2013 End of Year Book Survey

Best Book You Read In 2013? (If you have to cheat — you can break it down by genre if you want or 2013 release vs. backlist) - See more at: http://www.perpetualpageturner.com/2013/12/4th-annual-end-of-year-book-survey-2013-edition.html#sthash.PHIkSvGg.dpuf

This is my first annual End of Year Book Survey, with questions taken from Jamie over at The Perpetual Page-Turner's 4th Annual End of Year Book Survey.The survey is for books you read throughout the year, no matter when they were published, and is not limited to just books that came out in 2013. (All links for books go through to my reviews!)

Best in Books 2013

1. Best book you read In 2013? (If you have to cheat — you can break it down by genre if you want or 2013 release vs. backlist.)
This is really difficult, since I read so many great books. I'm not going to pick just one, because there's no way I can do that, so, in no particular order...
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

2. Book you were excited about and thought you were going to love more but didn’t?
Ooh, these questions are so difficult (and I'm only on the second one). I guess I'll put down The River of No Return by Bee Ridgway, which I still haven't finished. I was super excited when I started it, but lost heart half way through (it is a huge book though).

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013?
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer. I loved Cinder, but sequels can be disappointing more often than not, so imagine my surprise when I discovered that not only did I think Scarlet was as good as Cinder, I thought it was better.

 4. Book you read in 2013 that you recommended to people most in 2013?
Fangirl and Eleanor & Park, or Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas ahead of the release of Crown of Midnight.
 
5. Best series you discovered in 2013?
The Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas. I adore it.

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2013?
Hands down Rainbow Rowell, and she was a very late discovery. I only got my hands on Eleanor & Park in November, and read Fangirl in December. I loved them both.

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?
I've read non-fiction before, but I made a concerted effort to read a lot more this year, which wasn't always easy, but I'm proud of myself for completing that challenge, and I did manage to read some great books because of it that I wouldn't ordinarily have picked up. And, not a genre, but I read my first Agatha Christie book at the end of December, and absolutely loved it. I'll definitely be reading more of her work.

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2013?
Fiction - Gone Girl. I was hooked when I was reading it, and thinking and theorising about it when I wasn't. 
Non-fiction - The Siege, Three Days of Terror Inside the Taj by Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark, which I just could not let go of.

9. Book you read in 2013 that you are most likely to re-read next year?
I'm not a huge re-reader, apart from a select few books, but I'll probably re-read The Fault in Our Stars before the film comes out (is that next year?).

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2013?
Chris Colfer's The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns not only has a gorgeous dust jacket, it also has a beautiful spine hidden underneath.

11. Most memorable character in 2013?
Cath from Fangirl.
 
12. Most beautifully written book read in 2013?
The Fault in Our Stars (I'm aware I'm putting this down for a lot of answers).

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2013?
Fiction - Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. It sounds cheesy, but this book spoke to me.
Non-fiction - Lean In - Women, Work and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg, which had me wanting to smash glass ceilings everywhere.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2013 to finally read?
Three answers for this. The first two are Gone Girl and The Fault in Our Stars, which I owned for almost a year before I finally read them. And the third answer is The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie. 

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2013?
Oh, I'm not sure about this one. Something I do need to start doing again is writing down my favourite quotes so I can remember them. 

16.Shortest and longest books you read in 2013? 
Shortest - Neil Gaiman's The Ocean at the End of the Lane.
Longest - Chris Colfer's The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns.

17. Book that had a scene in it that had you reeling and dying to talk to somebody about (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc, etc)? Be careful of spoilers!
Gone Girl - the whole second half was one giant WTF moment.

18. Favorite relationship from a book you read in 2013 (be it romantic, friendship, etc)?
Augustus and Hazel from The Fault in Our Stars.

19. Favorite book you read in 2013 from an author you’ve read previously? 
Probably Neil Gaiman's The Ocean at the End of the Lane, which I didn't understand fully, but I did enjoy.

20. Best book you read in 2013 that you read based SOLELY on a recommendation from somebody else?
Hmm, I try not to let other people influence me too much, since that means my expectations get too high. I guess I'd say The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie. Although that book wasn't recommended to me, Vicky over at Books, Biscuits and Tea did say I should give Christie a try.

21. Genre You Read The Most From in 2013?
Young adult.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2013?
Levi from Fangirl, Augustus from The Fault in Our Stars.

23. Best 2013 debut you read?
I'm not sure if I read any debuts. Hmm.

24. Most vivid world/imagery in a book you read in 2013?
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman had some pretty scary and well-formed evil parts in it, and the descriptions Gaiman gave meant I could picture that world pretty well.

25. Book that was the most fun to read in 2013?
Very British Problems by Rob Temple had me laughing constantly.

26. Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2013?
Although I loved Fangirl more, Rainbow Rowell's Eleanor & Park had me in buckets.

27. Book you read in 2013 that you think got overlooked this year or when it came out?
I really loved Sarah Crossan's Breathe and Resist, which I don't think many people know about. It's a brilliant pair of books set in a dystopian world where there's hardly any natural oxygen and people live in pods. Crossan's characters are brilliant, and the books are quite dark. I really think more people need to read them, and since there's only two, the series is not a huge time commitment.

Book blogging/reading life 2013

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2013?
I discovered all the book blogs I follow in 2013, since this is my first year seriously book blogging. I guess if I had to pick a few I'd say Books, Biscuits and Tea, The Broke and the Bookish, Natflix and Books, A Bookish Heart and Between My Lines, but I love you all!

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2013?
I think my review for Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, although I desperately wanted to write masses more. If I was a student now, I'd write an essay on this book.

3. Best discussion you had on your blog?
I don't host discussions, maybe something for next year. 

4. Most thought-provoking review or discussion you read on somebody else’s blog?
Too difficult to answer. I've read lots of great posts this year, and enjoyed them all. 

5. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc)?
Hmm, I only started seriously book blogging this year, so I haven't participated in much. Asti's (A Bookish Heart) Bookish Games were really good fun, although I didn't survive for long!

6. Best moment of book blogging/your book life in 2013?
Getting to interact with authors on Twitter, and seeing them recommend my reviews or just say thanks for reading their books.

7. Most popular post this year on your blog (whether it be by comments or views)?
My review of Chris Colfer's The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns has become my most read post ever, not just for this year.

8. Post you wished got a little more love?
The My Week in Books feature that I do (which really needs a better name). The point of the feature is to share things about books and blogging that I've found, so it would be lovely if more people saw the posts.

9. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc)?
Goodness, everything. I guess Goodreads or Bloglovin' are the two most useful.

10.  Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
Yes! I managed my goal of reading 12 non-fiction books in 2013. You can find the full list here.

Looking ahead...

1. One book you didn’t get to in 2013 but will be your number 1 priority in 2014?
I can't say they'll be my number one priority, but I really need to read And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini, Inferno by Dan Brown and The Casual Vacancy by J. K. Rowling as soon as possible.
 
2. Book you are most anticipating for 2014 (non-debut)?
Ooh, a tie between Cress by Marissa Meyer and the third book in the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas.
 
3. 2014 debut you are most anticipating?
I have many 2014 debuts on my shelf, but one I'm really intrigued by is The Girl With All the Gifts by M. R. Carey, which looks wonderful and slightly creepy.

4. Series ending you are most anticipating in 2014?
I'm not sure whether any series I'm reading are ending in 2014!
 
5. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging in 2014?
Just continue blogging. I haven't come up with my challenge for 2014 yet, but keep an eye out.

Link me to your 2013 surveys, and happy reading and blogging in 2014!

Top 10 Tuesday (#16) - best books I read in 2013

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish, where the writers, like me, are particularly fond of lists. 

This week's topic is...top 10 books I read in 2013. This is a tough one, since I read a lot of great books, and this list will probably change right after I compile it!

Reviews:

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
The Siege, Three Days of Terror Inside the Taj by Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
Noble Conflict by Malorie Blackman
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Fortunately, the Milk... by Neil Gaiman
Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
Lean In - Women, Work and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

I'd love to do a honourable mentions list, but it would get ridiculously long, so I'll leave it with my top 10. What were your favourite reads of 2013?

Reading challenge 2013 - the results

Success! After failing the challenge I set myself in 2012, this year turned out much better. Wanting to up the number of non-fiction books I read, I set out to read one every month. Although it didn't quite work like that, I did manage 12 non-fiction tomes, covering everything from politics to business to the London 2012 Games and even fiction. Below is the full list of books I read, with links to the reviews...

1. Into Danger by Kate Adie
2. Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton
3. The Sweetness of Life by Francois Heritier
4. Lean In - Women, Work and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg
5. Making History at London 2012 edited by Brendan Gallagher
6. How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran
7. The Siege, Three Days of Terror Inside the Taj by Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark
8. London Villages, Explore the City's Best Local Neighbourhoods by Zena Alkayat
9. How to be a Heroine by Samantha Ellis
10. Front Row, Anna Wintour: The Cool Life and Hot Times of Vogue's Editor in Chief by Jerry Oppenheimer
11. Very British Problems by Rob Temple
12. Dedicated to... compiled by W B Gooderham

Book review: Dedicated to... compiled by W B Gooderham

I love secondhand books, and one of the reasons I love them is for the dedications you sometimes find inside.

Who gifted the book? Who received it? Why has it now found its way into the hands of another owner?

W B Gooderham is also a fan of secondhand books, and in Dedicated to... has brought together some of the best dedications he has found inside books. Each page features a picture of the book, and the inscription page (if possible) and, usually, a typed version of the inscription, since some of the handwriting is difficult to read.

Dedicated to... is a collection of messages between friends, family, lovers, acquaintances and more. All we see is the book and the dedication, the story behind the gift is left to the reader to decide.

There are some strange messages, some quite deep, but the ones that got me most were the ones that were clearly between people in love. For example, in a copy of Embedded Anatomy: States and Industrial Transformation by Peter Evans (yes, this comes under strange too) there is a message to Kim from Stu, whose dedication ends: "I am yours always." Clearly, Stu was in love with Kim when this book was gifted, but what happened afterward? Did they have a horrid break up? Is that why Kim (presumably) gave the book away? Or did Kim give the book away because it's such a strange choice?

The stories are myriad, and in one way it would be great if the people whose messages have been printed could get in touch with Gooderham to tell him their stories (not sure how he'd feel about me volunteering him). In another way though, the mystery is what makes this book, and secondhand books, so appealing.

How I got this book: Gift from a friend

•Dedicated to... is the 12th, and final, book in my challenge to read 12 non-fiction books in 2013.

Book review: The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie may be a bit of an institution, but in all my years of reading The Body in the Library is the first book of hers I've picked up.

And boy, was it a treat.

Colonel and Mrs Bantry wake up one morning to discover there is a body in their library. Once they've realised it's reality, not fiction, the police are called in to try and solve the crime. Not content, Mrs Bantry gets her old friend Miss Marple in to act as a consultant and try and pin down the killer.

I always thought Christie must be a good writer - she'd have to be to be so successful still - but it was only on reading The Body in the Library that I realised how good she is. In this time where it seems one story has to be told in at least three books, or one very, very long book, Christie tells The Body in the Library in a taut 160 pages (in my edition). The plot is well-paced, it never feels rushed but at the same time there's always something happening - some character revelation, a conversation that you just know is going to be pertinent later on.

Also, the book is funny! Absolutely, unexpectedly so in many places. There were bits that made me chuckle, bits that made me laugh, bits that made me smile. It was a lovely reminder that a murder mystery doesn't need to be overwhelmingly dark to be 

I also loved how The Body in the Library felt not much like reading, and more like watching a television programme or a film. It was easy to see how the story and dialogue could be lifted right off the page and onto the screen. In fact, the 'big reveal' scene played out just like an old fashioned murder mystery television programme, something akin to Columbo.

And then there's the mystery itself. Miss Marple has it solved in about five minutes, but I felt like the police officers the book closely followed - absolutely clueless and looking in all the wrong places, but feeling it was right. Christie draws together the various threads she's woven throughout the book in a clever way, presenting me with a conclusion I just didn't see coming.

I'm a little ashamed that it's taken me this long to get round to reading a Christie mystery, but I can now hold my hands up and say I'm a convert. Hopefully I'll be better at solving the next crime I read about.

Book review: Very British Problems by Rob Temple

You know how it is, you're in a queue, and someone stands next to you, instead of behind you. Are they queuing or just loitering? Are they going to push in front? Are they just unaware of how queues work?

This, my friend, is a very British problem.

Rob Temple's book Very British Problems came about after he set up the Twitter account @soverybritish. It is, according to its blurb, a book that reveals how we're "a nation of socially awkward but well-meaning oddballs, struggling to make it through every day without saying sorry to an inanimate object". 

(By the way, British problem no. 236: Trying not to laugh out loud on the train while reading Very British Problems in case people think you're a weirdo).

The great thing about this book is that I so often found myself nodding along and going "yes, that's me". Among my favourites, and those that hit closest to home, are:

• "Saying you're pleased with your haircut despite the deep inner sadness it's causing you." - There was this one time I got a fringe, and it was horrible and I told the hairdresser it was lovely, and I went home and almost cried.

• "Feeling the need to pat down all your pockets, despite knowing full well you haven't got your loyalty card." - All the time, and mostly I don't even have pockets on my clothes.

• "Sitting awkwardly for your entire journey to accommodate the staggering leg spread of the gentleman beside you." - In my new life as a rail commuter this is a daily misery.

• "The challenge of attempting to deal with a sneeze while holding a scalding cup of tea in a surface-free area." - I don't drink tea, but this problem can be applied to drinks of any kind, I feel.

Very British Problems is a laugh-out-loud book (even if you're on the train) and one that should be passed from friend to friend so you can all exclaim about how these problems really are the sort we all encounter in everyday life. (Except then you encounter the problem of friends who turn the corners of book pages, and you can't say anything, and it's all awkward, and oh goodness...)

•Very British Problems is book 11 in my challenge to read 12 non-fiction books in 2013.