Tuesday, January 3, 2017

2016 in Books

We all know I'm a book nerd. I'd even go so far as to say I'm a bibliophile, addicted to books, on the verge of having a reading problem. I'd say I'm on the road to recovery, but we all know I'd end up at the library.

This year I had a goal to read 52 books; a book for each week of the year. I'm glad to report I not only met my goal, but exceeded it! Bam! Take that, 2016! 

I keep a list of each book I read every year for two reasons. Firstly, I have accidentally checked out the same book on multiple occasions, not realizing I'd already read it. Secondly, I read a book in sixth grade that I adored and have yet been able to remember the title of, despite several years of working as a bookseller and searching the inventory system high and low, and despite my and  Google's best efforts to locate it, it eludes me still. So for the past several years, I've kept a list of what I've been reading so I can reference it later if I can't remember the title or author.

Without further ado, here are the books and short stories I read in 2016.
  1. Angel Falls, Kristin Hannah 
  2. The Girl Who Fell from the sky, Heidi Durrow
  3. The Memory Thief, Emily Colin
  4. The Diary, Eileen Goudge
  5. No place like home, Barbara O'Neal
  6. Chez Stinky, Susan Daffron
  7. Isle of the Lost, Melissa De la Cruz
  8. Picture This, Jacqueline Sheehan
  9. A Paris Apartment Michelle Gable
  10. Fakers, Meg Collett
  11. Best of Enemies, Jen Lancaster
  12. When the Cypress Whispers, Yvette Corporon
  13. Little Bee, Chris Cleave
  14. The Demigod Diaries, Rick Riordan
  15. Flawed, Cecelia Ahern
  16. It's Not Me, It's You; Mhairi McFarlane
  17. The Sword of Summer, Rick Riordan 
  18. Three Wishes, Lianne Moriarty 
  19. The Weekenders, Mary Kay Andrews 
  20. Out of the Spin Cycle, Jen Hatmaker
  21. The Art of Crash Landing, Melissa DeCarlo
  22. Little Beach Street Bakery, Jenny Colgan
  23. The Crown of Ptolemy, Rick Riordan
  24. 7, Jen Hatmaker
  25. The Alchemyst, Michael Scott
  26. Love and Gelato, Jenna Evans Welch
  27. Things Left Unspoken, Eva Marie Everson 
  28. The Improper Life of Bezellia Grove, Susan Gregg Gilmor
  29. For the Love, Jen Hatmaker
  30. The Race for Paris, Meg Waite Clayton
  31. The Magician, Michael Scott
  32. How to Eat a Cupcake, Meg Donahue
  33. Falling, Jane Green
  34. The Beach House,  Georgia Bockoven
  35. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, JK Rowling
  36. Where'd You Go, Bernadette? , Maria Semple
  37. The Chaperone, Laura Moriarty
  38. The Sorceress, Michael Scott
  39. Thrice the Brinded Cat hath Mew'd, Alan Bradley
  40. The Wedding Dress, Rachel Hauk
  41. The Necromancer, Michael Scott 
  42. The Death of Joan of Arc, Michael Scott 
  43. The Warlock, Michael Scott
  44. Billy the Kid and the Vampyres of Vegas, Michael Scott
  45. The Enchantress, Michael Scott 
  46. Two by Two, Nicholas Sparks
  47. A Vintage Affair, Isabel Wolff
  48. Trials of Apollo, Rock Riordan
  49. Change of Scene, Mary Kay Andrews
  50. Instructions for a Heat Wave, Maggie O'Farrell
  51. The Sock Wars, Maia Sepp
  52. The Garden of Happy Endings, Barbara O'Neal
  53. Scrappy Little Nobody, Anna Kendrick
  54. Arf, Spencer Quinn 


I was reading Amy Schumer's memoir, Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo, but didn't finish it. 2016 marked a lot of change for me, in that I finally decided to stop reading a book that didn't hold my attention and make me want to pick it back up. I KNOW! Typically I have a little OCD about not finishing things, and I particularly dislike not finishing books. I (foolishly, irrationally) feel like the characters in any book are stuck in whatever situation they're in when I close the cover for the day, so I don't like to leave them in mortal danger or awaiting potentially terrible news. This is why I finish books so quickly and never get any sleep.

So, favorite of the year. Anything by Barbara O'Neal was incredible, and I'm a tad obsessed with her (but in a totally non-stalker-y way, in case she wants to be besties). Where'd You Go, Bernadette? was one of my favorites, for sure, as was Arf. As you can see, I tend to read an author's entire catalogue, so when I discovered Jen Hatmaker I went on a bit of a binge. I adore her and her 'life is for real so here's what it really looks like' take on life. She's hilarious, and loving, and making the world a better place.



Irish author Cecelia Ahern is another favorite, and her new young adult series is fabulous so far. If I had a Top 10 of 2016 books list, Flawed would definitely be on it. Mary Kay Andrews is another beloved author, and she had a novel and novella come out this year, so I was one happy camper.


I'm not sure what my reading goal for 2017 will be. I'm honestly still kind of reeling that 2016 is over; I've been ill since Christmas and time has been rather foggy, so I keep forgetting it's 2017. This is the year my oldest starts preschool. This is a year of change. There will be a lot of adjustments and learning for all of us, and books are my adult version of a security blanket. I'll keep you updated on what I'm reading!

Did you read anything wonderful last year? I'm always looking for recommendations! I highly recommend BookBub- they email you daily ebook deals in the genres/authors of your choosing. I don't have an endless book budget (or endless storage space on my Nook!), so I keep a list of books I want to read from BookBub and check the eBooks out from the library. You can also recommend books to the library. I feel a bit like a literary rock star every time they buy a book I've recommended!

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