Books of 2014

Armin being a good boy and reading a book! :) (this is me! :) ) 

How many books read in 2014: 
Around 100, I think. I read a lot in the first half of the year, but when college started, I was hardly able to read much at all(besides textbooks). 


How many fiction and non fiction?: 
mostly fiction


Male/Female author ratio?: 
About the same, as always.



Favorite book of 2014?: 
Not in any particular order
The Lion and the Rose/The Serpent and the Pearl - loved these historical fiction novels. I hadn't known anything about the Borgia family and getting to read about all of that was really interesting. The three narrators- Giulia, Leonello, and Carmelina- were all very interesting and multifaceted and I loved hearing their stories. The writing style was also lovely and extremely readable.  
Lion of Senet - this was definitely an awesome fantasy series. There is so little high fantasy, so this was definitely a nice read. While not as good as the Middle Earth books, of course, it is definitely one of the better fantasy books I've read. Looking forward to finishing the trilogy(just wish it had been a little cleaner). 
The Blood of Olympus - great end to an awesome series. Enough said. 
Calling Me Home - this was a lovely historical and contemporary fiction novel. Lovely writing with a story that explores racism and interracial relationships very well. 
Code Name Verity - AWESOME historical fiction story about two women who served in the British army in WWII. LOVED it. 
The Culling - while dystopians have definitely gotten old to me, this book really did well with the genre. It was brutal and depressing, but it never went into the existentialism that annoys me, nor did it get really weird(like Divergent). Also, it had a gay protagonist(and is written by a gay author) which was really nice to see(representation matters!) . 
Great Expectations - While I don't like Charles Dickens as much as Victor Hugo, this was a great novel and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Avatar: The Last Airbender comics - I have adored ATLA for a long time, so getting to continue the story has been awesome.
Attack on Titan manga - I watched season 1 of this awesome show earlier this year and once that was over, I dove into the manga. The manga has been amazing and I can't wait to see these stories in season 2! :D
Fruits Basket manga - FINALLY FINISHED THIS! :D Sat down and finished it earlier this year, which was such a good thing, since it was a lovely, beautiful story, with a perfect ending. :)
The Staff of Serapis/The Son of Sobek - awesome crossovers between the Percy Jackson/Heroes of Olympus books and the Kane Chronicles. Both were awesome and fun reads and I can't wait for the last one! :)
Frankenstein - it was really interesting finally reading this classic. I could tell it was a first novel, but still, a good read.
Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void - really cool to read a story taking place back at the very beginning of the Jedi Order(really want to read the Dawn of the Jedi comics now!).
Children of the Mind - solid end to the books about Ender.
The Handmaid's Tale - eerie tale about a patriarchal dystopia.



Least favorite?:
The Perks of Being A Wallflower - sorry for the curse words, BUT THIS BOOK WAS COMPLETE SHIT! Seriously, Charlie is NOT a wallflower- I've been one and I know what it's like. And being best buds with the seniors and getting invited to parties and having two older girls interested in you does not a wallflower make. In fact, he seemed very popular to me in the novel. Plus, the book just glosses over a ton of issues without handing them with any sort of respect, which is just rude. And, for some reason, even though Charlie was molested by his aunt, he just seems to get over it and 'forgive her'. Sorry, but if that were me, I would have punched her in the face/beaten her up or, since she was dead, go and piss on her grave or something. I would have NEVER forgiven her. Monsters like that don't deserve forgiveness. (rape trigger warning) Heck, there was even a rape scene that was just written so crassly I literally threw the book down and yelled "why would you write that?". Besides the terrible handling of subject matter, the overall story was just dumb and the writing amateurish. Utterly pathetic. 
The Catcher in the Rye - this book was just a bunch of whining from a big baby with an annoying existentialism world-view. It did get better towards the end, but Holden was just a sexist, whinny jerk, who doesn't deserve the opportunities he was given. 
The Fault in Our Stars - not terrible, but not impressive in the slightest. A lot of people found it to be sad and tear-inducing, but I just found it bland, the characters unsympathetic and unreal, and the language just....weird. I mean, I felt much more sad when that random character in Attack on Titan shot themselves to avoid being killed by the Titans than I did for these characters. 



Newest?: 
The Blood of Olympus! :) 


Longest and shortest book titles? Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe and Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void for longest
Beowulf(abridged) for shortest

Longest and shortest books?: 
Longest would probably be The Immortal Prince and Great Expectations
Shortest would be the two short stories The Son of Sobek and The Staff of Serapis


How many books from the library?: 
Most were from the library



Any translated books?:
Attack on Titan mangas and Fruits Basket mangas



Most read author of the year, and how many books by that author?: 
I read a lot of authors. Maybe the authors of the Attack on Titan mangas and the Fruits Basket mangas. 



Any re-reads?: 
Not that I can remember. I do want to re-read the Lord of the Rings books, as well as The Hobbit and The Silmarillion again. Also, I definitely want to re-read the Star Wars books by Jude Watson. 


Favorite character of the year?
Hmmm...good question
Armin Arlert
All the Attack on Titan characters, basically
Percy Jackson
Annabeth Chase
Nico di Angelo
Hazel Levesque
Jason Grace
Reyna Avila Ramirez Arellano
Frank Zhang
Piper McLean
Leo Valdez
Will Solace
Zuko
Katara
Toph
Sokka
Aang
Azula
Tohru Honda
Yuki Sohma
Kyo Sohma
Giulia Farnese 
Leonello 
Carmelina 
Ender Wiggins
Wang-Mu 
Julia/Julie(Code Name Verity)
Maddie(Code Name Verity)
Isabella (Calling Me Home)
Robert (Calling Me Home)





Which countries did you go to through the page in your year of reading?:
Japan, Germany, France, England, Switzerland, Australia, Scotland, and many fantasy/science fiction worlds. 

Which book wouldn't you have read without someone’s specific recommendation? 
Code Name Verity
Amazing Agent Jennifer(manga/comic)
The Fault In Our Stars
The Lion of Senet
Giulia Farnese duology
Calling Me Home
Attack on Titan(same goes for the show)






Which author was new to you in 2014 that you now want to read the entire works of?
Elizabeth Wein - her book Code Name Verity was fantastic and I want to see more of her writing.
Kate Quinn - I just love her writing style and the way she crafts her characters. 


Which books are you annoyed you didn't read?:
Paradise Lost/Paradise Regained(which I'm currently on)
The Children of Hurin(which I have from the library)
A Hobbit Journey (which I also have right now)
the rest of the Star Wars books I haven't gotten to
various classics
The Ender Shadow books


Did you read any books you have always been meaning to read?
YES! :D
Frankenstein
The Catcher in the Rye
The Great Gatsby
Great Expectations 
finally finished the Fruits Basket mangas(LOVED THE STORY!) 
Star Wars books(The Dark Forces books, Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void, Death Troopers, Red Harvest, The Force Unleashed 2, )
The Children of the Mind 
Ender in Exile
Avatar: The Last Airbender comics(haven't read them all yet, but I've read several arcs)
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
The Blood of Olympus
The Handmaid's Tale
The Dragon Rider's of Pern: Dragonflight 
The Perks of Being a Wallflower

What books are you planning to read in 2015?
I want to finish Paradise Lost/Paradise Regained
A Hobbit Journey
The Children of Hurin
Death Star
A New Hope novelization
Scoundrals
The Thrawn Trilogy
the rest of the Star Wars books I haven't gotten to yet
Star Wars comic books
The Torch Keeper: The Sowing
The Crown of Ptolemy 
Fangirl
The Mote in God's Eye
The Iliad/The Odyssey 
Emma
Persuasion
Sense and Sensibility
Freedom 
Death in Venice 
Oliver Twist
David Copperfield
Morning is a Long Time Coming
The Scarlet Letter
the next Lion of Senet books
The Summer I Wasn't Me
and science fiction/fantasy books 
(check my goodreads account for my complete to-read list) 

Also, I may try this! :)