I must admit, I am kind of a weird fellow. I am not sure that I know of anyone else who keeps track of how many pages they have read each year, but I do. I also like making fun spreadsheets to put these numbers in. Typing in “=sum(n)” is just fun. Why? I have no idea. As a result of this ridiculous bookkeeping, and since I just added the first book to my list for 2011, I have decided to show you all everything that I have read for the past year. I hope you’re not scared of the edge of your seat because you are about to be all up ons.
This year I read sixteen novels. Let’s make a list.
#1: A Feast for Crows
The fourth novel in the epic Song of Fire and Ice series leaves, potentially, a little longing for resolution. When your novel is so big that it has to be broken up into two books, there could potentially be some additional editing in there somewhere. HOWEVER, if you have signed up for the ride and made it this far, another 700-1,000 pages shouldn’t rock your world. The fifth novel in the series hasn’t been released yet with no signs of when it will, but when it does you can be sure that it will have some meat behind it.
Pages: 685
#2: Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan
The subtitle for this novel kind of sums up what is going on. A true story, Adelstein helps uncover and bring to light happenings in the yakuza (or Japanese mafia) in addition to showing an inside view of Japanese journalism and police work. I found this novel to be quite interesting, if at times somewhat slow.
Pages: 331
Reviewed on Episode 89
#3: Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
This nerd book is a nerd’s nerdy joy. Containing several interesting juxtapositions of data, like how some of the most organized gangs are incredibly similar to most successful corporations or the relationship between wealth and baby names. As someone who absolutely hates economics (Supply! Demand! Equilibrium that will never happen!), I found this book to be pleasantly refreshing. It’s no wonder why many economics classes use the text as supplement material.
Pages: 300
Reviewed on Episode 92
#4: Around the World in 80 Days, Jules Verne
What can I say about this book? I have had a long standing hesitation for reading “classic” novels, having been forced to read a few bland ones in highschool. Then I got a chance to read this book and holy crap, what a read. Totally enjoyable and really funny, this trip around the world is something that you need to take. See what I did there?
Pages: 283
Reviewed on Episode 96
#5: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
So you thought that mixing anything with zombies was a good idea, didn’t you? Well, maybe, but, well, not always. Full disclosure: I had never read the original, so I have no “aww, look how funny the changes are” reminiscing going on in my head the whole time. Instead, I felt like there was a really boring story peppered with ninja action. Your results may vary.
Pages: 320
#6: The Incumbent
This is the story about a small town mayor who gets caught up in a murder mystery. On paper, that doesn’t sound too bad, but in practice it leads to a lot of unrealistic happenings. The lead character – the mayor – is a woman, and apparently all she can do is cry and worry. Then, in the last couple of chapters Jesus comes and saves the day out of the blue, or, at least, when everything is all said and done the survivors all fall back on their spirituality that until that point had not been touched on at all. Overall a pretty lame book.
Pages: 268
#7: The Last Drop
Why do I do this to myself? He may have created an entire “religion” full of Kool-Aid drinking idiots, but he also was a shitty writer, as far as this short story is concerned. Luckily, the price of admission for me was $0.00, so the pain comes only from wasted time. The story is about a guy named Mac who ends up drinking some growth potion and shenanigans happen. It’s dumb.
Pages: 25
#8: The Way of Shadows (The Night Angel Trilogy)
Hot on the tail of reading thousands of pages of Martin’s saga (See #1 above), I decided to try out another fantasy series. Unfortunately, after you read the best that fantasy has to offer, reading anything else just doesn’t quite cut the mustard. It’s like watching The Thin Red Line after watching Saving Private Ryan. The Night Angel Trilogy, in this first book at least, follows the exploits of Durzo Blint, the most awesomest assassin around. In the slummy part of town is Azoth, a boy who has basically had enough of being bullied by the local jerks. After a severe beating of one of his friends, Azoth vows to get the kid back by learning all of the tricks of the trade by Durzo. Blint reluctantly agrees and takes on Azoth as his apprentice. So on and so forth, Azoth becomes an assassin and Blint my actually be a total bad guy; you will just have to find out.
It’s ok. But I always felt like the world wasn’t as imagined or interesting as what I have been reading, which isn’t necessarily its fault, but I just couldn’t get into it.
Pages: 488
Reviewed on Episode 104
#9 A Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Jules Verne
Like Around the World in 80 Days, Journey totally owns. Upon acquiring a manuscript with a coded message about a hole in Iceland leading down and down and down, Professor Lidenbrock takes his nephew on a journey to find this place, and subsequently go down and down and down themselves. Using the same hilariousness and fun dialogue, this is another of those “classic” novels I didn’t think I would like but totally did. Read it.
Pages: 339
Reviewed on Episode 101
#10 The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins
Well, you can guess from this title what lies in store for the curious reader. Dawkins is definitely the most outspoken Atheist around these days, so love him or hate him, here’s his book. Inside are many pages filled with datas on the nonexistence of a divine creator. Whether or not you believe the words, it’s not necessarily a bad thing to explore its contents just to fill out your bank of knowledge. Be forewarned: there is some smugness is there.
Pages: 341
Reviewed on Episode 98
#11 The Corrections: A Novel
If you like somewhat dysfunctional families, then this book may very well be for you. The story follows the Lambert family, and each chapter is dedicated one of the five and their exploits. One of the sons is a former professor who had a relationship with his student. The other son doesn’t really want to come to his parent’s place for the holidays. The daughter is a chef with a checkered past. The father once worked for a train company and had a hand in creating a treatment for a certain disease. And the mother just wants to have one last Christmas at her house.
This book has been praised quite a bit, but at the end of the day, because there are hardly any redeeming qualities for the characters, I found it to be rather trying to get through. While there are some instances and scenes that are pretty universal to everyone, there are definitely some pretty slow parts in the book as well.
Pages: 488
Reviewed on Episode 107
#12 Water for Elephants: A Novel
After his parents’ death, Jacob Jankowski, in frustration over the events, flees from his final exams as a veterinarian and hitches a ride on a passing train. This train, traveling from city to city during the Great Depression, just so happens to be that of a traveling circus, and they need a vet. Jacob joins the crew, and becomes enamored with one of the performers. It’s too bad that she is married to the menagerie director, who may or may not be a jerk.
This story is told from the first person from present day, as Jacob reminisces to himself of these olden times. Knowing where Jacob ends up makes the events of the book all the more poignant. It’s a fairly quick read, but also a feel good one. Recommended.
Pages: 281
Reviewed on Episode 109
#13 Dracula, Bram Stoker
This is another “classic” that I decided to try, and like some of the others proved to be great and worthy of the distinction. We all sort of know the story behind Dracula, but reading the actual text definitely helps.
Jonathan Harker, what we could describe as a real estate agent, travels to Dracula’s castle to help Dracula purchase some property in London. While there, Harker understands why the local villagers have apprehensions about the owner of the castle when he is essentially held against his will in the castle for a long period of time. While he physically unharmed, the crazy things that happened there makes Harker basically say “F that noise.” Unfortunately, Dracula comes to London, and through various events gets all up into Harker and his significant other’s business. Their only help may very well be from a one Professor Helsing.
This book is great. I had no idea that the majority of this story takes place in London, but it does. It is also entirely written in journal entries from the characters themselves after the events happen, which is really interesting and somehow not boring at all. And the best part about it all? You can find it for free!
Pages: 400
#14 Behemoth, Scott Westerfeld
Behemoth continues the incredibly fun steampunk WWI setting started by Leviathan. Deryn and Alek return and find themselves in Constantinople, which serves as a crossroads between the warring nations.
Like the first novel, this book is great fun and I recommend it to everyone. Also returning? The most awesome illustrations by Keith Thompson.
Pages: 485
Reviewed on Episode 110
#15 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum
You probably know this story for the most part, but I would suggest reading this text anyway, if only because you will learn how many things get murdered. Yep, many things, and there is also at least one beheading. Yeah, kid’s books!
Like Dracula, this book can be found for freeeeeee!
Pages: 176
#16 Dreadnought
Part of the “Clockwork Century,” this book is one of three novels that Priest has written set in Civil War era America. Like Behemoth, this is a steampunk adventure in the finest. The story follows Mercy, a nurse in a war hospital in Virginia, as she travels across the country to meet her sick father on the west coast. Her main mode of travel is by rail, and it just so happens that the only locomotive headed in that direction is the Dreadnought, a giant Union engine that commands both respect and fear.
Both this and the other novel in this series (Boneshaker) are great fun, and I recommend reading them.
Pages: 400
So there you have it: all of the books I read in 2010. For those keeping count (really I am the only one keeping count), they all total 5,610 pages. As of this writing I have knocked down one (great) book in 2011, and I look forward to seeing what this years brings!
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