January 2023 Reading Recap

I can finally talk about what I’m reading again! For now..at least,but I’m going to make the most of it. I LOVE talking about what I read, and looking at the statistics of it. Do I read more books by men or women? More picture books or graphic novels?

This is my first recap of the year, so let’s not forget to check in on my 2023 reading resolutions: 1) DNF’ing books if it takes me 2 days to read 50 pages 2) Track what I’m reading 3) Listen to 2 audiobooks a month 4) Don’t buy the sequel if I haven’t read the first one 5) Read one short story collection a month

How am I doing? Well…pretty darn good!I did FOUR audiobooks in January, one short story collection, DILIGENTLY tracked my reading via a spreadsheet, and DNF’d like…four books. If you think that’s nothing to brag about, you’re wrong. It is important to know when to quit a book to move on to other ones.

The audiobooks I listened to this month were Rolling Warrior by Judith Heumann, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry, The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama, and I Survived the American Revolution, 1776 by Lauren Tarshis. The short story collection I read was In Other Lifetimes All I’ve Lost Comes Back to Me by Courtney Sender, which comes out in March.

Probably the BEST book I read this month was When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill. I won’t say the WORST book I’ve read, but I’m thinking out if very loudly. When Women Were Dragons was a lovely book–10/10 recommend it. Don’t let the title scare you off–it’s not a fantasy book, and it’s classic Kelly Barnhill, aka: amazing writing.

So…let’s talk numbers overall. A general gist:

I read, inclusive of everything I read from cover to cover from picture books to non-fiction tomes, 71 titles in January. SEVENTY-ONE. Is that a lot? Yes.

Let’s break it down though, first by type of reading:

DNF’d Titles: 4 (3 fiction for adults, 1 graphic novel)

Novels/Books in Verse/Short Story Collections: 9

Non-Fiction Books for MG-Adult: 5 (How to Build a Human, Demystifying Disability, The Cabinet, 11 Places in Women’s History in DC, Roberto Clemente Hispanic Star)

Audiobooks: 4 (3 Non-fiction, 1 fiction)

Easy Readers or Short Chapter Books: 9

Picture Books: 36

Graphic Novels: 3

Books of Poetry: 1 (For Children)

Looking at this..I’m less impressed with myself. I know that’s silly, but I feel like I read SO MUCH MORE than these numbers represent. Sure, part of that comes from 4 days spent readnig 350 pages of Demon Copperhead just to put it down, and two days reading 40 pages of The Ingenue, but…huh.

Several titles I read in in January were related to reading to the Mock Newbery or Caldecott events I was doing–8 of them. 3 or 4 were to review for Booklist, a few were last minute Alex Award reads, 5 were for a DAR bibliography I am working on, two for book clubs, etc.

I’m not MAD at my reading ,it’s just funny how unimpressed I as myself am with 71 titles in 31 days.

I already have my reading lists laid out for February and March, and it’s a lot more adult and ya novels, so let’s see how this compares to next month, shall we?