My goal for 2016 was to read/listen to at least 100 books, reading at least 52. I ended up reading 49 and listening to 17, for a grand total of 66 books. Normally I’d be disappointed about not meeting my goal, but I’m thrilled I read as much as I did! This year, I have the same goal. We’ll see if I can pick up the pace a bit.
For the last several years, my dad and I have done a book bingo together. We create 24 categories + 1 free space at the beginning of the year, then try to read a book from each category. These range from silly (book with an orange cover) to diverse (book that is a translation) to old (published before 1000AD). Last year, he finished his whole bingo–must be nice to be retired! I finished about ⅔. We have a new bingo game for this year, so I better get reading. I also created a bingo card to share. Happy reading 🙂
I check out the majority of my ebooks and audiobooks from the public library via Overdrive. I’m usually good about managing the number of books I have and the number of books I have on hold. Pro tip: add books to your holds, then suspend the hold. You’ll move up in position, but the book won’t be checked out to you until you unsuspend the hold or your suspension time is up.
Here are my categories from 2016. As you can see, I mainly read education, young adult, and fiction books. Naturally, Harry Potter gets it’s own category. I used inspiration rather than self-help because it drops the negative connotation.
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| My book genre breakdown for 2016 |
I kicked off 2016 by reading Ditch that Textbook by Matt Miller. It was an inspiring edu-read, and I enjoyed occasionally participating in the #ditchbook twitter chat on Thursday nights. I love anything published by Dave Burgess Consulting, and I think I own about 75% of the collection. Thanks Dave & Shelley for letting me spin the Burgess stop and giving me some wonderful books!
Here are some of my favorite books I read/listened to in 2016*:
Creating Classroom Magic by Shauna Pollock (book) – I love Disneyland and Disney, and I was completely inspired to add in a little more magic into my classroom. Shauna is filled with great ideas and stories.
Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body’s Most Underrated Organ by Giulia Enders (ebook) – My science nerd self was fascinated to learn so much about the human digestive system. This book is written to be accessible by all, and there is a lot of practical knowledge for the why’s and how’s.
How Google Works by Eric Schmidt & Jonathan Rosenberg (ebook) – So fascinating to hear more about the Google backstory, their vision and growth process, and their philosophy behind how they treat their employees. Reading this inspired me to dream bigger (10x, not 10%).
We are all Made of Molecules by Susin Nielsen (book) – A friend recommended this to me, and I preordered it on Amazon. When it arrived, I had forgotten I had ordered it. It was a quick read, but absolutely heart-wrenching and sweet. I loved it so much that I am using it for a read aloud in my 7th grade science class. It’s not about molecules, and technically it’s a fairly weak science content tie; however, the ideas and themes in this book fit the personal development of my 7th graders, and tie into a few topics we cover (molecules, health, bullying, healthy relationships).
Harry Potter books 1-6 by JK Rowling (audiobook) – I’ve read them multiple times, and friends kept telling me how amazing the audiobooks are. Truth. Jim Dale is incredible. He has a different voice for each character. Plus, it was nice hanging out with my old friends. I was 10 when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone came out, and just graduated high school when the Deathly Hallows was released. I’m most of the way through the Deathly Hallows audiobook, but it expired before I finished it so I’m waiting to get it again.
So off we go in 2017. I’m excited to read more books, listen to more audiobooks, and go on new adventures. You can follow my book journey on my book blog (books.mariventurino.com). I’ll cross-post some of my favorite books to my main blog.
What books did you love in 2016? And what are you excited to read in 2017?
*I categorize books & ebooks (on my Kindle) separately, but count them together as physical books in my data.
Mari Venturino 
I really enjoyed How Google Works as well! The best book I read in 2016 was the End of Average by Todd Rose – highly recommend it 🙂
Happy reading in 2017!
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Thanks! I'll add the End of Average to my list for 2017. Just looked at the description, and looks amazing.
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I just went to Harry Potter world over break! I missed those friends to! Here is what I read in 2016: https://reflectionsonleadershipandlearning.wordpress.com/2016/12/31/what-i-read-in-2016/
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Do you have Goodreads? I also enjoyed We are All Made of Molecules. I read way too much YA lit, but I tell myself it's research for work. I recommend Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon. It's like a modern version of The Boy in the Bubble.
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So many good books!
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Yup, I have Goodreads. It's gotten a bit cluttered though, but I still use it. I love YA, never too much 😉 I'll look up Everything, Everything. Love new YA recommendations!
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I love to read too–and read voraciously! So thanks for these recommendations Mari 🙂 Have you read “Born A Crime” (Trevor Noah) ? Just finished that one.
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Not yet! I have it on hold from the library though. My best friend's mom recommended it to me. The library only has the ebook, not audiobook. The audiobook is supposed to be fantastic because he does each language's accent.
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I also love to read. I prefer YA, fantasy and books about education. Last year my favourite educational books were: DIY Literacy: Teaching Tools for Differentiation, Rigor, and Independence. I loved the idea of demonstration notebooks and passed it on to several teachers. And, of course, The Hyperdoc Handbook. In fantasy I liked: The Game of Love and Death (among many others.) I agree with Nathalie – I loved Everything, Everything. And the surprise book for me was: My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry – I was so disappointed when it ended. I'd love to see your reading bingo board!
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