2017 End of the Year Book Survey

What a year! I read a ton on audio this year. With a toddler I'm still struggling with print books and have found I do best with re-reads in that format. This was a fantastic year for nonfiction books for some reason.

Any books I reread this year are not eligible for this list. I didn’t count the piles upon piles of children’s books I read in this list. I also don’t limit myself to one book per answer if there are two or three that are a perfect fit.

Number of Books You Read: 143

Number of Re-Reads: 17

Genre You Read The Most From: I feel like there was a ton of nonfiction and mysteries this year. I was way down on the number of classics I read.

1. Best Book You Read In 2017?

Classics — Adam Bede and Crossing to Safety

Historical Fiction — The Paris Architect

Mystery — In a Dark, Dark Wood 

Literary Fiction — A Gentleman in Moscow

Nonfiction — At Home in the World, My Own Words, Five Days at Memorial, Lab Girl, A Spy Among Friends, and Four Seasons in Rome

Fantasy — Norse Mythology and The Bone Clocks

Play —  Amadeus

YA —  The Hate U Give

Children’s —  The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

Graphic Novel — Bone

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

Caraval, ugh, I heard this was like The Night Circus, but that was NOT the case. Also, Today Will Be Different, I loved Where'd You Go,Bernadette by the same author, but this one fell flat for me.

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read? 

Bonfire, I’m so skeptical of “celebrity” novels, but this one was actually a pretty decent thriller.

4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?

The Bone Clocks, it’s a strange book, but I co-hosted a readalong of it and we had a great discussion!

5. Best series you started in 2017?

The Hogarth Shakespeare series; each book is written by a different famous author (Margaret Atwood, Anne Tyler, etc.) and retells one of Shakespeare’s plays. I read four of them this year (Dunbar/King Lear, NewBoy/Othello, Hag-Seed/Tempest, and Vinegar Girl/Taming of the Shrew).

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2017?

Ruth Ware and Celeste Ng, I read multiple novels from both authors and I was so impressed with them.

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?

The Book of Joy and The Reason I Jump, one is a conversation between Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the other is by a boy with autism and gives a powerful window into his complicated world.

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

The Dry, In a Dark, Dark, World and Slade House

9. Book You Read In 2017 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths and At Home in the World

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2017?

The Fox and the Star and The Card Catalog

11. Most memorable character of 2017?

Holly Sykes from The Bone Clocks and Dinah from Adam Bede

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2017?

Everything I Never Told You, A Gentleman in Moscow, and Manhattan Beach

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2017?

Dinner: A Love Story, the author mixes her personal experience with recipes. The end result is a cookbook of sorts with family togetherness as the end goal. It’s definitely changed the way I’m approaching dinner time. 

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2017 to finally read?

Foundation and Tarzan of the Apes 

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2017?
“And the thing is, when you lose someone, you realize you’ll eventually lose everyone.” – Turtles All the Way Down"

“This is the problem of history. We cannot know that which we were not there to see and hear and experience for ourselves. We must rely upon the words of others.” – Homegoing

"Presently the smell of coffee begin to fill the room. This was morning's hallowed moment. In such a fragrance the perversity of the world is forgotten and the soul is inspired with faith in the future.” – Independent People

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2017?

The Night Bookmobile 40 pages and The Bone Clocks 829 pages

17. Book That Shocked You The Most

Rad Women Worldwide, it was shocking because there were so many incredible women whose stories I’d never heard!
18. One True Pairing (a couple that you ship):

Mal and Inara and also Zoe and Wash from Serenity: Leaves on the Wind
19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship of The Year

Count Alexander Rostov and Nina in A Gentleman in Moscow

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2017 From an Author You’ve Read Previously

Four Season in Rome (by the author of All the Light We Cannot See)

21. Best Book You Read In 2017 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else:

Clan of the Cave Bear, my Dad told me that this was one of my Mom’s favorite series when she was younger. She passed away a long time ago and I’ve always wanted to read it because of that recommendation.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2017?

Finn Kilgore from The Alice Network

23. Best 2017 debut you read?

I Let You Go

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

The Lying Game’s description of the village of Salten and Kate’s house, also the beautiful Italian Riviera in The Enchanted April.

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?

Norse Mythology, Gaiman’s descriptions of Loki and Thor’s interactions are particularly hilarious. I actually read the whole book twice this year because I loved it so much.

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2017?

The description of the sled dogs being killed in Endurance and The Paris Architect’s scene of a couple trapped behind a fireplace.

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore, I was expecting a quirky bookstore story, but instead I got a mystery of sorts as a woman with a horrific experience in her past tries to solve the reason behind the suicide of a young man in the bookstore where she works.

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

In My Hands, a nonfiction account of one Polish woman’s experience during WWII.

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2017?

The Bone Clocks by far! Six different time periods all connected through the life of one woman, it was unique to be sure.

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad?

Independent People, this tome chronicles the life of one Icelandic farmer. He is ridiculously stubborn and turns away from everyone who offers help. The writing was actually beautiful, but I struggled with it for MONTHS! Also, the scene at the end of Clan of the Cave Bear (SPOILER!) where the main character leaves her baby behind. Seriously, if you're leaving anyway, why would you not take your child?!?!

Thanks to Perpetual Page Turner for once again hosting this survey!

Photo by me.