Reading Wrap-up for 2022

One more 2022 recap post from me, then it’s on to the 2023 stuff…

To start, here’s my 2022 bookshelf from my reading journal:

Now, remember how I said this in my 2021 wrap-up post?

Okay. That’s it. Data tables and spreadsheets have been officially banned from my reading life in 2022.

Then, later that month, I posted my 2022 goals and said I’d decided to go back to using a spreadsheet. So that “resolution” lasted almost three weeks. Because seriously? Who was I kidding?

Of course I went back to tracking my reading in a spreadsheet! I’ve been tracking my reading stats since 2017. You can pry my spreadsheets from my cold dead hands. I’m a data geek for better or worse. What can I say?

Upside? Hey! I have some reading stats to share! Woo hoo!

I read 66 books in 2022 with no DNFs (though I did have a few books I started and then put aside to come back to at a different time). In total, I read 20,525 pages, which averages out to about 311 pages per book.

The fiction to non-fiction split was almost exactly the same as it is every year: 83% fiction and 17% non-fiction.

92% of the books I read were on my Kindle. That’s the largest percent of digital reads since I started tracking stats. By far. Print books made up only 5% of my reading (despite my love of special edition hardcovers) and audiobooks accounted for only 3%.

Coincidentally, 92% of the books I read were categorized as adult. This stat was also a big surprise to me. For what it’s worth, I may keep a spreadsheet of the books I read, but I don’t monitor my reading stats throughout the year. That stuff is all on a separate tab, and I mostly ignore it until it comes time to do a year-end wrap-up like this.

Anyway… In 2021 the split between adult and YA books was 76% / 24%. So this is a big change, year over year. This is by far the largest percent of adult books read since I started tracking stats. I can’t say I really missed the YA books this year… BUT… I do have a stack of Fairy Loot hardcovers I want to either get through or officially DNF this year. More on that when I get to my post on goals, though.

38% of the books I read in 2022 were romances (this includes all subgenres of romance). That’s just a bit more than 2021 at 34%. but 2021 was almost double what it had been in previous years, so romances continue to trend upward as a percent of total books read for me.

Here’s how my reading breaks down by genre:

• Fantasy — 28 books (42%)
• Sci-Fi — 14 books (21%)
• Contemporary — 7 books (11%)
• Mystery — 2 books (3%)
• Self help / writing / business — 8 books (12%)
• General non-fiction — 2 books (3%)
• Memoir — 1 books (2%)
• Historical — 4 books (6%)

As for my 2022 reading goals, here’s how I did:

• Read at least 52 books — Done. I read 66.
• Read at least 12 books by Black authors — Done. I read 12. (but in 2021 I read 13, so…)
• Read at least 12 books by other authors of color — Not quite… I read 8. (same as in 2021)
• Read at least 12 books with LGBTQ+ representation (main character) — Done. I read 16. (increased from the 13 I read in 2021)
• Read at least 5 indie published books — Done. I read 17! And they weren’t all by the same author!
• Read at least 6 non-fiction books about anti-racism and/or social justice — Nope. I read 2. Better than zero, but not great.
• Read or donate at least 3 of my unread physical TBR — Hahahahaha. No. I only read 2 books in print and both were brand new books purchased in 2022. Sigh.

So, there you go. Overall, not a bad reading year. A couple of misses, but I read a lot of books I loved. I achieved most of my goals. And my spreadsheet is back.

That said… I am planning on making a few changes in 2023. Including, ditching my reading journal.

WHAT?!?!

I know. Sorry. More on that in my upcoming 2023 goals post! Until then, happy reading!