Ah, another year has gone by and it’s time to look back at 2017 through the books I read. Nearly halfway through the year, I had set my 2017 Reading Goals and am happy to say that I (sort of) achieved all 3 of my goals to:
- Read as much as possible
- Read diversely
- Write book reviews
By the end of the year, I had read a total of 21 books. And though the number doesn’t amount to as many as I’d want, it’s still great, considering what a busy school year 2017 was.
Here’s a list of the books I read in 2017, in reading order:
- The Picture of Dorian Gray – Oscar Wilde
- Twelfth Night – Shakespeare
- Bumi Manusia – Pramoedya Ananta Toer
- Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte
- Everyday – David Levithan
- Antony and Cleopatra – Shakespeare
- Spring in London – Ilana Tan
- Summer in Seoul – Ilana Tan
- The Fellowship of the Ring – J. R. R. Tolkien
- Hard-Boiled Wonderland & the End of the World – Haruki Murakami
- A Conjuring of Light – V. E. Schwab
- The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood
- Jude the Obscure – Thomas Hardy
- The Mayor of Casterbridge – Thomas Hardy
- Frankenstein – Mary Shelley
- Vicious – V. E. Schwab
- Empire of Storms – Sarah J. Maas
- Wintersong – S. Jae-Jones
- The Graveyard Book – Neil Gaiman (reread)
- The Ocean at the End of the Lane – Neil Gaiman
- The Vegetarian – Han Kang
Because Statistics Are Fun
I know 21 is not a huge number and would not make great charts or anything, but hey, it’s all good fun, right?
Most Read Authors (and by most, I mean authors whose works I have read 2 of) : Neil Gaiman, V. E. Schwab, Thomas Hardy, Shakespeare and Ilana Tan
“Classics” Read: 10 books
Reread: 1
Reviews Written/ Total Books Read: 8/21
And finally, a nice little line graph to sum up my reading year.
So the only month in which I did not read a single book of in 2017 was November, which was the most stressful period of A Levels. In May, June and July, school relaxed a bit as this was when summer break took place. Finally, I read the most books in December when all exams were finally over.
Reading Goals for 2018!
- Focus on specific genre/ authors. Because I’m going to study English Literature in university, I think it’s time I find my literature “style” and find out what type of literary pieces I enjoy most. So far, I know that I quite enjoy works from the Victorian era.
- Write (even more) book reviews. I’d like to keep up this one from last year. Although I still haven’t figured out a consistent reviewing system yet, I’ll try to write and reflect about every book I read. It’s always nice to be able to look back later, read about my own opinions upon the time of reading and maybe see how they can change.
- Read some non-fiction. This is entirely new for me, as I can count with the fingers of one hand how many non-fiction books I’ve read in my life. Self-help, financial or biographical doesn’t really matter.
Come away, 2018! I’m ready for this exciting year, as it’s going to be a milestone in my life: university.