Kategori: Aardvark – on books in general, booklinks, bookmemes and such

A survey from The Perpetual Page Turner, who’s doing this for the 8th year running. I toyed with the idea of translating to Norwegian, but decided against it. I think I’d have more interesting answers if I were still at the series guzzling age (I used to read something like a book a day for years). Any questions I can’t think of answers to, I’ll just leave blank. Here goes:

2017 Reading Stats

Number Of Books You Read: 71
Number of Re-Reads: 34
Genre You Read The Most From: Children’s/YA Fantasy OR Maritime Fiction (the latter being all Patrick O’Brian, but 20 books is a hefty chunk out of 71)

Best in Books

1. Best Book You Read In 2017?

Best of the non-rereads was probably A Shepherd’s Life.

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

Bobla, unfortunately.

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?

Um sakne springe blome, as I couldn’t see what everyone was so VERY excited about at ALL.

4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?

I was a pretty bad (i.e. innefficient) book pusher in 2017, books for the book circle and suggested to my daughter don’t really count, do they?

5. Best series you started in 2017? Best Sequel of 2017? Best Series Ender of 2017?

I have great faith that Keeperen og havet (which I’m reading at the moment) will be the best sequel published in 2017 that I’ll (ever?) read. As for the rest, it really is Master & Commander and Blue at the Mizzen, at least for the series I personally read in 2017…

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2017?

I really liked Vernon God Little, weird as it was, so hopefully D. B. C. Pierre has written more books.

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?

Arbeidsnever was pretty good for a collection of short stories (I do not like short stories).

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

Apart from the whole Aubrey/Maturin thing? Percy Jackson was pretty hard to put down towards the end. I did go to bed and leave 50ish pages, so not impossible to put down, but it was a wrench.

9. Book You Read In 2017 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

The Harry Potter series, since we’re seeing The Cursed Child at the end of January it seems necessary to prepare by rereading the original seven…

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2017?

Bobla!

11. Most memorable character of 2017?

I’m going to cheat and say Carrie Fisher. I’ve never been much of a Star Wars fan so she hasn’t really been on my radar, but it was in 2017 I «discovered» her, and read Wishful Drinking. And now I want to read everything she ever wrote.

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2017?

Ahem. It’s going to have to be O’Brian. All of them.

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2017?

I can’t think of any that actually fit the bill, which is a bit sad. Some of the rereads were life-changing in ways when I first read them, but not so much the fifth and twentieth time around.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2017 to finally read?

I’ll go with Lars er LOL. I should have read it in 2016 so I could have nominated it for Bokbloggerprisen, I might have pushed it on to the shortlist if I had.

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2017?

«Neither fowl nor fish nor good red herring». Said by Jack Aubrey at some point in the series. It’s one of my favourite expressions ever.

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2017?

Longest must surely be Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Shortest might be Um sakne springe blome.

17. Book That Shocked You The Most

As with question 13, none this year.

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)

I’m not a shipper, really. I tend to be happy with letting the author ship for me.

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

Yes, well, it’s going to be the friendship between Jack and Stephen, isn’t it?

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2017 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

Discounting rereads, I liked John Green’s story in Let it Snow more than I liked the one other book of his that I’ve read, The Fault in our Stars.

21. Best Book You Read In 2017 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:

I liked Jane Ashlands gradvise forsvinning more than I expected to, and I’d never have read it if it wasn’t for Bokbloggerprisen.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2017?

23. Best 2017 debut you read?

I don’t think I read any.

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

Harry Potter all the way.

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?

Tegnehanne: Blod, svette og tress-is.

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2017?

I sob through the last 80 or so pages of Robin Hood every time.

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

Reinertsens biography of Henriette Schønberg Erken. More people should read it.

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2017?

Vernon God Little.

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?

Your blogging/bookish life

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2017?

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2017?

Jeg elsker vaffel. Mostly because I’ve been meaning to write about cookbooks more for probably the last ten years.

3. Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?

Et forsøk på oversikt, which I just managed to cram in before the new year.

4. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc.)?

Bokbloggertreffet.

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2017?

Getting the last book in Bente Lohnes fantasy series for kids, Gullridderen, quite totally unexpected as a gift after it has been the one book I was missing from the series for years and I had more or less despaired of ever finding it.

6. Most challenging thing about blogging or your reading life this year?

Getting around to blogging. Still working on it. Reading a lot less than I would have liked and rereading a lot more than planned, both due to concentration problems caused by tiredness following chemo.

7. Most Popular Post This Year On Your Blog (whether it be by comments or views)?

8. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?

9. Best bookish discover (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?

Owlcrate Jr. I bought a three-month subscription for my eldest daughter for the summer months, she loved it and would definitely like a long-term subscription.

10. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?

Not really, it was a bad year for challenges.

Looking ahead

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2017 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2018?

Already on it: Keeperen og havet.

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2018 (non-debut)?

3. 2018 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?

4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2018?

Anything from The Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch, whether novel or comic (graphic novel if you will).

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2018?

Blog about a larger proportion of the books I read. Read somewhat more new (to me) books rather than rereads. That’s two things.

6. A 2018 Release You’ve Already Read & Recommend To Everyone (if applicable):

Not applicable.

Tidligere har jeg publisert denne listen ved midnatt 31. desember, altså på slutten av året, men i år tenkte jeg å teste å publisere 1. januar, og så oppdatere når jeg har lest ferdig en bok.

• Slightly Chipped – Nancy and Lawrence Goldstone (01.01 – reread)
• The Book of Three – Lloyd Alexander (03.01 – reread)
• The Dark is Rising – Susan Cooper (04.01 – reread)
• Keeperen og havet – Maria Parr (05.01)
• Jenta som ville redde bøkene – Klaus Hagerup og Lisa Aisato (06.01)
• Kvinner som hater menn – Sumaya Jirde Ali (06.01)
• The Black Cauldron – Lloyd Alexander (07.01 – reread)
• The Castle of Llyr – Lloyd Alexander (08.01 – reread)
• Amulet #7: Firelight – Kazu Kibiushi (08.01)
• Goodnight Punpun – Inio Asano (09.01)
• Taran Wanderer – Lloyd Alexander (09.01 – reread)
• The High King – Lloyd Alexander (11.01 – reread)
• Så du ikke går deg bort – Patrick Modiano (14.01)
• Wonder Woman Vol 1: The Lies – Greg Rucka et al. (20.01)
• Wonder Woman Vol 2: Year One – Greg Rucka et al. (20.01)
• Wonder Woman Vol 3: The Truth – Greg Rucka et al. (21.01)
• Nesten menneske – Alfred Fidjestøl (20.01)
• Verda er ein skandale – Agnes Ravatn (25.01)
• Dial a Ghost – Eva Ibbotson (25.01)
• Alice Andersen – Torun Lian (26.01)
• This is How You Lose Her – Junot Diaz (30.01)
• The Christmasaurus – Tom Fletcher (05.02)
• The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams (22.02 – reread)
• Nordlys: Reisen til Jotundalen – Malin Falch (22.02)
• The Restaurant at the End of the Universe – Douglas Adams (10.03 – reread)
• So Long, and Thanks for all the Fish – Douglas Adams (26.03 – reread)
• Mostly Harmless – Douglas Adams (30.03 – reread)
• The Princess Diarist – Carrie Fisher (30.03)
• Once – Morris Gleitzman (02.04)
• Tung tids tale – Olaug Nilssen (06.04)
• Ex Libris – Anne Fadiman (09.04 – reread)
• Funny in Farsi – Firoozeh Dumas (11.04)
• Fargeglade vampyrer – Mona Fossdal (20.04)
• Vær snill med dyrene – Monica Isakstuen (23.04)
• Aya fra Yopougon: Sesong 2 – Marguerite Abouet and Clément Oubrerie (23.04)
• Kong Kortbukse og den onde keiseren – Andy Riley (03.05)
• Laughing Without an Accent – Firoozeh Dumas (13.05)
• Tante Ulrikkes vei – Zeshan Shakar (18.05)
• Lords and Ladies – Terry Pratchett (21.05)
• Zita i verdensrommet – Ben Hatke (22.05)
• Brain Camp – Susan Kim (24.05)
• The Colour of Magic – Terry Pratchett (27.05)
• The Rivers of London – Ben Aaronovitch (31.05 – reread)
• Moon Over Soho – Ben Aaronovitch (02.06 – reread)
• Whispers Underground – Ben Aaronovitch (04.06 – reread)
• Broken Homes – Ben Aaronovitch (07.06 – reread)
• Foxglove Summer – Ben Aaronovitch (09.06 – reread)
• The Furthest Station – Ben Aaronovitch (10.06)
• Then – Morriz Gleitzman (11.06)
• Now – Morriz Gleitzman (11.06)
• The Hanging Tree – Ben Aaronovitch (12.06)
• Sci-fi ungdomsskolen – Scott Seegert (17.06)
• The Light Fantastic – Terry Pratchett (20.06)
• Equal Rites – Terry Pratchett (24.06)
• Grensen – Erika Fatland (02.07)
• Lilla Berlin: Netflix och chill – Ellen Ekman (04.07)
• The Field Guide (The Spiderwick Chronicles #1) – Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black (04.07)
• Chasing the Dram – Rachel McCormack (06.07)
• Simon vs. the Homosapiens Agenda – Becky Albertalli (09.07)
• Mort – Terry Pratchett (09.07)
• We Should All be Feminists – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (09.07)
• Checkout – Anna Sam (15.07)
• Sourcery – Terry Pratchett (25.07)
• The Hate U Give – Angie Thomas (31.07)
• Polly og Buster – Sally Rippin (31.07)
• Wyrd Sisters – Terry Pratchett (07.08)
• Musikk for rasende kvinner – Line Baugstø (08.08)
• Dragonsong – Anne McCaffrey (18.08, reread)
• Dragonsinger – Anne McCaffrey (19.08, reread)
• The Girl Who Drank the Moon – Kelly Barnhill (22.08)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – J. K. Rowling (27.08)
• Harry Potter and the Philospher’s Stone – J. K. Rowling (09.09, reread)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – J. K. Rowling (14.09, reread)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – J. K. Rowling (19.09, reread)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – J. K. Rowling (27.09, reread)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – J. K. Rowling (02.10, reread)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – J. K. Rowling (07.10, reread)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J. K. Rowling (14.10, reread)
• The Creakers – Tom Fletcher (22.10)
• Wasted Calories and Ruined Nights – Jay Rayner (19.11)
• Kepler62: Invitasjonen – Timo Parvela og Bjørn Sortland (20.11)
• You Might as Well Live: The Life and Times of Dorothy Parker – John Keats
• Snøsøsteren – Maja Lunde og Lisa Aisato (24.12)
• Comfort and Joy – India Knight (25.12, reread)
• Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race – Reni Eddo-Lodge (30.12)

Utfordringer jeg forsøker å delta på i 2018:

• Bookriots Read Harder
• Kaosutfordringen
• Bokhyllelesing hos Boktanker
• Diktlesesirkelen til Anita
• Biografilesesirkelen til Moshonista

I 2016 oversteg jeg målet om 70 bøker lest, så for 2017 økte jeg til 80. Det var kanskje en tabbe, for sånn ble det ikke. Man skal jo ha noe å strekke seg etter, selvsagt, men for 2018 har jeg likevel redusert til 70 igjen, så får jeg heller ha som må å nå det en stund før nyttår.

Målsetningen om å lese flere nye (for meg) bøker fikk seg en knekk i andre halvår, da cellegift gikk ut over konsentrasjonsevnen og «comfort reading» av gamle favoritter ble mer fristende enn å få nye bekjentskaper. Vel, andelen økte relativt til i fjor, forsåvidt, så kanskje jeg skal kalle det suksess uansett?

Endelig statistikk ser slik ut:

Antall bøker totalt: 71
Antall nye (for meg) bøker: 39
Antall gjenlesinger: 34
Antall tegneserier: 24
Antall bøker skrevet av (bare) damer: 21
Antall bøker skrevet av (bare) menn: 37 (O’Brian bidro tungt her)
Antall bøker skrevet av forfattere fra OG med handling fra verden utenom Europa+Nord-Amerika: 0, under tvil 1 om vi regner Thi Bui (det er bare flaut)
Antall bøker som er teoretisk kvalifisert til Bokbloggerprisen 2017: 2 (jeg må sprenglese fram til nominasjonsfristen på lørdag!)

Ut fra det må jeg vel kunne ha en klar målsetting om å lese fler bøker av forfattere fra OG med handling fra verden utenom Europa+Nord-Amerika enn i 2017. Det burde ikke være for vanskelig å oppnå…

Når det gjelder Bookriots Read Harder utfordring kan vi nok uten en gang å sjekke si at jeg feilet. Men, ok, jeg kan jo ta en kjapp sjekk av hvilke punkter jeg eventuelt ved et uhell klarte å fullføre… 3, 5, 6, 9 (mange ganger), 12, 14 og 18. 7 av 24, altså. Det later ikke til å ha blitt publisert en Read Harder for 2018, men om det dukker opp en kan vel målet være å treffe flere punkter enn i 2017.

Mitt år i bøker i følge Goodreads finnes her.

• Used and Rare – Nancy and Lawrence Goldstone (29.12 – reread)
• The Chronicles of Robin Hood – Rosemary Sutcliff (27.12 – reread)
• Wishful Drinking – Carrie Fisher (17.12)
• Comfort & Joy – India Knight (16.12 – reread)
• Vernon God Little – D. B. C. Pierre (14.12)
• The Best We Could Do – Thi Bui (30.11)
• Amuletten 1-6 – Kibuishu Kazu (20.11-05.12)
• Men Explain Things to Me – Rebecca Solnit (20.11)
• Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief – Rick Riordan (12.11)
• Henriette Schønberg Erken – Maria Berg Reinertsen (07.11)
• Blue at the Mizzen – Patrick O’Brian (02.11 – reread)
• The Hundred Days – Patrick O’Brian (04.10 – reread)
• The Yellow Admiral – Patrick O’Brian (29.10 – reread)
• The Commodore – Patrick O’Brian (26.10 – reread)
• The Wine-Dark Sea – Patrick O’Brian (23.10 – reread)
• Clarissa Oakes – Patrick O’Brian (22.10 – reread)
• The Nutmeg of Consolation – Patrick O’Brian (20.10 – reread)
• The Thirteen-Gun Salute – Patrick O’Brian (19.10 – reread)
• The Letter of Marque – Patrick O’Brian (15.10 – reread)
• The Reverse of the Medal – Patrick O’Brian (14.10 – reread)
• The Far Side of the World – Patrick O’Brian (10.10 – reread)
• Treason’s Harbour – Patrick O’Brian (07.10 – reread)
• Tegnehanne: Blod, svette og tress-is (05.10)
• The Ionian Mission – Patrick O’Brian (04.10 – reread)
• The Sugeron’s Mate – Patrick O’Brian (01.10 – reread)
• Bobla – Siri Pettersen (29.09)
• The Fortune of War – Patrick O’Brian (29.09 – reread)
• Desolation Island – Patrick O’Brian (22.09 – reread)
• The Mauritius Command – Patrick O’Brian (19.09 – reread)
• HMS Surprise – Patrick O’Brian (18.09 – reread)
• Post Captain – Patrick O’Brian (17.09 – reread)
• Jeg elsker vaffel – Stine Åsland (08.09)
• Master & Commander – Patrick O’Brian (07.09 – reread)
• Alex Rider: Point Blanc – Anthony Horowitch (22.08)
• The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 5: Like I’m the only Squirrel in the World – Ryan North & Erica Henderson (ill.) (18.08)
• Ghosts – Raina Telgmeier (18.08)
• Dragondrums – Anne McCaffrey (14.08 – reread)
• Dragonsinger – Anne McCaffrey (13.08 – reread)
• Dragonsong – Anne McCaffrey (12.08 – reread)
• Transmission – Hari Kunzru (30.07)
• The Shepherd’s Life –James Rebanks (17.07)
• (Lots of comics)
• Um sakne springe blome – Catherine Blaavinge Bjørnevog (02.06)
• Jane Ashlands gradvise forsvinning – Nicolai Houm (01.06)
• The Amber Spyglass – Philip Pullmann (07.05 – reread)
• Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, vol 1: BFF – Amy Reeder (03.05)
• Jack of Fables vol 4-9 (april)
• Giant Days vol 3 – John Allison (03.04)
• The Subtle Knife – Philip Pullmann (21.03 – reread)
• Northern Lights – Philip Pullmann (27.02 – reread)
• Let it Snow – Maureen Johnson, John Green and Lauren Myracle (29.01)
• Lars er LOL – Iben Akerlie (27.01)
• Arbeidsnever – Jan Kristoffer Dale (17.01)
• Sweet Masterpiece – Connie Shelton (16.01)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J. K. Rowling (15.01 – reread)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – J. K. Rowling (12.01 – reread)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – J. K. Rowling (08.01 – reread)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – J. K. Rowling (04.01 – reread)