2022: The Year In Books

As we wrap up 2022, my second full year of remote working, I managed to surpass my previous records by completing a whopping 55 books, an increase of one book over last year and my second consecutive year completing the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge.  I surpassed last year’s total with a mere three days remaining in 2022.  I read (or listened) to 19,328 pages, by far my highest total of all time and only the third time I’ve passed 10,000.

Of those books, fifteen were non-fiction and, of the remaining 40 novels, only two were tied to a TV show, either as the source material or as a tie-in.  None of the books came out of my dwindling “to-read” drawer, with 44 e-books and three audiobooks.  I continued to take advantage of my library card, which helped me procure 37 of the books I consumed throughout the year.

A little more than half of the books I read this year were by authors I had read before. The 31 authors that I read for the first this year were:

Adam Nedeff Kelsey McKinney Simone St. James Laura Dave
Jeff Warren Carlye Adler Matt Paxton Jordan Michael Smith
Alyssa Milano Alex Finlay Taylor Jenkins Reid Emily Ratajkowski
Samantha Downing Dave Grohl Mary Lynn Rajskub Stephanie Perkins
Michael Schur Joseph Henrich V.E. Schwab Brianna Madia
Jimmy Piersall Richard Whittingham Richard Osman Colleen Hoover
Jenette McCurdy Sally Rooney Josh Malerman Alice Sebold
Katie Mack Penn Jillette Elin Hilderbrand Nita Prose

Alex Finlay, Simone St. James, Karin Slaughter, Megan Goldin, Jeffery Deaver, and Richard Osman were the only authors that I read multiple titles from during 2022.

16 of the books I read were released this year, while only two of them were released last century, with the oldest first published in 1953.

Continue reading →

Book 37 (of 52) – Nowhere for Very Long

Nowhere For Very Long: The Unexpected Road To An Unconventional Life – Brianna Madia

Brianna Madia, a lifestyle influencer on Instagram, shares her story of abandoning the typical ideas of civilization and moving into a giant orange van with her husband and dogs, exploring the deserts of Utah and surrounding areas.  At some point, they nearly kill one of their dogs, lie to her followers about exactly what happened, and collected at least $100,000 for his care and recovery.  While the dog recovered, her marriage did not, as the guilt of hurting the dog and taking money from strangers tore their relationship apart.

I’m not entirely sure how Nowhere For Very Long landed on my radar, but it was an interesting read.  The author basically took my one day in Arizona back in 2018 where I went to the slot canyons and the Grand Canyon and turned it into a full-time gig.  Who amongst us hasn’t dreamed of giving it all up and living in the back of a van with a couple of dogs?  Or at least part of that.

There is some controversy about the incident with the dog, and it’s hard to tell exactly where the truth lies.  If it happened as she describes in the book, then it was truly an accident and one that, while it could have been avoided, wasn’t too outrageous given how they lived.  If it happened as speculated elsewhere, then let’s just say not everything is worth getting the perfect shot for your Instagram followers.