An Analysis of the Books I Read in 2008 aka Nerd Alert

Books read: 71

• Average # books read/month: 5.9
• Non-fiction: 24 (34%)
• Fiction: 47 (66%)
• Books by male authors: 42 (59%)
• Books by female authors: 29 (41%)
• Disliked: 18 (25%)
• Ambivalent about/Sort of liked: (31%)
• Actively enjoyed: 31 (44%)

By Genre

• Sci-Fi/Fantasy: 9
• Zombie: 0 (surprising!)
• Graphic novels: 2
• Spiritual: 6
• Mystery/Thriller: 7
• Poetry: 4
• Historical Fiction: 7
• Short story collections: 3
• Contemporary fiction: 6
• Books about food: 4
• Science: 2
• Biography/Auto-biography: 3
• Horror: 3
• Classics: 2
  

Notes & Superlatives:

• Only one author had more than one book on the list (George R. R. Martin)
• Books by Japanese, Australian, British, American, Canadian, Colombian, and German authors were read
• 6 books by dead authors were read (spoooooky)
• Some common themes were dogs, Japan, quirky short fiction, the politics of food, and Eastern religions
• Favorite book of 2008 (Fiction) = TIE: A Clash of Kings, by George R.R. Martin & The African Queen, by C. S. Forester
• Favorite book of 2008 (Non-fiction) = Red China Blues, by Jan Wong
• Least favorite of 2008 = TIE: The Tea Rose, by Jennifer Donnelly, & In the Miso Soup, by Ryo Murakami
• Funniest book of 2008: The Areas of my Expertise, by John Hodgman
• Saddest book of 2008: Marley & Me, by John Grogan (spoiler alert: THE DOG DIES)