2022 Reading: A Year In Review

I Read 100 Books in 2022

2022 was an amazing year of reading for me. I created and participated in the 2022 Reading Challenge. I read a total of 100 books in 2022. I consumed over 30,000 pages.

I read 95 new-to-me books. I found a new top 10 favorite author. I discovered that I really enjoy murder mysteries.

If you’ve been following Spine & Leaf Books, you’ve probably seen my 2022 Reading Challenge as well as my monthly book updates. If you are new here, go ahead and check out the links below to get caught up.

I’ll break down the year into a few interesting categories to get a better feel for how the year went overall. After 100 books, it’s easy to forget about a few from earlier in the year.

I kept a reading journal all year to write down the books I was reading, the author, page count, and a rating out of 5 stars.

The List

Book #TitleAuthor
1To Sail a Darkling SeaJohn Ringo
2The Moment of LiftMelinda Gates
3The Musical HumanMichael Spitzer
4Yes, ChefMarcus Samuelsson
5The ClientJohn Grisham
6“A” is for AlibiSue Grafton
7What I Talk About When I Talk About RunningHaruki Mura
8Tom SawyerMark Twain
9Pride and PrejudiceJane Austen
10Built to LastJim Collins + Jerry I. Porras
11That SummerJennifer Weiner
12The FishermenChigozie Obioma
13Blood CountessLana Popovic
14A Discovery of WitchesDeborah Harkness
15The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie SocietyMary Ann Shaffer + Annie Barrows
16The House in the Cerulean SeaTJ Kline
17Lone SurvivorChris Stringer
18Practical MagicAlice Hoffman
19The Hawthorne SchoolSylvie Perry
20When Breath Becomes AirPaul Kalanithi
21Murder on the Orient ExpressAgatha Christie
22Fauci: Expect the UnexpectedAnthony Fauci
23The Invisible LibraryGenevieve Cogman
24Alone on the WallAlex Honnold + David Roberts
25PiranesiSusanna Clark
26Remarkable CreaturesTracy Chevalier
27Deja DeadKathy Reichs
28The Night CircusErin Morgenstern
2921 Lessons for the 21st CenturyYuval Noah Harari
30The Violin ConspiracyBrendan Slocumb
31The Emperor’s WolvesMichelle Segara
32All Systems RedMartha Wells
33The City We BecameN.K. Jemisin
34KismetLuke Tredget
35On JuneteenthAnnette Gordon Reed
36Bear TownFredrik Backman
37The BallerinasRachel Kapelke-Dale
38Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find ThemJ.K. Rowling
39Rin, Tongue, and DornerRich Shapero
40The Thursday Murder ClubRichard Osman
41NextMichael Crichton
42The Sacrifice of OneEmily Fortney
43The Water KnifePaolo Bacigalupi
44American ZooDavid Grazian
45Taller When ProneLes Murray
46Why You Eat What You EatRachel Herz
47Dreaming in TurtlePeter Lauter
48LegacyGreg Bear
49After Me Comes the FloodSarah Perry
50A Dying FallElly Griffiths
51Hood FeminismMikki Kendall
52The SelloutPaul Beatty
53Braiding SweetgrassRobin Kimmerer
54GutGuilia Enders
552001: A Space OdesseyArthur C. Clarke
56The Liar’s DictionaryEley Williams
57And Then There Were NoneAgatha Christie
58BreathJames Nestor
59Shadow and BoneLeigh Bardigo
60A Spindle SplinteredAlix E. Harrow
61The Midnight LibraryMatt Haig
62A Briefer History of TimeStephen Hawking
63The Vanishing HalfBrit Bennett
64The Midnight HourElly Griffiths
65StardustNeil Gaiman
66Venomous LumpsuckerNed Beauman
67Pay UpReshma Saujami
68John Dies at the EndJason Pargin
69The Girl in the ShadowsAudrey Blake
70Triathlon for the Every WomanMeredith Atwood
71Women Who TriAlicia DiFabio
72A Molecule Away from MadnessSara Manning Peskin
73The Four-Hour School DayDurenda Wilson
74The Anthropocene ReviewedJohn Green
75Eat and RunScott Jurek + Steve Friedman
76MessyTim Harford
77Death on the NileAgatha Christie
78Deaf UtopiaNyle Dimarco
79The Keeper of Lost ThingsRuth Hogan
80My Messy is a Bit of a LifeGeorgia Pritchett
81The Alchemy of AirThomas Hager
82The Atlas SixOlivie Blake
83The Birds at My TableDarryl Jones
84The PlotJean Hanff Korelitz
85The LatecomerJean Hanff Korelitz
86Lark AscendingSilas House
87Take No NamesDaniel Nieh
88Anxious PeopleFredrik Backman
89Poster GirlVeronica Roth
90Our Missing HeartsCeleste Ng
91The Atlas ParadoxOlivie Blake
92A Man Called OveFredrik Backman
93Oath of LoyaltyVince Flynn + Kyle Mills
94A House Between Earth and the MoonRebecca Scherm
95“B” is for BurglarSue Grafton
96Tuf VoyagingGeorge R.R. Martin
97Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s StoneJ.K. Rowling
98Harry Potter and the Chamber of SecretsJ.K. Rowling
99Harry Potter and the Prisoner of AzkabanJ.K. Rowling
100Harry Potter and the Goblet of FireJ.K. Rowling

Favorite New-To-Me Books

  • Tuf Voyaging by George R.R. Martin
  • Beartown by Fredrik Backman
  • The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
  • Oath of Loyalty by Kyle Mills and Vince Flynn
  • A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

Re-Reads

  • Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
  • Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
  • Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
  • Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
  • Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J.K. Rowling

Longest and Shortest Books

  • Longest Book at 734 Pages: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
  • Shortest Boot at 88 Pages: Taller When Prone by Les Murray

Fiction vs. Non-Fiction

Genres

I’ve gotta say I was surprised with how many book genres I’ve read. Of course, there’s always some overlap where a book can fit multiple categories. But it’s also hard here to make sure that science fiction is kept separate from non-fiction science books. And historical fiction is different than historical non-fiction.

Overall, I really enjoy sci-fi and fantasy and that really shows in the numbers with the majority of my books coming from these two categories. And fantasy was a whopping 20%! One of every five books!

What I Learned

What I learned this year is that there are too many books to ever read. I was never short on books and frequently had to choose what to read and what to leave behind. The constant new releases can be a bit overwhelming, and I like to keep up with at least some of the new popular books in the reading world, but I know I’ll never be able to do it.

Most of the books I read were new-to-me, but actually quite old in the literary world. I think this works for me because there’s something to be said about picking up a worn-out, heavy, torn book from the library shelves. It means that countless others have had the same joy of reading the book already. It means I can join a group of long-time readers that also love some of these favorites and who aren’t ready to leave them behind just yet.

The Worst Part

The worst part of reading 100 books is keeping track of them all.

I’m not one to normally write down everything I do, but I do like the end result. I like when my fitness watch records my workouts for me because I like seeing the results at the end of the month or at the end of a training program, but keeping track of it all myself would be too daunting.

With books, I tried to write down enough info to remember the book and be meaningful, but not so much that it was a bother. Originally, I was writing about what I thought of the book, what was good, what was bad, but that was too much for me.

I noticed if I wrote down the title, author, genre, and page count in my book journal that I’d remember the book. I’d spark something that brought back the good and the bad. Also, with this blog, I was already writing a few sentences at the end of each month in my monthly updates. If I really wanted to go back, I’d still have that digital record to remember.

In addition to a journal and the blog, I was also updating GoodReads. I love the site and appreciate what it does, but I think I’d be better off with only one or two ways to record books each month instead of three. I guess I have to choose for next year!

I wonder if there’s an app that scans barcodes so it automatically uploads all the book’s info for you?

The Best Part

My absolute favorite thing about the challenge is that I realized I like murder mystery books! A whole new genre has opened up to me and there are some real gems in there!

I have never really appreciated murder mysteries and frankly, I’m not sure why I never picked them up. But I’m so glad I did.

Agatha Christie is as amazing as everyone says she is. She has earned every accolade and award she’s ever received. I’m seriously impressed with how good her books are.

The second best part is also about an author. Swedish author Fredrik Backman. I was way behind the curve on this guy too. But he really gets people. He understands humanity and what it means to be human. I will continue to read his books next year because they are too good to put down.

What About Next Year?

Next year, 2023, I’m not sure if I’ll read 100 books.

I love reading.

I’ve loved this experience and setting this goal for myself.

But, there are also other things I love too.

So, in 2023 I will make sure my other hobbies get their fair share of my time. I want to be a well-rounded individual. To me, that means always learning, always trying something new, and always being ready for the next goal. I will absolutely keep reading and I never plan to give that up.

For now, I am setting a reading goal for 2023 to complete the 2023 Reading Challenge. I’m extremely excited because a few of the items will be a real challenge. I want to continue to branch out in what I read because I know it will help me discover things I never knew I enjoyed. But 100 books might be out of the question.

Thank You!

I want to end the post with a thank you to everyone that participated in the challenge with me! I loved hearing what others were reading and I’m just beyond grateful that others thought this challenge was going to be fun.

I wrote it for me, but the fact that others found the blog and joined in will forever make me happy to be a part of the reading community.

Thank you to all and I hope to see you in 2023!

3 thoughts on “2022 Reading: A Year In Review

Add yours

  1. As an author and editor I am a professional reader who reads usually around one hundred books per year; my editor makes me reading all these books. I don’t read much crime and no phantasy and noticed that you read in general different books, books I am not that interested in. I keep a diary writing down five to ten sentences about every book I have read about its style and its technique. I am not that much interested in the plot design but in the style.
    I keep my fingers crossed that you’ll be able to read another hundred books this year, actually that’s quite easy to manage, isn’t it?
    Keep on reading
    Klausbernd
    The Fab Four of Cley
    🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

    Like

  2. Great job on completing your 2022 Reading Challenge and reading 100 books! It’s impressive to see the variety of genres and authors you explored in your reading journey. Your detailed book list and yearly breakdown is helpful for others who are interested in setting their own reading goals. Keep up the great work and happy reading in 2023!

    Liked by 1 person

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