The 2013 Annual Reading Challenge - Discussion Thread!

[jbcohen]

You are probably right soldim when you say "Reducing my TBR pile seems to be an illusion". However I have been hard at work attempting to do just that, its probably an exercise in futility.

[Lady Blue]

The only way you can reduce your TBR list is to cease adding to it.

Right. Like that's ever gonna happen.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by Lady Blue

The only way you can reduce your TBR list is to cease adding to it.

Right. Like that's ever gonna happen.

I'll have you know that so far this year I've read 20 more books than I've bought.

It is possible to reduce one's TBR. My TBR was 417 at the end of 2010, and now it's just 289!

Well, sort of. I organised my books properly this year in calibre, and found that I had missed some books from my TBR. Quite a few, really. I find that rather than a TBR or 289, I currently have 692 books in calibre marked as unread!

Which means that at my current rate of reduction (ca. 50 a year), I should have my TBR down to a reasonable level somewhere around 2025....

[Anabana]

[ Which means that at my current rate of reduction (ca. 50 a year), I should have my TBR down to a reasonable level somewhere around 2025....]

I was just thinking that this challenge has caused me to take note of my tbr's - I've never listed them and decided it would be a good idea. Your statement gave me pause to reconsider....

[Rev. Bob]

I currently read about 150 books a year, allowing for a handful of short stories which are published as separate works. By that metric, I've got about three years' worth of TBR on my e-reader, plus about three more in Ent corpses.

And that's if I completely stop buying all content immediately...

[pdurrant]

My estimate of 2025 assumes that I carry on buying 120-150 ebooks a year. If I was to stop buying any new books at all (which I'm not going to do), then I'd run out of new books sometime in 2017.

What I'm aiming to achieve is a good quality TBR pile of about 30-50 books, i.e. about three months worth. That way, given my usual purchases (four subscriptions, and the Baen Monthly bundle, totalling around 80 books a year), I'll be in no danger of running out of books while waiting for bargains to turn up.

[Yapyap]

I've read 97 books so far in 2013, so I'm still 15 books / 12% ahead of my goal of 120 books read this year, according to Goodreads, in spite of spending the last ten days on reading & re-reading the same book. (Not counting the re-read there as a separate book, although I've done it with other re-reads, where at least half a year had passed since the original read.)

In terms of "new full books read this year", this number would be lower, as it also includes a few short stories and novellas (on the other hand, it also includes some books that are 600-900 pages in print length, so I guess it averages out well enough), but basically, I'm on the right track.

I'm not even going to think about my secondary personal challenge of keeping my list of newly purchased books below the number of books read, though - I was aiming at no more than 120 new books bought, and I've already bought 186 ebooks alone (+ have a dozen more preordered with release dates still in this year, + 34 free ebooks) in addition to a dozen paper books.

Still, it looks like I'll be buying fewer new books this year than I did last year when it was well over 400 books bought + 300 free ones downloaded, so I guess I shouldn't be too hard on myself.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by Yapyap

I'm not even going to think about my secondary personal challenge of keeping my list of newly purchased books below the number of books read, though - I was aiming at no more than 120 new books bought, and I've already bought 186 ebooks alone (+ have a dozen more preordered with release dates still in this year, + 34 free ebooks) in addition to a dozen paper books.

Perhaps you need to visit this thread more often, to help with your resolve.

[Yapyap]

Oh, I know of the thread, I just like buying books, especially if they're cheap and have been on my wishlist anyway. :-/

[HomeInMyShoes]

I'm done!

I read a book published in every year between 1970 and 2013. I can now rest on my laurels and, of course, start another book.

The statistics so far:

Years Completed: 44/44
Books Read: 55
Pages Read: 16,206
Distinct Authors: 51
New Authors: 32
Paper Books: 44
E-Books: 11

Only two duplicate authors and only three books weren't read from the original list I had planned out.

[treadlightly]

Originally Posted by HomeInMyShoes

I'm done!

I read a book published in every year between 1970 and 2013. I can now rest on my laurels and, of course, start another book.

The statistics so far:

Years Completed: 44/44
Books Read: 55
Pages Read: 16,206
Distinct Authors: 51
New Authors: 32
Paper Books: 44
E-Books: 11

Only two duplicate authors and only three books weren't read from the original list I had planned out.

Congrats! Which was your favourite? Did you notice any trends based on published year (like did you prefer books written more recently)?

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by HomeInMyShoes

I'm done!

I read a book published in every year between 1970 and 2013. I can now rest on my laurels and, of course, start another book.

Congratulations! That was an interesting goal. I'm considering doing the same challenge myself next year, as it will be a neat 50 books for me.

[HomeInMyShoes]

Originally Posted by treadlightly

Congrats! Which was your favourite? Did you notice any trends based on published year (like did you prefer books written more recently)?

I think I choose unwisely in doing too much suspect science fiction in the 1980s.

James Dickey's Deliverance was probably the highlight. When I was finding my list of books this one just popped out. Some years were easy to find a book and some were hard. My birth year was easy because this book just screamed at me to be read. I was highly anticipating it and it lived up to all my expectations. Just great stuff.

Highlights (very high in some cases):
1970 James Dickey - Deliverance
1993 Lewis Shiner - Glimpses
1996 Roddy Doyle - The Woman Who Walked into Doors
1998 Philip Gourevitch - We Wish to Inform you...: Stories From Rwanda
2002 Michael Frayn - Spies
2008 Aravind Adiga - The White Tiger
2012 Blaine Harden - Escape from Camp 14
2013 Neil Gaiman - The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Book choices were much easier in later years than earlier years. I just know more about the authors and choices these days. I know I got a good list of potentials started if I was to do this again, but I think I would add more current event non-fiction into the mix.

[BelleZora]

Originally Posted by HomeInMyShoes

I'm done!

I read a book published in every year between 1970 and 2013. I can now rest on my laurels and, of course, start another book.

I also like this idea. I might try it next year. It would be an interesting cultural history lesson to choose books that were popular, and/or won awards, or were influential in some way. Or perhaps to observe the development of a genre such as mysteries.

[orlok]

Originally Posted by HomeInMyShoes

I think I choose unwisely in doing too much suspect science fiction in the 1980s.

James Dickey's Deliverance was probably the highlight. When I was finding my list of books this one just popped out. Some years were easy to find a book and some were hard. My birth year was easy because this book just screamed at me to be read. I was highly anticipating it and it lived up to all my expectations. Just great stuff.

Highlights (very high in some cases):
1970 James Dickey - Deliverance
1993 Lewis Shiner - Glimpses
1996 Roddy Doyle - The Woman Who Walked into Doors
1998 Philip Gourevitch - We Wish to Inform you...: Stories From Rwanda
2002 Michael Frayn - Spies
2008 Aravind Adiga - The White Tiger
2012 Blaine Harden - Escape from Camp 14
2013 Neil Gaiman - The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Book choices were much easier in later years than earlier years. I just know more about the authors and choices these days. I know I got a good list of potentials started if I was to do this again, but I think I would add more current event non-fiction into the mix.

Nice one . I've only read Deliverance and White Tiger from that list, and agree they were both great reads. A fun idea, which I may consider myself some time.