My reading this past year: 2012

Just to be weird, I’d like to break down what I read this past year. I have been keeping lists of what I have read since 2003, and here is the latest.

I’ve rated the books by giving them five points, five being the best possible score. Here is the list broken down by genre:

Science Fiction:

• Excession, Iain M. Banks (3/5)
• Mad Scientist Institute, Sechin Tower (4/5)
• Way of the Wolf, E. E. Knight (4/5)
• Choice of the Cat, E. E. Knight (4/5)
• The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern (5/5)
• Revelation Space, Alastair Reynolds (4/5) This was a re-read

Urban Fantasy:

• Undone Deeds, Mark del Franco (1/5)
• Blood Rites, Jim Butcher (4/5)
• Dead Beat, Jim Butcher (4/5)

Books on Writing:

• 250 Things You Should Know About Writing, Chuck Wendig (3/5)
• You Are a Writer: So Start Acting Like One, Jeff Goins (4.5/5)

Non-fiction:

• I’m Ok, You’re Ok, Thomas A. Harris (5/5)
• Quitter, Jon Acuff (5/5) This was a re-read

Contemporary Fiction:

• The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, Michael Chabon (4/5)
• Freedom, Jonathan Frazen (4/5)
• Bel Canto, Ann Patchett (5/5)
• Cutting for Stone, Abraham Verghese (5/5)
• The Girl Who Played with Fire, Steig Larsson (5/5)
• Flotilla, Daniel Haight (3/5)

Spiritual:

• Second Guessing God: Hanging on When You Can’t See His Plan, Brian Jones (4/5)
• Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream, David Platt (4/5)
• O Me of Little Faith: Confessions of a Spiritual Weakling, Jason Boyett (4/5)
• Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit, Francis Chan (4/5)

Biography/Autobiography:

• Look Me In the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s, John Elder Robinson (4/5)
• Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy, Eric Metaxas (5/5)
• Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson (4/5)
• I Suck at Girls, Justin Halpern (3/5)

Notes about my reading this year:

• I read much more bios this year than I have in the past.
• Two of the books were re-reads from previous years. In both instances I liked them better the second time. Much better.
• As usual, I read an average of one book every two weeks.
• Worst book of the year: Undone Deeds. This was the final book in a series I enjoyed, but it felt like the author was tired of writing these books and made this one a boring as possible. Too many characters and a convoluted plot ended this urban fantasy series in a disappointing way.
• Favorite book of the year: Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. I could not put this one down. I really learned more about my own spiritual walk by reading about this great theologian.
  

Well, that’s my reading for this year. Can’t wait to see what worlds I will explore in 2013.