In 2013, I read one book less than I did in 2012 (although three of those I did not finish) and turned almost 20,000 pages. Thirty percent of the books I read garnered a 5 star rating (compared to 31% in 2012). Overall, the books I finished in 2013 averaged a whooping 4.2 stars (a tenth of a point lower than in 2012).
Ninety-three percent of my reading was in fiction, and female authors dominated my stacks again this year. Sixty-seven percent of my reading involved new-to-me authors. I also managed to read three short story collections, which is about what I usually read each year.
Here is the breakdown of my reading by the numbers:
- Number of Books Read: 57
- Number of Pages Read: 18,130
- Average Pages per Book: 318
- Most Books Read in a Month: 7 (January)
- Least Books Read in a Month: 2 (September)
- Average Number of Books Read in a Month: 4.75
- Number of Non Fiction Books Read: 4
- Number of Fiction Books Read: 53
- Short Story Collections Read: 3
- Female Authors (Percent of Total): 40 (70%)
- Male Authors (Percent of Total): 17 (30%)
- Books Written by New-To-Me Authors (Percent of Total): 38 (67%)
- Number of 5 Star Books Read (Percent of Total): 17 (30%)
- Average Rating of All Books Combined: 4.2 stars
Check out my BEST BOOKS read in 2013 here.
The following are books read in 2013, with ratings and links to reviews. Books are rated as follows:
= Amazing, highly recommended, a must read, one of the best of the year
= Very good/good, recommended
= Just Okay for me, although some people might like it
= Weak writing, not recommended
= Ugh, don’t waste your time
JANUARY 2013
In January I read 7 books (6 novels and 1 collection of short stories) for a total of 2181 pages (average of 312 pages per book). The average rating was 3.9 stars. Five of the seven books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was actually a toss up between The Colour of Milk and White Dog Fell from the Sky.
1. The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton
Rated:
Number of Pages: 484
Read for: Chunkster Challenge, Bookies Too Yahoo group, 2013 European Challenge
Started: January 1 , 2013
Finished: January 8, 2013
Read my review.
2. All Our Worldly Goods by Irene Nemirovsky
Rated:
Number of Pages: 264
Read for: Bookies Too Yahoo group, Reading the World (Europe), 2013 European Challenge
Started: January 9, 2013
Finished: January 12, 2013
Read my review.
3. Wanderers: Stories by Edward Belfar
Rated: 
Number of Pages: 218
Read for: TLC Book Tours, Early Review (SFA Press), Reading the World (Africa)
Started: January 13, 2013
Finished: January 19, 2013
Read my review.
4. The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell
Rated:
Number of Pages: 311
Read for: Early Review (Harper Collins)
Started: January 19, 2013
Finished: January 24, 2013
Read my review.
5. The Colour of Milk by Nell Leyshon
Rated:
Number of Pages: 176
Read for: Early Review (Harper/ECCO)
Started: January 25, 2013
Finished: January 26, 2013
Read my review.
6. White Dog Fell From the Sky by Eleanor Morse
Rated:
Number of Pages: 354
Read for: Reading the World (Africa), Early Review (Viking)
Started: January 26, 2013
Finished: January 30, 2013
Read my review.
7. Frozen by Kate Watterson
Rated:
Number of Pages: 374
Read for: Early Review (Tor Forge)
Started: January 31, 2013
Finished: February 1, 2013
Read my review.
FEBRUARY 2013
In February I read 4 books (3 novels and 1 novella) for a total of 1377 pages (average of 344 pages per book). The average rating was 4.1 stars. Three of the four books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was The Mussel Feast.
8. The Map of Time by Felix J. Palma
Rated:
Number of Pages: 611
Read for: Chunkster Challenge AND Chunky Book Club
Started: February 2, 2013
Finished: February 13, 2013
Read my review.
9. The Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff
Rated:
Number of Pages: 364
Read for: Bookies Too Yahoo Group, Orange Prize Project
Started: February 14, 2013
Finished: February 23, 2013
Read my review.
10. The Mussel Feast by Birgit Vanderbeke
Rated: 
Number of Pages: 105
Read for: European Reading Challenge, Reading the World (Europe), AND Early Review (Peirene Press)
Started: February 23, 2013
Finished: February 23, 2013
Read my review.
11. Why Can’t I Be You by Allie Larkin
Rated:
Number of Pages: 297
Read for: Early Review (Plume)
Started: February 23, 2013
Finished: February 26, 2013
Read my review.
MARCH 2013
In March I read 5 books (4 novels and 1 non fiction) for a total of 1353 pages (average of 271 pages per book). The average rating was 4.25 stars (I did not rate the book I did not finish). Four books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was Behind the Beautiful Forevers.
12. The End of the Point by Elizabeth Braver
Rated:
Number of Pages: 352
Read for: TLC Book Tours, Early Review (Harper Collins)
Started: February 27, 2013
Finished: March 4, 2013
Read my review.
13. In One Person by John Irving
Rated: DNF
Number of Pages: 440 (I finished 140)
Read for: Bookies Too Yahoo Group, Early Review (Simon & Schuster)
Started: March 5, 2013
Finished: DNF
Read my thoughts.
14. Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo
Rated:
Number of Pages: 256
Read for: Bookies Too Yahoo Group
Started: March 14, 2013
Finished: March 20, 2013
Read my review.
15. Suspect by Robert Crais
Rated:
Number of Pages: 320
Read for: Early Review (G.P. Putnam and Sons)
Started: March 21, 2013
Finished: March 23, 2013
Read my review.
16. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Rated:
Number of Pages: 285
Read for: Bookies Too Yahoo Group, Orange Prize Project
Started: March 23, 2013
Finished: March 31, 2013
Read my review.
APRIL 2013
In April, I read 6 books (all novels) for a total of 2096 pages (average of 349 pages per book). The average rating was 4.5 stars. Four books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was a tie between And the Mountains Echoed, The Round House and A Constellation of Vital Phenomena – all of which were 5 star reads.
17. The Paradise Guest House by Ellen Sussman
Rated:
Number of Pages: 288
Read for: Early Review (Ballantine Books), TLC Book Tour, Reading the World (Asia)
Started: April 2, 2013
Finished: April 5, 2013
Read my review.
18. All You Could Ask For by Mike Greenberg
Rated:
Number of Pages: 272
Read for: TLC Book Tours, Early Review (William Morrow)
Started: April 6, 2013
Finished: April 10, 2013
Read my review.
19. The Movement of Stars by Amy Brill
Rated:
Number of Pages: 400
Read for: Face to Face Book Club, Early Review (Riverhead Books)
Started: April 10, 2013
Finished: April 18, 2013
Read my review.
20. And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini
Rated:
Number of Pages: 416
Read for: Early Review (Riverhead), Reading the World (Asia)
Started: April 19, 2013
Finished: April 25, 2013
Read my review.
21. The Round House by Louise Erdrich
Rated:
Number of Pages: 336
Read for: Bookies Yahoo Book Group, Early Review (Harper Collins)
Started: April 27, 2013
Finished: April 27, 2013
Read my review.
22. A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra
Rated:
Number of Pages: 384
Read for: European Reading Challenge, Early Review (Hogarth), TLC Book Tour
Started: April 27, 2013
Finished: May 1, 2013
Read my review.
MAY 2013
In May, I read 6 books (all novels) for a total of 2013 pages (average of 336 pages per book). The average rating was 4.3 stars. Four books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was River of Dust.
23. In The Garden of Stone by Susan Tekulve
Rated:
Number of Pages: 336
Read for: TLC Book Tour, Early Review (Hub City Press)
Started: May 2, 2013
Finished: May 9, 2013
Read my review.
24. Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple
Rated:
Number of Pages: 330
Read for: Orange Prize Project, and Face to Face Book Club
Started: May 10, 2013
Finished: May 14, 2013
Read my review.
25. The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout
Rated:
Number of Pages: 320
Read for: Library Thing Early Reviewers, Early Review (Random House)
Started: May 15, 2013
Finished: May 19, 2013
Read my review.
26. The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell
Rated:
Number of Pages: 368
Read for: Early Review (Amy Einhorn Books)
Started: May 20, 2013
Finished: May 24, 2013
Read my review.
27. Tuesday’s Gone by Nicci French
Rated:
Number of Pages: 371
Read for: Early Review (Pamela Dorman Books/Viking)
Started: May 25, 2013
Finished: May 27, 2013
Read my review.
28. River of Dust by Virginia Pye
Rated:
Number of Pages: 288
Read for: Early Review (Unbridled Books)
Started: May 28, 2013
Finished: June 1, 2103
Read my review.
JUNE 2013
I read 5 books (4 novels and 1 novella) for a total of 1524 pages (average of 305 pages per book). The average rating was 4.2 stars. All books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was Mr. Darwin’s Gardener.
29. A Hundred Summers by Beatriz Williams
Rated:
Number of Pages: 368
Read for: Early Review (G.P.Putnam’s Sons)
Started: June 2, 2013
Finished: June 5, 2013
Read my review.
30. Still Midnight by Denise Mina
Rated:
Number of Pages: 342
Read for: BOOK CLUB
Started: June 6, 2013
Finished: June 11, 2013
Read my review.
31. The Dinner by Herman Koch
Rated:
Number of Pages: 292
Read for: Bookies Too Yahoo Group, European Reading Challenge, Reading the World (Europe)
Started: June 12, 2013
Finished: June 21, 2013
Read my review.
32. The Yonahlossee Riding Camp For Girls by Anton Disclafani
Rated:
Number of Pages: 400
Read for: Early Review (Riverhead Books)
Started: June 22, 2013
Finished: June 28, 2013
Read my review.
33. Mr. Darwin’s Gardener by Kristina Carlson
Rated:
Number of Pages: 122
Read for: Early Review (Peirene Press), European Reading Challenge, Reading the World (Europe)
Started: June 29, 2013
Finished: June 29, 2013
Read my review.
JULY 2013
In July, I read 5 books (4 novels, of which one was an audiobook, and one collection of short stories) for a total of 1879 pages (average of 376 pages per book). The average rating was 4.4 stars. Three books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was a tie between This is Paradise and Life After Life.
34. Always Watching by Chevy Stevens
Rated:
Number of Pages: 352
Read for: Early Review (St. Martin’s Press)
Started: June 30, 2013
Finished: July 3, 2013
Read my review.
35. Flat Water Tuesday by Ron Irwin (read by Holter Graham)
Rated:
Number of Pages: 368 (9 CDs)
Read for: pleasure (audio book)
Started: July 1, 2013
Finished: July 15, 2013
Read my review.
36. The End of the Wasp Season by Denise Mina
Rated:
Number of Pages: 390
Read for: BOOK CLUB
Started: July 8, 2013
Finished: July 16, 2013
Read my review.
37. This Is Paradise: Stories by Kristiana Kahakauwila
Rated:
Number of Pages: 240
Read for: TLC Book Tour
Started: July 4, 2013
Finished: July 21, 2013
Read my review.
38. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
Rated:
Number of Pages: 529
Read for: Chunkster Challenge, Face to Face Book Club, Orange Prize Project, and Bookies Too Yahoo Group
Started: July 22, 2013
Finished: July 31, 2013
Read my review.
AUGUST 2013
I read 3 books (all novels) and started but did not finish a fourth book for a total of 1178 pages (average of 295 pages per book). The average rating was 4.0 stars (I did not rate the book I did not finish). Two books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was River Thieves.
39. Race Across the Sky by Derek Sherman
Rated:
Number of Pages: 373
Read for: TLC Book Tours
Started: August 1, 2013
Finished: August 4, 2013
Read my review.
40. Save Yourself by Kelly Braffet
Rated:
Number of Pages: 320
Read for: TLC Book Tours
Started: August 5, 2013
Finished: August 11, 2013
Read my review.
41. River Thieves by Michael Crummey
Rated:
Number of Pages: 410
Read for: Bookies Too Yahoo Group
Started: August 12, 2013
Finished: August 20, 2013
Read my review.
42. Gods and Beasts by Denise Mina
Rated: DNF
Number of Pages: 309 (read 75 pages before giving up)
Read for: BOOK CLUB
Started: August 21, 2013
Finished: DNF
SEPTEMBER 2013
In September, I read 2 books (1 nonfiction and 1 novel) for a total of 650 pages (average of 325 pages per book). The average rating was 4.5 stars. One book was by a new to me author. My favorite read of the month Handling the Truth.
43. Handling the Truth: On the Writing of Memoir by Beth Kephart
Rated:
Number of Pages: 224
Read for: Pleasure
Started: July 6, 2013
Finished: September 9, 2013
Read my review.
44. The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin
Rated:
Number of Pages: 426
Read for: Pleasure, Face to Face Book Club
Started: September 17, 2013
Finished: September 25, 2013
Read my review.
OCTOBER 2013
In October, I read 2 books and did not finish a third (2 novels and 1 nonfiction) for a total of 1118 pages (average of 373 pages per book). The average rating was 3.3 stars. All the books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month What the Dog Knows.
45. Night Film by Marisha Pessl
Rated:
Number of Pages: 600 (finished reading 386 pages)
Read for: Early Review (Random House)
Started: September 26, 2013
Finished: DNF
Read my review.
46. The Last Winter of Dani Lancing by P.D. Viner
Rated:
Number of Pages: 400
Read for: Early Review (Library Thing)
Started: October 23, 2013
Finished: October 26, 2013
Read my review.
47. What the Dog Knows by Cat Warren
Rated:
Number of Pages: 332
Read for: Early Review (Simon & Schuster)
Started: October 28, 2013
Finished: November 2, 2013
Read my review.
NOVEMBER 2013
In November, I read 5 books (3 novellas, and 2 novels) for a total of 1279 pages (average of 256 pages per book). The average rating was 4.7 stars. Four of the books were by new to me authors. My favorite read of the month was a toss up between Ade, Quiet Dell and Enon.
48. Ade by Rebecca Walker
Rated:
Number of Pages: 112
Read for: TLC Book Tours
Started: November 3, 2013
Finished: November 5, 2013
Read my review.
49. Chasing the King of Hearts by Hanna Krall (translated by Philip Boehm)
Rated:
Number of Pages: 168
Read for: Early Review (Peirene Press)
Started: November 6, 2013
Finished: November 7, 2013
Read my review.
50. Quiet Dell by Jayne Anne Phillips
Rated:
Number of Pages: 441
Read for: Pleasure
Started: November 9, 2013
Finished: November 22, 2013
Read my review.
51. After Her by Joyce Maynard
Rated:
Number of Pages: 320
Read for: Early Review (William Morrow)
Started: November 22, 2013
Finished: November 27, 2013
Read my review.
52. Enon by Paul Harding
Rated:
Number of Pages: 238
Read for: Early review (Library Thing)
Started: November 28, 2013
Finished: November 30, 2013
Read my review.
DECEMBER 2013
In December, I read 5 books (4 novels and a collection of travel essays) for a total of 1482 pages (average of 296 pages per book). The average rating was 4.3 stars. All books were by authors I have read in the past. My favorite read of the month was probably Holy Orders – but Tracks was a close second.
53. Elegy for April by Benjamin Black
Rated:
Number of Pages: 293
Read for: Pleasure
Started: December 1, 2013
Finished: December 5, 2013
Read my review.
54. Vengeance by Benjamin Black
Rated:
Number of Pages: 304
Read for: Pleasure
Started: December 6, 2013
Finished: December 11, 2013
Read my review.
55. Holy Orders by Benjamin Black
Rated:
Number of Pages: 304
Read for: Early Review Program Library Thing
Started: December 12, 2013
Finished: December 19, 2013
Read my review.
56. Tracks: Journeys in Time and Place by Genni Gunn
Rated:
Number of Pages: 159
Read for: Early Review (Signature Editions)
Started: December 20, 2013
Finished: December 31, 2013
Read my review.
57. The Watchman by Robert Crais
Rated:
Number of Pages: 422
Read for: Pleasure
Started: December 27, 2013
Finished: December 31, 2013
Read my review.