2005 in books

Like last year, here is my compiled list of reading for 2005. The end of the year always brings to mind lists of the Best/Worst/Whatever-est, so here is my contribution. Again, you won't find much in the way of Literary Quality as a deciding factor, but I did at least rate the books this year, so nothing should come as a surprise. However, this list is is ONLY what I remember today, December 21, 2005. I'll compile the original ratings later, assuming I have time.

These are my opinions on these books, plain and simple.

Most Memorable (not necessarily best, but stuck in my head)

• Molvanîa, by Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner & Rob Sitch
• Hush, by Jacqueline Woodson
• The Rule of Four, by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason
• Baghdad Burning, by "Riverbend"
• Glass Soup, by Jonathan Carroll

Best 5

• No Opportunity Wasted (N.O.W.), by Phil Keoghan with Warren Berger
• The Rule of Four, by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason
• If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things, by Jon McGregor
• The Organized Student, by Donna Goldberg
• Until I Find You, by John Irving

Least Memorable (otherwise known as "I read wha-at?")

• Sweet, Savage Death, by Orania Papazoglou
• The Unending Mystery, by David Willis McCullough
• Throw Darts at a Cheesecake, by Denise Dietz
• A Guide for the Perplexed, by Jonathan Levi
• The Outspoken Princess and the Gentle Knight (ed. Jack Zipes)

5 Books (or Authors) Best Forgotten

• The Witches of Chiswick, by Robert Rankin
• The Placebo Chronicles, by Douglas Farrago, M.D.
• The Shroud of the Thwacker, by Chris Elliott
• Wildwood Boys, by James Carlos Blake
• Breakaway Laughter, by Nan L. Crockett

Possible Book Discussion Books

• Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, by Susanna Clarke
• The Rule of Four, by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason
• If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things, by Jon McGregor
• Baghdad Burning, by "Riverbend"
• Until I Find You, by John Irving
• Faith and Betrayal, by Sally Denton
• Glass Soup, by Jonathan Carroll

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Now for the statistics for the year:

number of books read in 2005: 127
number of books read in 2004: 102
number of books read in 2003: 100
number of books read in 2002: 118
number of books read in 2001: 83
number of books read in 2000: 128
average read per month: 10.6 (over six years: 9.14)
average read per week: 2.44 (over six years: 2.11)
number read in worst month: 5 (January and June) [last year: 0 in July]
number read in best month: 21 (February) [last year: 12 in June]
number of fiction: 74 [last year: 61]
number of non-fiction: 53 [last year: 41]

I omitted the male/female count because I read so many books by the same authors I got confused. If I can figure it out later, I'll add it in.