Best of the Year, 2015

Already time for the yearly roundup of some of the best reads this year. I always wait until the very last possible moment to post my list; you never know what you'll come across around Christmas! I like to give every book I've read this year a chance to appear on my favourites list. Somehow the very last day of the year seems to have come very quickly in 2015.

I also create a statistical summary each year, mostly for my own geekish pleasure. As I've said before, I don't think of reading as a competition -- I keep track of numbers and various stats for my own interest, not to prove anything.

So without further ado, here is my reading year in numbers:

Total Reading: 135

Authors

Female: 100
Male: 32
Nongendered (multiple authors): 3

Genre etc.

Fiction: 88
Non Fiction: 44
Poetry: 3

In translation: 

French (Quebecois):5
Norwegian: 1
Swedish: 1
Japanese: 1

My Own Books: 34
Library Books: 90

Review Copies: 11

Rereads: 2
E-reads: 9

Author who I read the most from: Susannah Kearsley (3)

2015's Weird Random Stat - number of books with animals in the title: 8

So, once again I read many more women authors than men; more library books than off of my own shelves; and an unfortunately low number of translations. I must try to increase the number of translations in the new year - I always enjoy them.

I still read twice as much fiction as non-fiction this year, but that non-fiction number is higher than usual for me. I found I was reading many craft and sewing books this year, which added to the total. All in all, though, a pretty normal year for my reading.

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Best of the Year

These were some of my top reads this year, for their wonderful characters, or their style, or even for their unique take on the world. These are books that spoke to me in some way. Most of them are also backlist, excepting three 2015 Canadian titles.  

This is the first time I've ever had so many books on this year-end list that I haven't yet shared on the blog. It's been a slow year on the writing side of things!

So out of my Top Ten reads of the year, the first four I have already reviewed, but six more fantastic reads haven't yet been talked about here. Some of those reviews will be coming up shortly. For now, here is the list:

Reviewed:

A Beauty by Connie Gault
An enjoyable story despite the unhappiness caused by main character Elena Huhtala, this novel set in southern Saskatchewan, among Scandinavian settlers, was a great read

Fairy Tale by Alice Thomas Ellis
Unexpected, sardonic, funny, and feminist, this was a total surprise, and I loved it.

Fifteen Dogs by Andre Alexis
Governor General's Award winner, this meditation on human happiness and consciousness was a beautiful, thoughtful, deep read

To Love and Be Wise by Josephine Tey
A gentle mystery with great characters and a puzzling set-up; loved the denouement

Unblogged as yet: 

The Girls from the Five Great Valleys by Elizabeth Savage
One of Nancy Pearl's Book Lust Rediscoveries titles, this story of Montana in the 30's through the eyes of five girls was fabulously told
 
Krane's Cafe by Cora Sandel 
A serendipitous discovery of this title led to one of the few translations I read this year, and this story of a wife & mother simply tired of her treatment by her family was worth it!

Birdie by Tracey Lindberg
An amazing book. Bernice (Birdie) Meetoos is on a quest to understand her past. Her dreams and visions are told in a fresh and powerful style which captivated me.

Tell Me a Riddle by Tillie Olsen
I finally read this classic short story collection. It's classic for a reason.
 
Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke 
A charming set of short stories that I picked up after watching the BBC's new production of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, which I loved when I first read it some years ago. These stories are delightful.

Street of Riches by Gabrielle Roy
Roy is a Canadian must-read for me. I finally found a copy of this book & was well rewarded in this tale of young Christine's growing up in French St. Boniface, Manitoba.

I hope you've all enjoyed a fabulous reading year, and are looking forward to uncovering new treasures in 2016.