pm
Luís Miguel Rosa
You’re the only person I know who uses diagrams with your end of the year book lists. Amazing!
But what’s shurbo dushpera?
January 4, 2014 at 12:42 am
Alex
How book-geek can one get, right? Shurbo dushpera is a soup from Central Asia – sooo good!
January 3, 2014 at 9:31 pm
Patricia de Gray
Good luck with all your challenges this year whether they are reading more books or on the personal front. David is so cute. Looking forward to your blogs x
January 4, 2014 at 12:43 am
Alex
Hey Patricia, long time, no see. Lunch some time?
January 3, 2014 at 10:31 pm
Helen
Happy New Year, Alex! It’s good to see you blogging again. That’s a lovely picture of David. 🙂 Good luck with your reading plans for 2014.
January 4, 2014 at 12:43 am
Alex
Hi Helen, thanks for dropping by!
January 3, 2014 at 10:45 pm
Trish
Non-fiction in graphic novel form? You must add Fun Home, The Complete Maus, and Persepolis to your list. Loved all three of these so much. And good luck with your goals in 2014. I was able to get back to pre-baby blogging after my first while I was still working (though maybe not the commenting part) but with two it now seems very difficult! But like you I hope and wish. Happy New Year Alex. Baby David is beautiful!
January 4, 2014 at 12:44 am
Alex
Persopolis is also on the TBR and I need to read Maus before tackling The Complete Maus! Never heard of Fun Home *goes to GoodReads, investigate*
January 5, 2014 at 12:22 pm
Alex in Leeds
Happy new year, good luck with your goals. I love the fact you’re thinking of doing something for Ada Lovelace Day. 🙂
January 5, 2014 at 5:53 pm
Kim (Sophisticated Dorkiness)
I think a book a week is more than respectable for someone with an infant. I’m amazed by people who read a ton with children… I know if/when we have kids I will have to cut back dramatically.
January 6, 2014 at 7:31 pm
Charlie
Well done, that’s an excellent number! I think there’s a German lit month? Maybe, if so, that could be a start? David is gorgeous 🙂
January 7, 2014 at 4:29 pm
wolfshowl
I only read 54 books in 2013 too, and I *don’t* have a newborn. The number isn’t important. Just that you continue to read is. 🙂
January 11, 2014 at 2:25 pm
Joanna @ CreateYourWorld
You did so well! I hear ya about wanting to read easier books, I read mostly ya for like two years after Shane was born. 🙂
January 12, 2016 at 10:42 pm
2015 in review and 2016 plans | The Sleepless Reader
[…] 2014, 2013 and […]