2009 Reading in Review
I went through phases this year, where I could read a lot really fast, but also where social life, work and graduate school just sucked it all away. I read really cheap modern fiction, science fiction and mystery, and I read classics, and I read classics I had no interest in reading, but told my mother I would if she purchased the book for me (Pride and Prejudice).
Counting only the books I read for the first time, my favorites were:
The Red Prince
Dune
One Hundred Years of Solitude
The Radetzky March
Mistborn
The Gathering Storm
Animal Farm
1984
Short Stories by Voltaire and Gogol
Lolita
146 read cover to cover is a reduction from last year's pace just counting May-December, but I did spend several months JUST reading last year, and this year I had no such luxury. The pace also slowed down in school because I read far more selections of books and articles than complete books.
1) The Red Prince -Timothy Snyder -1-04
2) Byzantium -Michael Angold -1-05
3) Bellows Falls -Archer Mayer -1-06
4) Gods and Generals -Jeff Shaara -1-09
5) The Bull from the Sea -Mary Renault -1-10
6) Kushiel’s Dart -Jaqueline Carey -1-13
7) Pride and Prejudice -Jane Austen -1-17`
8) Fire From Heaven -Mary Renault -1-17
9) Lolita -Vladimir Nabokov -1-18
10) On Sparta -Plutarch -1-19
11) The Honourable Schoolboy -John Le Carre -1-22
12) Robinson Crusoe -Daniel Defoe -1-23
13) Inside Straight -George RR Martin ed -1-25
14) The March of Folly -Barbara Tuchman -1-29
15) The Hellenistic World -F. W. Walbank -2-01
16) Doctor Faustus -Thomas Mann -2-05
17) Slaughterhouse 5 -Kurt Vonnegut -2-06
18) Dune -Frank Herbert -2-10
19) Last Full Measure -Jeff Shaara -2-12
20) Dune Messiah -Frank Herbert -2-13
21) One Hundred Years of Solitude -Gabriel Garcia Marquez -2-18
22) Pastwatch -Orson Scott Card -2-21
23) The Children of Hurin -JRR Tolkien -2-21
24) Thermopylae -Paul Cartledge -2-24
25) Dune: House Atreides -Brian Herbert, Kevin Anderson -2-28
26) The Shape of the Past -Gordon Graham -3-02
27) The Other Boleyn Girl -Philippa Gregory -3-06
28) Modern Greece -C. M. Woodhouse -3-08
29) Wedge’s Gamble - Michael Stackpole -3-10
30) Wraith Squadron -Aaron Allston -3-10
31) Dune: House Harkonnen -Brian Herbert, Kevin Anderson -3-12
32) Dune: House Corrino -Brian Herbert, Kevin Anderson -3-16
33) Children of Dune -Frank Herbert -3-21
34) A Game of Thrones -George RR Martin -3-27
35) Fate of the Jedi: Outcast -Aaron Allston -3-28
36) Genghis: Bones of the Hills -Conn Iggulden -3-28
37) X-Wing: Solo Command -Aaron Allston -4-2
38) The Eye of the World -Robert Jordan -4-4
39) I, Jedi -Michal A. Stackpole -4-6
40) Lord of the Silver Bow -David Gemmell -4-9
41) The Dark Root -Archer Mayer -4-14
42) The Idea of History -R.G. Collingwood -4-15
43) Twilight of the Idols -Friedrich Nietzsche -4-19
44) The Antichrist -Friedrich Nietzsche -4-20
45) The Great Hunt -Robert Jordan -4-27
46) Elantris -Brandon Sanderson -5-01
47) The Lily and the Lion -Maurice Druon -5-02
48) The Dragon Reborn -Robert Jordan -5-05
49) The Ruin of the Roman Empire -James O’Donnell -5-07
50) The Shadow Rising -Robert Jordan -5-09
51) The Final Empire -Brandon Sanderson -5-11
52) The Well of Ascension -Brandon Sanderson -5-14
53) The Fires of Heaven -Robert Jordan -5-17
54) Hero of the Ages -Brandon Sanderson -5-20
55) Agincourt -Bernard Cornwell -5-22
56) The Price of Admiralty -John Keegan -5-25
57) In Search of Alexander -Robin Lane Fox -5-29
58) A Clash of Kings -George RR Martin -6-03
59) The Lord of Chaos -Robert Jordan -6-09
60) Crown of Swords -Robert Jordan -6-11
61) The Path of Daggers -Robert Jordan -6-15
62) Dune -Frank Herbert -6-17
63) Winter’s Heart -Robert Jordan -6-21
64) Ender’s Game -Orson Scott Card -6-21
65) Mistborn -Brandon Sanderson -6-23
66) Crossroads of Twilight -Robert Jordan -6-27
67) Knife of Dreams -Robert Jordan -6-30
68) Philip of Macedonia -Ian Worthington -7-03
69) The Radetzky March -Joseph Roth -7-07
70) Zorba the Greek -Nikos Kazantzakis -7-17
71) Gettysburg -Newt Gingrich, William Forstchen 7-20
72) Warbreaker -Brandon Sanderson 7-23
73) Diary of a Madman (and other stories) -Nikolai Gogol -7-27
74) Isard’s Revenge -Michael A. Stackpole -8-05
75) Fellowship of the Ring -JRR Tolkien -8-11
76) Old Man’s War -John Scalzi -8-12
77) Scarlet -Stephen Lawhead -8-14
78) The Courtship of Princess Leia -Dave Wolverton -8-15
79) The Two Towers -JRR Tolkien -8-16
80) Al the Great and the Logistics of the Macedonian Army -Donald W. Engels -8-16
81) The Return of the King -JRR Tolkien -8-19
82) Animal Farm -George Orwell -8-21
83) The Bacta War -Michael A. Stackpole -8-27
84) Archaic Greece -L.H. Jeffery -8-28
85) The French Worker -Mark Traugott -8-28
86) Dragons of Autumn Twilight -Margaret Weiss & Tracy Hickman -8-28
87) Bloodlines -Karen Traviss -8-29
88) Zoe’s Tale -John Scalzi -8-30
89) Harry Potter and the Sorceror’s Stone -J.K. Rowling -8-30
90) Candide and other Stories -Voltaire -8-31
91) Dragons of Winter Night -Margaret Weiss & Tracy Hickman -9-01
92) Sparta and Persia -David Lewis -9-01
93) Dragons of Spring Dawning -Margaret Weiss & Tracy Hickman -9-03
94) The Defense of Greece -J.F. Lazenby -9-04
95) Gates of Fire -Stephen Pressfield -9-05
96) The Gaugamela Campaign -E.W. Marsden -9-05
97) The Greco-Persian Wars -Peter Green -9-09
98) Persia and the Greeks -A.R. Burn -9-11
99) A Storm of Swords -George R.R. Martin -9-12
100) Xerxes’ Invasion of Greece -C. Hignett -9-12
101) Books 11-12.3, Library of History -Diodorus -9-13
102) Two Battles and Two Bills -Johan Schreiner -9-14
103) A New Spring -Robert Jordan -9-15
104) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets -J.K. Rowling -9-16
105) Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire -Edward Luttwak -9-17
106) The Ghost Brigades -John Scalzi -9-17
107) Philosophical Essays -Bertrand Russell -9-18
108) The Histories -Herodotus -9-18
109) The Peloponnesian War -J.H. Lazenby -9-19
110) The Last Colony -John Scalzi -9-20
111) Armada From Athens -Peter Green -9-24
112) A Feast For the Crows -George RR Martin -9-26
113) War and Society in Imperial Rome -Brian Campbell -9-26
114) The Peloponnesian War -Thucydides -9-27
115) Invasion -Julian Stockwin
116) The Beginnings of Imperial Rome -Chester Starr -9-29
117) Roman Imperialism in the Late Republic -E. Badian -9-29
118) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban -J.K. Rowling -9-30
119) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire -J.K. Rowling -10-3
120) Philip of Macedon -George Cawkwell -10-4
121) Necropolis -Anthony Horowitz -10-4
122) 1984 -George Orwell -10-7
123) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix -J.K. Rowling -10-9
124) Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince -J.K. Rowling -10-11
125) Legacy of the Force: Invincible -Troy Denning -10-11
126) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -J.K. Rowling -10-12
127) Battle -Patrick Rambaud -10-30
128) The Gathering Storm -Brandon Sanderson (RJ) -11-04
129) The Bon Marche -Michael Miller -11-16
130) Solo Command -Aaron Allston -11-18
131) Kushiel’s Dart -Jaqueline Carey -11-23
132) The Gathering Storm -Brandon Sanderson -12-3
133) Anonyponymous -John Bemelmans Marciano -12-10
134) Prince Caspian -C.S. Lewis -12-10
135) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire -J.K. Rowling -12-12
136) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban -J.K. Rowling -12-13
137) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix -J.K. Rowling -12-15
138) Busted Flush -George R.R. Martin (ed.) -12-22
139) Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince -J.K. Rowling -12-23
140) The Philosophy of History -G.W.F. Hegel -12-24
141) Why I Write -George Orwell -12-26
142) The Legacy of Alexander -Brian Bosworth -12-26
143) The Last Days of Titian -Mark Hudson -12-28
144) The Price of Malice -Archer Mayor -12-29
145) The Ghost King -R.A. Salvatore -12-29
146) Omen -Christie Golden -12-30
Counting only the books I read for the first time, my favorites were:
The Red Prince
Dune
One Hundred Years of Solitude
The Radetzky March
Mistborn
The Gathering Storm
Animal Farm
1984
Short Stories by Voltaire and Gogol
Lolita
146 read cover to cover is a reduction from last year's pace just counting May-December, but I did spend several months JUST reading last year, and this year I had no such luxury. The pace also slowed down in school because I read far more selections of books and articles than complete books.
1) The Red Prince -Timothy Snyder -1-04
2) Byzantium -Michael Angold -1-05
3) Bellows Falls -Archer Mayer -1-06
4) Gods and Generals -Jeff Shaara -1-09
5) The Bull from the Sea -Mary Renault -1-10
6) Kushiel’s Dart -Jaqueline Carey -1-13
7) Pride and Prejudice -Jane Austen -1-17`
8) Fire From Heaven -Mary Renault -1-17
9) Lolita -Vladimir Nabokov -1-18
10) On Sparta -Plutarch -1-19
11) The Honourable Schoolboy -John Le Carre -1-22
12) Robinson Crusoe -Daniel Defoe -1-23
13) Inside Straight -George RR Martin ed -1-25
14) The March of Folly -Barbara Tuchman -1-29
15) The Hellenistic World -F. W. Walbank -2-01
16) Doctor Faustus -Thomas Mann -2-05
17) Slaughterhouse 5 -Kurt Vonnegut -2-06
18) Dune -Frank Herbert -2-10
19) Last Full Measure -Jeff Shaara -2-12
20) Dune Messiah -Frank Herbert -2-13
21) One Hundred Years of Solitude -Gabriel Garcia Marquez -2-18
22) Pastwatch -Orson Scott Card -2-21
23) The Children of Hurin -JRR Tolkien -2-21
24) Thermopylae -Paul Cartledge -2-24
25) Dune: House Atreides -Brian Herbert, Kevin Anderson -2-28
26) The Shape of the Past -Gordon Graham -3-02
27) The Other Boleyn Girl -Philippa Gregory -3-06
28) Modern Greece -C. M. Woodhouse -3-08
29) Wedge’s Gamble - Michael Stackpole -3-10
30) Wraith Squadron -Aaron Allston -3-10
31) Dune: House Harkonnen -Brian Herbert, Kevin Anderson -3-12
32) Dune: House Corrino -Brian Herbert, Kevin Anderson -3-16
33) Children of Dune -Frank Herbert -3-21
34) A Game of Thrones -George RR Martin -3-27
35) Fate of the Jedi: Outcast -Aaron Allston -3-28
36) Genghis: Bones of the Hills -Conn Iggulden -3-28
37) X-Wing: Solo Command -Aaron Allston -4-2
38) The Eye of the World -Robert Jordan -4-4
39) I, Jedi -Michal A. Stackpole -4-6
40) Lord of the Silver Bow -David Gemmell -4-9
41) The Dark Root -Archer Mayer -4-14
42) The Idea of History -R.G. Collingwood -4-15
43) Twilight of the Idols -Friedrich Nietzsche -4-19
44) The Antichrist -Friedrich Nietzsche -4-20
45) The Great Hunt -Robert Jordan -4-27
46) Elantris -Brandon Sanderson -5-01
47) The Lily and the Lion -Maurice Druon -5-02
48) The Dragon Reborn -Robert Jordan -5-05
49) The Ruin of the Roman Empire -James O’Donnell -5-07
50) The Shadow Rising -Robert Jordan -5-09
51) The Final Empire -Brandon Sanderson -5-11
52) The Well of Ascension -Brandon Sanderson -5-14
53) The Fires of Heaven -Robert Jordan -5-17
54) Hero of the Ages -Brandon Sanderson -5-20
55) Agincourt -Bernard Cornwell -5-22
56) The Price of Admiralty -John Keegan -5-25
57) In Search of Alexander -Robin Lane Fox -5-29
58) A Clash of Kings -George RR Martin -6-03
59) The Lord of Chaos -Robert Jordan -6-09
60) Crown of Swords -Robert Jordan -6-11
61) The Path of Daggers -Robert Jordan -6-15
62) Dune -Frank Herbert -6-17
63) Winter’s Heart -Robert Jordan -6-21
64) Ender’s Game -Orson Scott Card -6-21
65) Mistborn -Brandon Sanderson -6-23
66) Crossroads of Twilight -Robert Jordan -6-27
67) Knife of Dreams -Robert Jordan -6-30
68) Philip of Macedonia -Ian Worthington -7-03
69) The Radetzky March -Joseph Roth -7-07
70) Zorba the Greek -Nikos Kazantzakis -7-17
71) Gettysburg -Newt Gingrich, William Forstchen 7-20
72) Warbreaker -Brandon Sanderson 7-23
73) Diary of a Madman (and other stories) -Nikolai Gogol -7-27
74) Isard’s Revenge -Michael A. Stackpole -8-05
75) Fellowship of the Ring -JRR Tolkien -8-11
76) Old Man’s War -John Scalzi -8-12
77) Scarlet -Stephen Lawhead -8-14
78) The Courtship of Princess Leia -Dave Wolverton -8-15
79) The Two Towers -JRR Tolkien -8-16
80) Al the Great and the Logistics of the Macedonian Army -Donald W. Engels -8-16
81) The Return of the King -JRR Tolkien -8-19
82) Animal Farm -George Orwell -8-21
83) The Bacta War -Michael A. Stackpole -8-27
84) Archaic Greece -L.H. Jeffery -8-28
85) The French Worker -Mark Traugott -8-28
86) Dragons of Autumn Twilight -Margaret Weiss & Tracy Hickman -8-28
87) Bloodlines -Karen Traviss -8-29
88) Zoe’s Tale -John Scalzi -8-30
89) Harry Potter and the Sorceror’s Stone -J.K. Rowling -8-30
90) Candide and other Stories -Voltaire -8-31
91) Dragons of Winter Night -Margaret Weiss & Tracy Hickman -9-01
92) Sparta and Persia -David Lewis -9-01
93) Dragons of Spring Dawning -Margaret Weiss & Tracy Hickman -9-03
94) The Defense of Greece -J.F. Lazenby -9-04
95) Gates of Fire -Stephen Pressfield -9-05
96) The Gaugamela Campaign -E.W. Marsden -9-05
97) The Greco-Persian Wars -Peter Green -9-09
98) Persia and the Greeks -A.R. Burn -9-11
99) A Storm of Swords -George R.R. Martin -9-12
100) Xerxes’ Invasion of Greece -C. Hignett -9-12
101) Books 11-12.3, Library of History -Diodorus -9-13
102) Two Battles and Two Bills -Johan Schreiner -9-14
103) A New Spring -Robert Jordan -9-15
104) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets -J.K. Rowling -9-16
105) Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire -Edward Luttwak -9-17
106) The Ghost Brigades -John Scalzi -9-17
107) Philosophical Essays -Bertrand Russell -9-18
108) The Histories -Herodotus -9-18
109) The Peloponnesian War -J.H. Lazenby -9-19
110) The Last Colony -John Scalzi -9-20
111) Armada From Athens -Peter Green -9-24
112) A Feast For the Crows -George RR Martin -9-26
113) War and Society in Imperial Rome -Brian Campbell -9-26
114) The Peloponnesian War -Thucydides -9-27
115) Invasion -Julian Stockwin
116) The Beginnings of Imperial Rome -Chester Starr -9-29
117) Roman Imperialism in the Late Republic -E. Badian -9-29
118) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban -J.K. Rowling -9-30
119) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire -J.K. Rowling -10-3
120) Philip of Macedon -George Cawkwell -10-4
121) Necropolis -Anthony Horowitz -10-4
122) 1984 -George Orwell -10-7
123) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix -J.K. Rowling -10-9
124) Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince -J.K. Rowling -10-11
125) Legacy of the Force: Invincible -Troy Denning -10-11
126) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -J.K. Rowling -10-12
127) Battle -Patrick Rambaud -10-30
128) The Gathering Storm -Brandon Sanderson (RJ) -11-04
129) The Bon Marche -Michael Miller -11-16
130) Solo Command -Aaron Allston -11-18
131) Kushiel’s Dart -Jaqueline Carey -11-23
132) The Gathering Storm -Brandon Sanderson -12-3
133) Anonyponymous -John Bemelmans Marciano -12-10
134) Prince Caspian -C.S. Lewis -12-10
135) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire -J.K. Rowling -12-12
136) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban -J.K. Rowling -12-13
137) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix -J.K. Rowling -12-15
138) Busted Flush -George R.R. Martin (ed.) -12-22
139) Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince -J.K. Rowling -12-23
140) The Philosophy of History -G.W.F. Hegel -12-24
141) Why I Write -George Orwell -12-26
142) The Legacy of Alexander -Brian Bosworth -12-26
143) The Last Days of Titian -Mark Hudson -12-28
144) The Price of Malice -Archer Mayor -12-29
145) The Ghost King -R.A. Salvatore -12-29
146) Omen -Christie Golden -12-30