End of 2009

I had so many ideas of things that I wanted to write about at the end of the year, and to take a really good look at what I've been reading this year, but somehow it has snuck up on me, and I didn't get time to count books. Partly because I realised a week ago that I was within a whisker of having read 700 books this year, so I have been spending a lot of time reading this week. So here instead is an end of year meme, borrowed from Simon at Stuck-in-a-book, and hopefully next week I'll get round to starting on some of the reviews that I want to write!

- How many books read in 2009?
701. Normally I read somewhere between 300-350, so this was a bit of a record. Mostly it is due to having been chronically ill for much for the year and unable to do anything apart from go to work or lie on the sofa and read.

- Fiction/Non-Fiction ratio?
Probably about 100 were non fiction - recipe books, memoirs, biographies...

- Male/Female authors?
Mainly female, due to having started my Virago Venture, attemtping to read my way through the Virago Modern Classics.

- Favourite book read?
This is a difficult one as there have been very many good ones, but The music room by Will Fiennes was really very very good. I have read a number of wonderful books published by Persephone and Virago too.

- Least favourite?
I struggled with No place on earth by Christa Wolf.

- Oldest book read?
Absolutely no idea - I haven't read anything very old this year.

- Newest book read?
Read Margaret Forster's latest book, Isa and May, which I can strongly recommend and which is out in February.

- Longest book title?
Probably The voluptuous delights of peanut butter and jam

- Shortest book title?
Home by Penelope Mortimer

- How many re-reads?
Probably about 50.

- Most books read by one author this year?
I think Rosamund Lehmann, as I read all of her books at the start of the year.

- Any in translation?
Yes. Most recently The Post-Office girl

- How many books were borrowed from the library?
A large number of them, but not all as I seem to have acquired about 400 books this year.

- Name a book you've read this year which was recommended by a blogger?
ooh, that's difficult as so many of the books I've read have been as a result of blogging. Most recently, probably A very great profession by Nicola Beaumann.