End of the Year: Reading Round Up 2012

Last year I did a week of end of the year recap posts, looking back at what I had accomplished, and what I hoped to accomplish in the coming year.  I think it is fun to go back and look at these posts and also helps put they year into perspective.  I thought I would do the same for this year, though I don't think I am going to do another Stash Stats post - at this point I have so many fabrics and patterns (mostly due to my ever growing pattern magazine collection) that I don't even want to bother looking at the numbers (too frightening).  I do have a relatively decent storage and catalog system, and right now just managing the stash is enough for me.

I will do a more in-depth year-end sewing review later; today I want to focus on a year-end review of the books and reading goals I have accomplished.  Last year my reading was mostly focused on sewing-related books about technique and construction.  This year I didn't manage to read many sewing books at all, though I did read Tim Gunn's books about fashion and style.  Those were related to my sewing challenge though, so it is somewhat understandable that they jumped to the top of the queue.  I read a more varied mix of fiction and non-fiction this year, and really enjoyed most of the books I finished.  Roller Skating for Gold was surprisingly straightforward, informative, and candid, and it is a stand-out in terms of the roller skating history books I have read.  Lost at the Con and Legion were also surprise favorites in the world of fiction.

In terms of quantity, I didn't do much better than the 12 books I read last year, only managing 12 this year.  It seems that a book a month is about my going rate, though I know that most of my reading happens at the beginning of the year, and at the end.  Summer skating commitments squash out a lot of free reading time it seems.  Though the mad rush to finish graduate school work sort of curtailed the year-end reading a bit as well.  Ah, well.  You can look at the list of books I have read since starting this blog, with links to book reviews here.

As far as next year goes, I hope to be able to keep up at least a similar pace with a book a month.  I am a bit sad that I didn't manage to finish a lot of sewing books this year, so I think one of my goals for next year is to read at least a few books on sewing technique or more about fashion and sewing history.  Of course, that will have to wait until after A Memory of Light comes out (counting down the days you guys, counting down the days), and I also plan to read A Dance With Dragons when it comes out in paperback.  After that I will have to peruse my personal library (no, I don't just stash patterns) and find more fantasy stories to read.  Oh, and I want to read more non-fiction and possibly some more books about the history of roller skating if I can find the time.  Sigh.  So many books so little time.