Book 2016…
Happy 2017! This is my fifth year of recording (and counting) my books read. Previous lists (and associated totals) can be found here: 2012 (85), 2013 (95), 2014 (106), 2015 (92). In 2016, I also tracked them by month although occasionally books would bleed from one month to another. The results were distinctly lopsided. So how many did I manage to read this year? Let’s find out…
January
The Happy Return C.S. Forester (1937)
Horatio Hornblower Book 5 – ebook;
A Ship of the Line C.S. Forester (1938)
Horatio Hornblower Book 6 – ebook;
Hornblower’s Charitable Offering C.S. Forester (1941)
Horatio Hornblower Book 6.5 – ebook;
Flying Colours C.S. Forester (1938)
Horatio Hornblower Book 7 – ebook;
The Commodore C.S. Forester (1938)
Horatio Hornblower Book 8 – ebook;
Today I Will Fly Mo Willems (2007)
An Elephant & Piggie Book – HC;
Lord Hornblower C.S. Forester (1946)
Horatio Hornblower Book 9 – ebook;
Bears Don’t Read Emma Chichester Clark (2014)
– HC;
Hornblower in the West Indies C.S. Forester (1958)
Horatio Hornblower Book 9 – ebook;
The Last Encounter C.S. Forester (1967)
Horatio Hornblower Book 10 – ebook;
Virtues of War Bennett R. Coles (2015)
Astral Force Book 1 – ebook;
February
Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance Lois McMaster Bujold (2012)
Vokosigan Saga Book 13 – ebook; reread
A Book Editor’s Primer (What a Book Editor Does) Dr. Leslie Vermeer (2016)
-manuscript
Oath of Swords David Weber (1995)
War God Book 1 – ebook; reread
The War God’s Own David Weber (1998)
War God Book 2 – ebook; reread
Wind Rider’s Oath David Weber (2004)
War God Book 3 – ebook; reread
March
War Maid’s Choice David Weber (2012)
War God Book 4 – ebook; reread
Sword of the South David Weber (2016)
Nofressa Book 1 – ebook;
War Maid’s Choice David Weber (2012)
War God Book 4 – ebook; reread
Balance Point Robert Buettner (2015)
Janzen Parker Book 3 – ebook;
Fool’s Assassin Robin Hobb (2014)
Fitz and the Fool Trilogy Book 1 – ebook; reread
April
Fool’s Quest Robin Hobb (2015)
Fitz and the Fool Trilogy Book 2 – ebook;
Hell’s Foundations Quiver David Weber (2016)
Safehold Book 8 – ebook;
May
Unbreakable W.C. Bauer (2014)
Chronicles of Promise Paen Book 1 – ebook;
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet Becky Chambers (2014)
Wayfarers Book 1 – ebook;
A Talent for War Jack McDevitt (1989)
Alex Benedict Book 1 – ebook; reread
Polaris Jack McDevitt (2004)
Alex Benedict Book 2 – ebook;
Seeker Jack McDevitt (2005)
Alex Benedict Book 3 – ebook;
Dauntless Jack Campbell (2006)
The Lost Fleet Book 1 – ebook; reread
Fearless Jack Campbell (2007)
The Lost Fleet Book 2 – ebook; reread
Courageous Jack Campbell (2007)
The Lost Fleet Book 3 – ebook; reread
Valiant Jack Campbell (2008)
The Lost Fleet Book 4 – ebook; reread
Relentless Jack Campbell (2009)
The Lost Fleet Book 5 – ebook; reread
Victorious Jack Campbell (2010)
The Lost Fleet Book 6 – ebook; reread
The Lion of Farside John Dalmas (1995)
The Lion of Farside Book 1 – ebook; reread
June
The Bavarian Gate John Dalmas (1997)
The Lion of Farside Book 2 – ebook; reread
The Lion Returns John Dalmas (1999)
The Lion of Farside Book 3 – ebook; reread
Madness in Solidar L.E. Modesitt Jr (2015)
Imager’s Portfolio Book 9 – ebook;
Alliance of Equals Sharon Lee & Steve Miller (2016)
Liaden Universe Book 19 – ebook; eARC
Cauldron of Ghosts David Weber and Eric Flint (2014)
Crown of Slaves Book 3 – ebook;
A Princess of Mars Edgar Rice Burroughs (1917)
John Carter of Mars Book 1 – ebook; reread
The Gods of Mars Edgar Rice Burroughs (1918)
John Carter of Mars Book 2 – ebook; reread
Warlord of Mars Edgar Rice Burroughs (1919)
John Carter of Mars Book 2 – ebook; reread
Dragon and Thief Timothy Zahn (2003)
Dragonback Book 1 – ebook; reread
Dragon and Soldier Timothy Zahn (2004)
Dragonback Book 2 – ebook; reread
Dragon and Slave Timothy Zahn (2005)
Dragonback Book 3 – ebook; reread
Dragon and Herdsman Timothy Zahn (2006)
Dragonback Book 4 – ebook; reread
Dragon and Judge Timothy Zahn (2007)
Dragonback Book 5 – ebook; reread
Dragon and Liberator Timothy Zahn (2008)
Dragonback Book 6 – ebook; reread
Terms of Enlistment Marko Kloos (2013)
Frontline Book 1 – ebook; reread
Lines of Departure Marko Kloos (2014)
Frontline Book 2 – ebook; reread
Angles of Attack Marko Kloos (2015)
Frontline Book 3 – ebook;
Chains of Command Marko Kloos (2016)
Frontline Book 4 – ebook;
July
Ring of Fire Eric Flint ed. (2004)
Ring of Fire Book 2 – ebook;
1633 Eric Flint (2002)
Ring of Fire Book 3 – ebook; reread
1634: The Baltic War David Weber (2007)
Ring of Fire Book 3 – ebook;
Cobra Slave Timothy Zahn (2013)
Cobra Rebellion Book 1 – ebook; reread
Cobra Outlaw Timothy Zahn (2015)
Cobra Rebellion Book 2 – ebook;
The Lies of Locke Lamorra Scott Lynch (2006)
The Gentleman Bastard Book 1 – ebook; reread
August
Red Seas Under Red Skies Scott Lynch (2007)
The Gentleman Bastard Book 2 – ebook; reread
The Republic of Thieves Scott Lynch (2013)
The Gentleman Bastard Book 3 – ebook; reread
Drifter William C. Deitz (1991)
Pik Lando Book 1 – ebook; reread
Drifter’s Run William C. Deitz (1992)
Pik Lando Book 2 – ebook;
Drifter’s War William C. Deitz (1992)
Pik Lando Book 3 – ebook;
Scholar L.E. Modesitt Jr (2011)
The Imager Portfolio Book 4 – ebook; reread
On the Trail of Space Pilots Carey Rockwell (1953)
Tom Corbett Space Cadet Book 3 – ebook;
Princeps L.E. Modesitt Jr (2012)
The Imager Portfolio Book 5 – ebook; reread
September
Imager’s Battalion L.E. Modesitt Jr (2013)
The Imager Portfolio Book 6 – ebook; reread
Antiagon Fire L.E. Modesitt Jr (2013)
The Imager Portfolio Book 7 – ebook; reread
Rex Regis L.E. Modesitt Jr (2014)
The Imager Portfolio Book 8 – ebook; reread
Revisionary Jim C. Hines (2016)
Ex Libris Book 4 – ebook;
Foreigner CJ Cherryh (1994)
Foreigner 1 Book 1 – ebook; reread
Invader CJ Cherryh (1995)
Foreigner 1 Book 2 – ebook;
October
Inheritor CJ Cherryh (1996)
Foreigner 1 Book 3 – ebook;
League of Dragons Naomi Novik (2016)
Temeraire Book 9 – ebook;
All my Sins Remembered Joe Haldeman (1977)
– ebook;
Old Man’s War John Scalzi (2005)
Old Man’s War Book 1 – ebook; reread
The Ghost Brigades John Scalzi (2006)
Old Man’s War Book 2 – ebook; reread
An Exchange of Hostage Susan R. Matthews (1997)
Jurisdiction Book 1 – ebook;
Prisoner of Conscience Susan R. Matthews (1998)
Jurisdiction Book 2 – ebook;
Angel of Destruction Susan R. Matthews (2001)
Jurisdiction Book 3 – ebook;
Sheepfarmer’s Daughter Elizabeth Moon (1988)
The Deed of Paksenarrion Book 1 – ebook; reread
Divided Allegiance Elizabeth Moon (1988)
The Deed of Paksenarrion Book 2 – ebook; reread
Oath of Gold Elizabeth Moon (1989)
The Deed of Paksenarrion Book 3 – ebook; reread
Citizen of the Galaxy Robert Heinlein (1957)
– ebook; reread
November
Oath of Fealty Elizabeth Moon (2010)
The Deed of Paksenarrion Book 4 – ebook; reread
Kings of the North Elizabeth Moon (2011)
The Deed of Paksenarrion Book 5 – ebook; reread
Echoes of Betrayal Elizabeth Moon (2012)
The Deed of Paksenarrion Book 6 – ebook; reread
Limits of Power Elizabeth Moon (2013)
The Deed of Paksenarrion Book 7 – ebook; reread
Crown of Renewal Elizabeth Moon (2014)
The Deed of Paksenarrion Book 8 – ebook; reread
Madness in Solidar L.E. Modesitt Jr (2015)
Imager’s Portfolio Book 9 – ebook; reread
December
Treachery’s Tools L.E. Modesitt Jr (2016)
Imager’s Portfolio Book 10 – ebook;
Far-Seer Robert J. Sawyer (1992)
The Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy Book 1 – ebook;
Fossil Hunter Robert J. Sawyer (1993)
The Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy Book 2 – ebook;
Foreigner Robert J. Sawyer (1994)
The Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy Book 3 – ebook;
The Magic of Recluce L.E. Modesitt Jr (1991)
The Saga of Recluce Book 1 – ebook;
The Towers of Sunset L.E. Modesitt Jr (1992)
The Saga of Recluce Book 2 – ebook;
Spellwright Blake Charlton (2010)
Spellwright Book 1 – ebook; reread
Spellbound Blake Charlton (2011)
Spellwright Book 2 – ebook; reread
Spellbreaker Blake Charlton (2016)
Spellwright Book 3 – ebook;
Legion of the Damned William C. Dietz (1993)
Legion of the Damned Book 1 – ebook; reread
The Totals
101 books read —8.4 books a month, 1.94 books a week, .28 books a day
46 new
55 rereads
January — 11
February — 5
March — 5
April — 2
May — 12
June — 18
July — 6
August — 8
September — 6
October — 12
November — 6
December — 10
Some Conclusions
Surprisingly my new books/reread ratio favours rereads for the first time —not the first time ever, but the first time since 2013 (2013 62/33, 2014 67/39, 2015 58/34). I attribute that partially to being on the boat half a year and also to the release of a lot of books at the end of a series—I often go back and reread the entire series if it’s been a while in order to get the full effect. Nonetheless it seems I did put off reading new titles since I have at least five or six in my library that have been there most of the year. I wonder what that means?
As you can see I have stuck mostly to fantasy and SF as usual. I did finish off the Hornblower books (very enjoyable) and read L’s manuscript for the Complete Canadian Book Editor (Woo-hoo! There is an author in the family!). Despite my reluctance to read any new fantasy (I am not a fan of the mega-series which seems to dominate the marketplace these days) I seem to be reading a lot more than I would have suspected. But new books are almost always from authors I already respect or as a result of recommendations by those selfsame authors. So I guess they have been more prolific than usual.
April was brutal. The month itself was fine but I chose to read two 1000 page+ books and Fool’s Assassin (another monster title) bled from March into April by a lot. As a result I technically only read 2 books. We did spend that month prepping the boat for departure from Victoria so that accounts for some of it, but I admit to a bit of shame when I look at the sparsity of titles. Ah well, c’est la vie… Other months made up for it though. We were in full cruising mode in June and the count soared, although I will admit that the Dragonback series is Juvenile SF and thus a bit shorter and of course Burroughs’ John Carter books are smaller than a modern book.
Speaking of Burroughs, I was astonished at how much my perspective has changed since Grade 8 when I first discovered and consumed these classics. It is so obvious to me now that they are such a product of their period, but none of that registered on me then. Like many others, Heinlein and Burroughs were my entry into the SF/Fantasy world and it’s a bit weird reading them now and reacting in such a luke-warm manner.
I had sampled a bunch of William C. Deitz a few years ago and am now making my way through a bunch more of his canon. Nothing spectacular but good solid stuff. And I’ve always liked L.E. Modesitt Jr, but for some reason had avoided the Recluse series (although I suspect I may have read the first book when it came out but it just didn’t ring any bells). So I made some headway there and will continue to work my way through the 19 titles that make up the (thankfully) non- linear series. It’s funny that he doesn’t really register as one of my “favourite” authors yet I consistently enjoy anything he’s written.
I also picked up a bunch of Robert J. Sawyer titles for free using my Kobo points, so I started my Sawyer introduction with this Canadian SF author’s Quintaglio Ascension trilogy. These were some of his first major works and the while enjoyable, the inexperience shows. I’m a bit ashamed that I have never before read any Sawyer, he being Canadian, a multi-award winning author and in fact the only SF author I have ever met in person. Funny story, I actually said something like “Wow, I am so excited to meet you—I’ve never read one of your books — but I am so excited to meet you!” Ask my brother, I have always suffered a bit from foot-in-mouth disease. I blame my not reading his stuff on his seeming focus on hard SF (not my favourite), a series of spectacularly bad (in my opinion) covers and that uniquely Canadian prejudice/insecurity that “Canadian”=The Beachcombers. Sad, I know. I will move on to some more of his recent stuff in 2017. I promise.
The Library
As for the state of the library, I am now up to 464 ebooks. Acquisitions have been slow but again, I have been sailing and not working, so expenses were definitely a consideration.
I did give Shelfie a try. This is an app that allows you to scan your paper books and potentially download electronic or audio version for a much reduced price (or even, so they say, but I have not encountered, free). The software is pretty cool. You snap a picture of the spines of your books and it processes them — almost always accurately deriving the title and author — and then adds them to you library. You can also just go ahead and scan the individual barcodes, but that’s not as cool. Then it goes through the lists of publishers/titles it has deals with and tells you which books you can gain access to digital versions of. In order to use it you have to sign up for Goodreads (which was annoying since I was [sort of] already using Librarything as L is a big fan).
I have entered 70 books so far and it has let me know that 22 are available as ebooks and one as an audio book. The ebooks are almost all $1.99 (USD) and the audiobook is $8.99 (regularly $24.95). There are some old titles (the Rissa and Tregare books by F.M. Busby written in the late 70s) and some new ones (David Weber’s Safehold series) but it seems to be rather random. As an experiment I picked up Scalzi’s Old Man’s War and The Ghost Brigades since I had some later books in that series as ebooks already. You have to sign the copyright page and submit a picture of it and a picture of the cover, then it charges your Apple account and sends you a link. The interface is a bit clunky and it can be hard to find the available purchases but all-in-all it works pretty smooth. I will start unpacking some books and seeing what’s available in the new year.
So there you have it. 2016. I guess it’s time to start reading….
Earl ( the cause of all this statistical nonsense) has his list up already here. Leslie’s can be found here.
One thought on “Book 2016…”
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I love Jack McDevitt’s stuff! Have you read his Priscilla Hutchins books? As much as I enjoy the Alex Benedict novels, I think his Hutch work is more fun.
Horatio Hornblower has been on my list for a while. Maybe this year…
I haven’t embraced e-books yet in the way you have, but slowly but surely they’re infiltrating my habits. Most of the public domain stuff I’m reading nowadays (e.g. Anne of Green Gables), I’m reading in electronic form. It’s not as satisfying an experience as a “real” book to me, but on the other hand, the price is right.
I still don’t have a dedicated e-reader, but my iPad serves the purpose well enough.
I’m with you on the big fantasy series, by the way. I’ll never forget how annoyed I was when the sequel series to the multiple-volume Belgariad turned out to be an obvious retread of the events I’d just spent several thousand pages experiencing. Bah! I gave up after that.