Every year I keep track of my books in a Google Doc that allows me to track a variety of demographics around my books. As I have tried to decolonize my bookshelf, read the rainbow and simply diversify my reading, this tracking has helped me stay accountable to the reading values I have named for myself. After quite a few years of doing this, it has become less of a check point throughout the year and more of a reflection tool to ensure I have been making some progress.
Below are a few of the areas that I found interesting this year. My total books read was 111 to help understand the total percentages.
Genre of Author
First is a simple shift, “Gender of Author.” When I first started tracking my books I realized just how many male authors I read particularly in the sci-fi/fantasy world which is my go-to genre. This year 67.7% were NOT men. After reviewing the male authors, I realize many of them still remain in the sci-fi/fantasy genre and some were rereads.
Race of Author
I also track the race of the authors I read. As a midwestern reader coming up in the 80’s and 90’s, white authors have been my bread and butter for years. Over the last 7-10 years I have made a concerted effort to change that ratio. In 2023 you can see though white authors remain the largest single block, they made up less than half of my reading.
Book Type (Genre)
Lastly is the book type. I don’t call it genre because I have based it primarily on what I choose to read. I have been trying to get my fiction down to 50% and I got real close this year which I am excited about. My non-fiction is also up from 18.6% in 2022 which also makes me feel good as I have been so enjoying my those non-fiction reads.
Overall, I am very happy with the mix of reading that I am able to see at the end of the year. I want to continue these current trends of less male authors, less white authors and less fiction as a total percentage of my reading each year, but sometimes it comes down to what I feel like reading and what my brain can absorb. Reading is a pass time I love dearly and which feeds my soul in a myriad of ways. I like to challenge myself in this realm but it is not for everyone, nor should it be. It is simply a fun lens for me and offers me more ways to think about books, Books BOOKS!
Happy Reading!
Hannah
