one monkey typing

What I read in 2019, in roughly chronological order.
Some of these are quite short but some are long, In the end I had 112 books and 35922 pages, both an all-time high for me.
These are all on my goodreads "read" list in more detail with ratings and an occasional note.

• Lies Sleeping (Ben Aaronovich, Peter Grant, #7)
  
• How To: Absurd Scientific Advice for Common Real-World Problems (Randall Monroe)
  
• The Book of the Year 2017 (QI elves)
  
• Randomize (Andy Weir)
  
• A Plague of Giants (Kevin Hearne Seven Kennings, #1)
  
• All Systems Red (Martha Wells, The Murderbot Diaries, #1)
  
• Wyrd Sisters (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #6; Witches #2)
  
• Artificial Condition (Martha Wells, The Murderbot Diaries, #2)
  
• Rogue Protocol (Martha Wells, The Murderbot Diaries, #3)
  
• Guards! Guards! (Terry Pratchett)
  
• Early Riser (Jasper Fforde)
  
• Exit Strategy (Martha Wells, The Murderbot Diaries, #4)
  
• Valence (Jennifer Foehner Wells, Confluence, #4)
  
• Eric (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #9)
  
• Pyramids (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #7)
  
• Witches Abroad (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #12)
  
• Equal Rites (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #3)
  
• Reaper Man (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #11)
  
• Moving Pictures (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #10)
  
• Men at Arms (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #15; City Watch #2)
  
• Lords And Ladies (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #14)
  
• Small Gods (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #13)
  
• Soul Music (Terry Pratchett, Discworld #16)
  
• Children of Time (Adrian Tchaikovsky)
  
• Feet of Clay (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #19)
  
• Interesting Times (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #17)
  
• Maskerade (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #18)
  
• Record of a Spaceborn Few (Becky Chambers, Wayfarers, #3)
  
• Hogfather (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #20)
  
• The Consuming Fire (John Scalzi, The Interdependency, #2)
  
• Jingo (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #21)
  
• The Labyrinth Index (Charles Stross, Laundry Files, #9)
  
• Carpe Jugulum (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #23)
  
• The Last Continent (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #22)
  
• Pinpoint: How GPS Is Changing Technology, Culture, and Our Minds (Greg Milner)
  
• The Truth (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #25)
  
• The Fifth Elephant (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #24)
  
• The Last Hero (Terry Pratchett)
  
• Thief of Time (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #26)
  
• The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #28)
  
• Night Watch (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #29)
  
• The Wee Free Men (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #30)
  
• Monstrous Regiment (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #31)
  
• Home (Nnedi Okorafor, Binti, #2)
  
• The Night Masquerade (Nnedi Okorafor, Binti #3)
  
• Going Postal (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #33)
  
• A Hat Full of Sky (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #32)
  
• Thud! (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #34)
  
• Wintersmith (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #35)
  
• Making Money (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #36)
  
• Tiamat's Wrath (James Corey, The Expanse, #8)
  
• Ancestral Night (Elizabeth Bear, White Space, #1)
  
• Right Ho, Jeeves (PG Wodehouse, Jeeves, #6)
  
• Unseen Academicals (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #37)
  
• A Rare Book of Cunning Device (Ben Aaronovich, Peter Grant, #6.5)
  
• Terminal Uprising (Jim C. Hines, Janitors of the Post-Apocalypse #2)
  
• Vanguard (Jack Campbell, The Genesis Fleet, #1)
  
• I Shall Wear Midnight (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #38)
  
• The Last Dragonslayer (Jasper Fforde, The Last Dragonslayer, #1)
  
• Snuff (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #39)
  
• Backpacker The Complete Guide to Backpacking: Field-Tested Gear, Advice, and Know-How for the Trail
  
• Raising Steam (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #40)
  
• The Shepherd's Crown (Terry Pratchett, Discworld, #41; Tiffany Aching, #5)
  
• The Science of Discworld (Terry Pratchett, The Science of Discworld, #1)
  
• Darwin's Watch (Terry Pratchett, The Science of Discworld, #3)
  
• The Globe (Terry Pratchett, The Science of Discworld, #2)
  
• Ascendant (Jack Campbell, The Genesis Fleet, #2)
  
• Atmosphæra Incognita (Neal Stephenson)
  
• Triumphant (Jack Campbell, The Genesis Fleet, #3)
  
• Judgement Day (Terry Pratchett, The Science of Discworld, #4)
  
• Every Tool's a Hammer: Life Is What You Make It (Adam Savage)
  
• Where the Hell is Tesla? (Rob Dircks)
  
• Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery (Scott Kelly)
  
• The Calculating Stars (Mary Robinette Kowal, Lady Astronaut, #1)
  
• The Book of the Year 2018: Your Definitive Guide to the World’s Weirdest News (QI elves)
  
• The Fated Sky (Mary Robinette Kowal, Lady Astronaut, #2)
  
• Spinning Silver (Naomi Novik)
  
• The Management Style of the Supreme Beings (Tom Holt)
  
• Leave it to Jeeves (PG Wodehouse)
  
• Heroes: Mortals and Monsters, Quests and Adventures (Stephen Fry's Great Mythology, #2)
  
• Trail of Lightning (Rebecca Roanhorse, The Sixth World, #1)
  
• Jeeves and the Unbidden Guest (PG Wodehouse)
  
• Just One Damned Thing After Another (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's, #1)
  
• A Symphony of Echoes (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St. Mary's, #2)
  
• Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms (Hannah Fry)
  
• The Lost Continent: Travels in Small Town America (Bill Bryson)
  
• Aftershocks (Marko Kloos, The Palladium Wars, #1)
  
• A Second Chance (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St. Mary's, #3)
  
• Notes from a Small Island (Bill Bryson)
  
• No Country for Old Gnomes (Delilah S Dawson, The Tales of Pell, #2)
  
• To Be Taught, If Fortunate (Becky Chambers)
  
• A Trail Through Time (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St. Mary's, #4)
  
• No Time Like the Past (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St. Mary's, #5)
  
• What Could Possibly Go Wrong? (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's, #6)
  
• Lies, Damned Lies, and History (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's, #7)
  
• And the Rest is History (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary’s, #8)
  
• Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom (David W. Blight)
  
• Roman Holiday (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's #3.5)
  
• Ships and Stings and Wedding Rings (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St. Mary's, #6.5)
  
• The Very First Damned Thing (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's, #0.5)
  
• When a Child is Born (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's #2.5)
  
• My Name is Markham (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's, #7.6)
  
• Christmas Present (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's #4.5)
  
• The Great St Mary's Day Out (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's, #7.5)
  
• A Perfect Storm (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's, #8.5)
  
• Christmas Past (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St. Mary's, #8.6)
  
• The Callahan Touch (Spider Robinson, Mary's Place #1, Callahan's #6)
  
• The Gateway Trip (Frederik Pohl, Heechee Saga, #5)
  
• An Argumentation of Historians (Jodi Taylor, The Chronicles of St Mary's, #9)
  
• Brief Cases (Jim Butcher, The Dresden Files, #15.1)

Oh heck I almost put the book I just finished in Jan-June. Oddly enough I managed exactly 50 books, 25 text and 25 audio, in the first half of the year. I'd set my challenge to 70 books, which would be a record for me. I doubt I'll be able to maintain the pace in the 2nd half of the year but it's a goal.

January-June is here

• 2017-07-01 • ★★★★☆ The Story of the Stone by Barry Hughart [1]
  
• 2017-07-01 • ★★★★☆ The Well of Lost Plots by Jasper Fforde [2]
  
• 2017-07-02 • ★★★★☆ Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde [2]
  
• 2017-07-06 • ★★★☆☆ First Among Sequels [2]
  
• 2017-07-07 • ★★★★☆ Remanence by Jennifer Foehner Wells [1]
  
• 2017-07-11 • ★★★☆☆ One Of Our Thursdays Is Missing by Jasper Fforde [2]
  
• 2017-07-13 • ★★★★★ Cold Welcome by Elizabeth Moon [1]
  
• 2017-07-15 • ★★★★☆ The Woman Who Died A Lot by Jasper Fforde [2]
  
• 2017-07-20 • ★★★★☆ Across the Universe by Beth Revis [2]
  
• 2017-07-23 • ★★★☆☆ A Million Suns by Beth Revis [2]
  
• 2017-07-24 • ★★★☆☆ Eight Skilled Gentlemen by Barry Hughart [1]
  
• 2017-07-28 • ★★★★☆ The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester [2]
  
• 2017-08-07 • ★★☆☆☆ Privateers by Ben Bova [1]
  
• 2017-08-09 • ★★★★★ The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. by Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland [2]
  
• 2017-08-13 • ★★★★☆ The Ship Who Sang by Anne McCaffrey [1]
  
• 2017-08-15 • ★★★★☆ The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin [2]
  
• 2017-08-20 • ★★★☆☆ Waylaid by Kim Harrison [1]
  
• 2017-08-25 • ★★★★☆ The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin [2]
  
• 2017-08-30 • ★★☆☆☆ The Long War by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter [2]
  
• 2017-09-11 • ★★★★☆ The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde [1]
  
• 2017-09-12 • ★★★★☆ The Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson [1]
  
• 2017-09-15 • ★★★★☆ The Furthest Station by Ben Aaronovich [1]
  
• 2017-09-19 • ★★★★☆ Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde [2]
  
• 2017-09-23 • ★★★★★ Dark Matter by Blake Crouch [2]
  
• 2017-10-08 • ★★★★★ I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou [2]
  
• 2017-10-10 • ★★★★☆ Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire [2]
  
• 2017-10-24 • ★★★★☆ The Lost Gate by Orson Scott Card [2]
  
• 2017-10-28 • ★★★☆☆ Software by Rudy Rucker [1]
  
• 2017-11-05 • ★★★★☆ The Gate Thief by Orson Scott Card [2]
  
• 2017-11-15 • ★★★☆☆ Gatefather by Orson Scott Card [2]
  

Total to date July-Dec 2017:
ebooks: 11
audio: 19
total: 30

[1] eBook
[2] Audiobook

Empire Games by Charles Stross

★★★★★

Excellent restart/continuation of the Merchant Princes series. It has a lot of new places to go now.
I was amused by the afterword. He nailed the writing style, or maybe Bruce actually had a hand in writing that bit.

Shadowed Souls

★★★★☆

I love a good collection of short stories. Very enjoyable, from some favorite authors and one or two I hadn't read before.

This is a round-up location for all books read in the first half of this year.

• 2017-01-03 • ★★★★☆ The Hidden Family by Charles Stross [2]
  
• 2017-01-04 • ★★★★★ The Idea Factory by Jon Gertner [1]
  
• 2017-01-11 • ★★☆☆☆ The Clan Corporate by Charles Stross [2]
  
• 2017-01-16 • ★★☆☆☆ Brass Man by Neal Asher [1]
  
• 2017-01-22 • ★★★☆☆ The Merchant's War by Charles Stross [2]
  
• 2017-01-24 • ★★★★☆ Shadowed Souls [1]
  
• 2017-01-31 • ★★★☆☆ The Revolution Business by Charles Stross [2]
  
• 2017-02-10 • ★★★★☆ The Trade of Queens by Charles Stross [2]
  
• 2017-02-25 • ★★★★☆ It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis [1]
  
• 2017-02-07 • ★★★★★ Empire Games by Charles Stross [1]
  
• 2017-03-19 • ★★★☆☆ Shadow of Victory by Davoid Weber [1]
  
• 2017-03-26 • ★★☆☆☆ Bonk by Mary Roach [1]
  
• 2017-03-28 • ★★★★★ The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi [1]
  
• 2017-04-03 • ★★★★★ To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee [1]
  
• 2017-04-09 • ★★★★☆ The Hanging Tree by Ben Aaronovitch [2]
  
• 2017-04-10 • ★★★★☆ Grass by Sheri S. Tepper [1]
  
• 2017-04-13 • ★★★★☆ Libriomancer by Jim Hines [1]
  
• 2017-04-16 • ★★★★☆ Codex Born by Jim Hines [1]
  
• 2017-04-16 • ★★★★☆ Dead Men's Boots by Mike Carey [2]
  
• 2017-04-19 • ★★★★☆ Unbound by Jim Hines [1]
  
• 2017-04-19 • ★★★★☆ Thicker than Water by Mike Carey [2]
  
• 2017-04-23 • ★★★★☆ The Naming of the Beasts by Mike Carey [2]
  
• 2017-04-24 • ★★★★☆ Revisionary by Jim Hines [1]
  
• 2017-04-26 • ★★★★★ The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers [1]
  
• 2017-04-26 • ★★★☆☆ Symbiont by Mira Grant [2]
  
• 2017-04-28 • ★★★★☆ A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers [1]
  
• 2017-04-28 • ★★★★☆ The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey [2]
  
• 2017-05-01 • ★★★☆☆ Goblin Quest by Jim C. Hines [2]
  
• 2017-05-05 • ★★★☆☆ Goblin Hero by Jim C Hines [2]
  
• 2017-05-06 • ☆☆☆☆☆ Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee [1]
  
• 2017-05-10 • ★★★★☆ Way Station by Clifford D Simak [1]
  
• 2017-05-10 • ★★★☆☆ Goblin War by Jim C Hines [2]
  
• 2017-05-13 • ★★★★★ Chains of Command by Marko Kloos [2]
  
• 2017-05-15 • ★★★★☆ All The Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders [1]
  
• 2017-05-17 • ★★★★★ Fields of Fire by Marko Kloos [2]
  
• 2017-05-20 • ★★★★☆ Imperfect Sword by Jack Campbell [1]
  
• 2017-05-26 • ★★★★☆ Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly [1]
  
• 2017-05-26 • ★★★★☆ The Stepsister Scheme by Jim C. Hines [2]
  
• 2017-05-30 • ★★★★☆ Shattered Spear by Jack Campbell [1]
  
• 2017-05-31 • ★★★★☆ The Mermaid's Madness by Jim C. Hines [2]
  
• 2017-06-03 • ★★★★☆ Red Hood's Revenge by Jim C. Hines [2]
  
• 2017-06-04 • ★★★★★ We Are Legion (We Are Bob) by Dennis E. Taylor [1]
  
• 2017-06-08 • ★★★★☆ For We Are Many by Dennis E. Taylor [1]
  
• 2017-06-11 • ★★★★☆ The Snow Queen's Shadow by Jim C. Hines [2]
  
• 2017-06-11 • ★★★★☆ Fairest by Marissa Meyer [2]
  
• 2017-06-17 • ★★★★☆ The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde [2]
  
• 2017-07-18 • ★★★★☆ Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughart [1]
  
• 2017-07-19 • ★★☆☆☆ A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L'Engle [2]
  
• 2017-07-20 • ★★★☆☆ Chimera by Mira Grant [2]
  
• 2017-07-27 • ★★★★☆ Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde [2]
  

Total to date Jan-June 2017:
ebooks: 25
audio: 25
total: 50

[1] eBook
[2] Audiobook

I started 2016 making a special push to get more books read that year, and especially to try to get into more genres and more non-fiction. I'm pretty pleased with the results. At the end of the year I had 69 books finished (27,500 pages), which is more than any year other than 2008. In 2008 I was happily consuming Discworld, Honor Harrington and The Serrano Legacy series on audiobook while bicycle commuting, so that alone is a huge volume.

Now that I'm doing the wrap-up, I see that the book count is somewhat inflated because Goodreads is counting the short stories as well. I didn't count them below. So perhaps 65 is a more accurate count, or perhaps 65.5.

Meanwhile, every time I finish a book and skip back to the main page on the Kindle to see what to read next, I'm faced with a hard choice. I already have a dozen books that I want to read next, and more that would be in the same boat but I haven't loaded them yet. I guess it's a good problem to have.

BTW I'd be happy to have more Goodreads friends. This is me on Goodreads

Jan-Jun detail
Jul-Dec detail

Total to date Jan-Jun 2016:
ebooks: 18
audio: 14
total: 32

Total to date Jul-Dec 2016:
ebooks: 15
audio: 18
total: 33

Overall 2016
ebooks: 33
Audio: 32
Total: 65

[1] eBook
[2] Audiobook

Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow

★★★★★

Likely to be the most well researched in its breadth Washington bio you'll ever read. This book gives a life and depth to Washington, much more realistic than the stroppy legends that are taught to kids (do they still teach those tales?) Very enjoyable, though it took me close to two months to get through. This is not to say it was difficult going, but it is a bit long and my time has been short.

Death's End by Cixin Liu

★★★☆☆

I actually finished this a couple of days ago and waited to let my thoughts about it settle for a bit.

The first book was a bit of a slow start, but then got interesting to me. I enjoyed the second. This one started out much the same, but about halfway through it just started to get bizarre, and it just went downhill from there.

It's very imaginative, but it's really more like a bunch of junk the author thought up hammered together and strung together on a few characters which are hopped forward in time in order to provide some cohesion.

Three stars is still "I liked it" but I really can't say I "really liked it."

May Contain Traces of Magic by Tom Holt

★★★☆☆

A pretty run of the mill book from the series, nothing special, not horrible.

The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters

★★★★☆

Very good premise for a book, fast pacing, never predictable.