84
Followers
106
Following
Saturdays in Books
Reviews of speculative fiction, YA, middle grade, and graphic novels, along with stray thoughts, links, and pictures.
Currently reading
The SFWA European Hall of Fame: Sixteen Contemporary Masterpieces of Science Fiction from the Continent
2016 Year in Review
Last year, I failed to do any summary posts about what I had read in 2015. I think I just kept putting it off until it was so late in the year that it seemed not worth the bother. Of course, I see so many "best books of the year" posts in November of the year in discussion that sometimes January seems like it is too late. So March isn't even that late, really.
My breakdown of the 76 "books" I finished in 2016:
anthologies: 1Adult novels: 41
YA novels: 5
MG novels: 13art book: 0
comic omnibus: 11nonfiction: 2
Of those 76, only 20 were published in 2016. I abandoned 3 titles without finishing. I also counted Final Formula as 1 book even though it was 2 novels and a short, and decided to consider the serial box stories an anthology instead of individual books.
I did read some other miscellaneous short fiction in various magazines, but I don't shelve magazines unless I'm reviewing the issue. And I don't shelve individual stories because I am lazy.
Across all categories:
Written by Women: 55 (72%, up from 2014) Written by Transgender authors: 1 (1%)
Written by Non-binary authors: 1 (1%)
I'm a bit unhappy with how little of my reading was by POC's, both because it was a decrease from last time I checked, and because if I counted unique authors, I'd have even fewer. Apparently 2016 was the year I read lots of white ladies. I added 2 new demographic categories, which I know I'll need for the 2017 counts as well. I included the 1 transgender author in both that category and in the category she self identifies as.
My favorite book from 2016 was A Closed and Common Orbit (Wayfarers) - Becky Chambers, just barely edging out The Obelisk Gate - N.K. Jemisin and The Core of the Sun - Johanna Sinisalo because I needed comfort more than truth. All the novels I rated 5 stars are included in the ribbon. My favorite new-to-me writers were Noelle Stevenson and Daniel José Older, who both write awesome women.
I reviewed 72 titles read in 2016. That has to be a new high for me, even with the website issues here at BL.
4
4
 - Becky Chambers)