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To celebrate the end of the year, I thought it would fun to have a discussion about all the books we read this year and what we want to read in 2022!
So we can kick off the discussion with some questions and then go from there.
How Many Books Have you Read this Year? List every one you read!
My answer is so sad. *sniff* I think I read like… four books? Uh, yeah, somehow that happened.
So um, here is my extensive list of all the books I read this year:
#1. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
#2. The Wingfeather Saga – On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness by Andrew Peterson
#3. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
#4. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Also, for some reason they are all middle grade books? Hmmm… this has indeed been a strange year of reading for me.
Which Book Was your Favorite? Why?
Probably The Secret Garden. I really liked the setting and the characters. The story is simple, but really well written and the themes also added a lot.
One of my favorite things about the books is how Mary and Colin mirrored the Garden in how they started off neglected, sick, and seemingly dead, but through nurturing and love began to come alive and beautiful again.
The parallel was never blatant, thus ruining my immersion in the story, but definitely noticeable with just a bit of thought.
But not only did the Garden and the characters become more bright and alive, also did the prose and the tone of the story, really adding to the story’s theme and feeling of growth, transformation, and healing.
The story’s tone starts of dark, mysterious, and sad but as the garden and Mary and Colin heal and become alive again, so does the tone of the story become so much more vibrant and alive.
I rarely like tonal shifts in stories as they tend to be jarring and out of place, however because of how intentional, intergraded, and gradual the tonal shift in The Secret Garden was, I didn’t mind it at all and it actually liked it.
So yeah, The Secret Garden is a great book and I can’t wait to read other works from Frances Hodgson Burnett.
Which Book Was your Least Favorite? Why?
Since I only read a grand total of four books this year, none of the books I read were terrible.
The only book that was a bit disappointing was the On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness by Andrew Peterson. I’ve heard from whispers on the streets that the other books in the series are better, but yeah, the first book was very bland and had nothing special about it.
I don’t hate the book by any means, but I also couldn’t find anything I really enjoyed about it either. I could see what the author was going for, a charming fun middle grade adventure novel like say a Percy Jackson or a How to Train Your Dragon, but the lack of depth and creativity hindered his goal from being achieved. The characters lacked depth and personality, the plot was derivative and repetitive, and the prose was overly simplistic and bare.
There’s nothing terrible about the book, but nothing I could grab onto and enjoy.
I may read the rest of the series, but I also may just not be the target audience Peterson wrote this series for, so I’m not sure.
How Many Books do Want to Read in 2022
Between 24 and 30 books. Just depends on how big those books are gonna be you know?
What Are You Looking Forward to Reading in 2022?
Here’s just a few book on my shelf that I’m looking forward to reading: Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson, The Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien.
So what about you? What did the past year of reading look like for you?
Oh boy. Here we go. This isn’t in order of when I read them, by the way, but these are all the new books I remember reading last year. (It’s already new year for me right now.)
How Many Books Have You Read This Year?
#1 The Way of Kings Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive Book 1
#2 Words of Radiance Stormlight Archive Book 2
#3 Edgedancer Stormlight Archive Novella 1Â
#4 Oathbringer Stormlight Archive Book 3Â
#5 Dawnshard Stormlight Archive Novella 2
#6 Rythm of War Stormlight Archive Book 4
#7 Mistborn: The Final Empire Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn Series Book 1
#8 Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
#9 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
#10 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
#11 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
#12 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
#13 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
#14 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
#15 A Voice in the Wind Francine Rivers’ Mark of the Lion Series Book 1
#16 An Echo in the Darkness Mark of the Lion Book 2
#17 As Sure as the Dawn Mark of the Lion Book 3
#18 The Priest Francine Rivers’ Sons of Encouragement Series Book 1
#19 The Warrior Sons of Encouragement Book 2
#20 The Prince Sons of Encouragement Book 3
#21 Prophet Sons of Encouragement Book 4
#22 The Scribe Sons of Encouragement Book 5
#23 Unashamed Francine Rivers’ Lineage of Grace Series Book 2
#24-30 Books 10 – 16 of Sorata Akiduki’s Snow White with the Red Hair Manga Series
#31 Book 15 of Higasa Akai’s The Royal Tutor Manga Series
#32 The Nameless City Book 1 of the Nameless City Graphic Novel Series by Faith Erin Hicks
#33 The Stone Heart Book 2 of the Nameless City Series
#34 The Divided Earth Book 3 of the Namless City Series
#35 Skyward Book 1 of Brandon Sanderson’s Skyward Series
#36 I Have Called You By Name Book 1 of The Chosen Novelisation by Jerry B. Jenkins
#37 Crash at Cannibal Valley Book 1 of the Airquest Adventures by Jerry B. Jenkins
#38 The Thieves of Ostia Book 1 of The Roman Mysteries by Caroline LawrenceÂ
#39 The Centurion’s Wife Book 1 of the Acts of Faith Series by Janette Oak and Davis Burn
#40 The Hidden Flame Book 2 of the Acts of Faith Series
#41 The Damascus Way Book 3 of the Acts of Faith Series
#42 Beast and Beauty by Abigail RogersÂ
#43 Voiceless by E. G. Wilson
#44 The Brethren by H. Rider Haggard
#45 The Alchemist The Graphic Novel by Paulo Coelho
#46 Knife by R. J. Anderson
#47 Rebel by R. J. Anderson
#48 Arrow by R. J. Anderson
#49 The Runaway King Book 2 of the Ascendance Trilogy by Jennifer A. Neilson
#50 The Shadow Throne Book 3 of the Ascendance Trilogy
#51 The Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 1 of (same name) Series by Shannon MessengerÂ
#52 Exile Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 2Â
#53 Everblaze Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 3
#54 Neverseen Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 4
#55 The Story Peddler The Weavers Trilogy Book 1Â by Lindsay A. Franklin
#56 The Ruins of Gorlan The Ranger’s Apprentice Book 1 by John Flanagan
#57 Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve
#58 Knight Crusader by Ronald Welch
Whew! Okay, that’s all the ones I can currently remember … and that’s only fiction. Not counting non-fiction (biographies, how-to books, commentaries … etc.), or the books I reread this year that are favourites of mine. There were probably more, but I’ve forgotten them😅. Anyway, I absolutely love reading, and I devour new books anytime I can get them. I also happened to binge a few series as soon as I turned 18 *cough*
Harry Potter .Right. What was the next question again?
Which Book Was Your Favourite? Why?
I have two things to say:
The way in which Harry Potter is written is excellent, and the characters feel more real than I’ve ever seen in a fantasy series — don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t completely okay with all of the magic stuff, especially where it got dark, but J. K. Rowling’ s Writing is excellent. Her way of doing set-ups and payoffs is just brilliant — these are stories that kept me turning pages and trying to solve the mysteries, only to surprise me delightfully at the end.
However, my Ultimate favourite is An Echo in the Darkness from the Mark of the Lion Series by Francine Rivers. I can’t say too much without spoiling it, but let’s just say this book series had been hyped to me my entire life, as it’s the series where my parents first came to love my name (real life name). Anyway, because it’s quite adult in its content, I wasn’t allowed to read it till I turned 18. So I read the first book, A Voice in the Wind, and it was good — but I wasn’t convinced it quite deserved the level of hype it had been given.
And then I read the end of An Echo in the Darkness.
And walked around my house for 3 hours afterward with heartburn, raving about how amazingly satisfying an end it was to anyone who’d listen. It was so touching, so special, so amazing I could barely believe it. It was one of the best endings to what is a 2-book set (the 3rd book in the series covers the story of what happened to a different character from the 1st book, and is kinda it’s own thing, whereas the first two are intrinsically connected) that I’ve ever read — indeed, one of the best endings I’ve ever read in general. I guarantee I will reread this series, just because the end made me feel so incredibly satisfied.
The last time I felt that satisfied at the end of something was when watching Avatar The Last Airbender for the first time (and also ever subsequent rewatch). The end of series — book 3’s ending — is one of the most satisfying endings in a tv show I’ve ever seen. I didn’t think anything could be as satisfying as that.
An Echo in the Darkness was.
(Side Note: I will admit that I read The Shadow Throne later in the year, and it gave a very satisfying ending to the Ascendance Trilogy as well — not quite as good as An Echo in the Darkness, but still one of those I’m so satisfied endings. I’m gonna tag @issawriter7 right here cause I know she loves this series.😂😊)
How many Books do you want to read in 2022?
Um … as many as I can get my hands on? I can’t number it! I evidently read over 60 this year, counting the nonfiction and rereads. I have a very extensive Christian fantasy list … an extensive Snow White with the Red Hair manga list, as they release … all the rest of the Keeper of the Lost Cities books … the rest of Sanderson’s Skyward books …
Lots of books …
What books are you looking forward to to reading in 2022?
I kinda just listed them above😅. To be different, though, I am looking forward to reading Orphan’s Song by Gillian Bronte Adams. It’s the first in a series of hers that looks really cool …
Pretends that the beautiful  cover art isn’t what made her long to read it …Anyway, sorry this post is so horrendously long. I’ll look forward to seeing what the rest of you put!😊 Maybe I’ll get more book ideas for this year …😉
The end of a story, a beautiful picture; a feeling of longing yet hope~
That’s my wish to create.Yay! This will be interesting. 🙂
I’ve read all those books except for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The Secret Garden is fabulous!
(There are some great middle grade books. I mean, wasn’t Narnia for children?) 😉
My reading list looks like a fiction salad with a handful of non-fiction croutons.
What books have I read?
Honestly, I don’t know how many books I read this year, or what they all were. However, I shall try to recall. (Note try)
*Processing, processing…*
I assume you mean first time and not rereads. 😉 Basing upon this large assumption, here are the ones I remember at the present moment.
The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Battle for Skandia by John Flanagan
The God of Two Testaments by Rev. Brent Graves (partly, I haven’t finished it yet)
The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis
The Sparrow’s Song by Eleanor ?
The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson (the last three books plus Wingfeather tales)The Scourge by Jenifer A. Nielsen
The Bark of the Bog Owl by Jonathan Rogers
To the Ends of the Earth by Rev. David K. Bernard
The Lost Kingdom of Bervaria by Shannon Hale (I think?)
Sir Quinlan: and the Swords of Valor by Chuck BlackThe Chronicles of Avonlea by L. M. Montgomery
The Further Chronicles of Avonlea by the same 😉
The Light Princess and Other Stories by George MacDonald (the And Other Stories part, because I read the Light Princess in either 2020, or 2019)
Plus a few more I can’t quite remember, a smattering I only looked into, and bunches that I reread.
Which book was my favorite?
Oof. I liked most of them, and some were really, really good.
The God of Two Testaments is, perhaps, my favorite in the non-fiction. It is an amazing study of Scripture by someone incredibly familiar with the original languages, and written in a clear voice. I have loved reading it.
Of the fiction, it is harder to pick a favorite. Like, it’s close to impossible. So many were really good. (A few weren’t.)
How Many Books do I Want to Read in 2022?
Randomly, thirty-one. 🙂
Ok, ok. I have three I want to read. Two by Rev. Lori Wagner, and Children of the Storm by Natasha ?. Or make that four, if S. D. Smith publishes his next book this coming year. (Come on, Lander, introduce us to your sister!)
You have listened to fears, child. Come, let me breathe on you... Are you brave again? -Aslan
That is a long list, and many of which I have never heard of. 🙂
I have a friend that loves the Mark of the Lion series, but I haven’t read it yet.
Happy New Year!
You have listened to fears, child. Come, let me breathe on you... Are you brave again? -Aslan
Only four books? That’s so sad, but I completely understand. I haven’t read as much this year as I would have liked.
The Secret Garden is definitely one of my all-time favorites.
Eeeek! I shall try my best to recall. (These are only first timers, and I didn’t look up any of these titles, so if I mess something up… Oh well.) No particular order.
The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson
The Hobbit by J R R Tolkien
The Scourge by Jennifer A Neilson
Sir Quinlan and the Swords of Valor by Chuck Black
The Ice Bound Land AND Battle for Skandia Rangers Apprentice by John Flanagan
Several books by Jannet Oak which I can’t recall the titles…
The Lost Land of Bammaria by (Shannon Hale?)
The Black Arrow by Robert Lewis Stevenson (or most of it)
Wingfeather tales by …. (I didn’t actually read the last story, yet.)
The Bark of the Bog Owl AND The Charletian’s Boy by Jonathan Rogers
The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis (or most of them)
A bunch of fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen and George MacDonald.
Six-or-so Non-fiction books.
And then there are those I reread. Again. XD
Which was my favorite? Hum… I guess The Warden and the Wolf King from the Wingfeather Saga. But then maybe the Bark of the Bog Owl. The Scourge was good, but I probably won’t reread it, and definitely NOT the Black Arrow. I have already reread The Warden…
How Many Books do I Want to Read in 2022?
I don’t know, there are so many I’ve heard about.
First Grand Historian of Arreth and the Lesser Realms (aka Kitty)
Fork the GorkThere were probably more, but I’ve forgotten them😅. Anyway, I absolutely love reading, and I devour new books anytime I can get them.
You sound like my older siblings. XD
First Grand Historian of Arreth and the Lesser Realms (aka Kitty)
Fork the GorkAww don’t feel bad XD I haven’t gotten much read either this year, sadly. I think I’ve read… maybe 9. I feel like this could be more, but that is all I can think of at the moment haha.
The Christy Miller Series–6 books, Robin Jones Gunn
Mark of the Thief–Jennifer A. Nielson
The Lost Island of Tamarind books 1 and 2–Nadia Aguiar
Which book was my favorite?
The Lost Island of Tamarind. It was such a fun series and it stays with you long after you read it. The characters were great, the world-building felt real and rich with creativity, and I LOVED the sibling/family relationships in it.
How many books do I want to read next year?
20
Which books am I looking forward to reading the most?
The Book Thief, Rise of the Wolf, The Wingfeather Saga, A Night Divided, Story Thieves (not to be confused with the Book Thief XD), and The House that Didn’t End by our very own E. K Seaver!!
"It's easy to be caught up in stardust and whispers when reality is so dark and loud."
@kathleenramm Don’t feel bad, I can hardly read anything besides manga now. But for the sake of this discussion I’ll leave manga out of it.
How Many Books Have you Read this Year? List every one you read!
Out of the 220 books I read, only 15 were real books. And a lot were rereads.
The Summer of the Swans – Betsy Byars
Born Again – Charles Colson
The Brothers Karamazov – Fyodor Dostoyvesky
Night on the Galactic Railroad – Kenji Miyazawa
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? – Phillip K. Dick
Ender’s Game – Orson Scott Card
The Chosen – Chaim Potok
My Sweet Orange Tree РJos̩ Mauro de Vasconcelos
Era of Shadows – @daisy-torres
Lost Stars – Claudia Gray
The Little Prince РAntoine de Saint-Exup̩ry
Ignite – @jenwriter17
East of Eden – John Steinbeck
The Outsiders – S.E. Hinton
Imagine – @issawriter7 (and the whole gang, ofc)
Which Book Was your Favorite? Why?
East of Eden will always be a favorite for me, as well as The Little Prince, My Sweet Orange Tree, and Night on the Galactic Railroad, but as these were all rereads, I’d have to say that my favorite would be The Brothers Karamazov. There was just so much packed into it that I really need to reread it sometime. I highly recommend it if you haven’t read it already.
Also, Ivan Karamazov is *chef’s kiss*
But ALSO The Chosen and Ender’s Game were just so good, they became instant favorites as well! So hard to choose, y’know?
Which Book Was your Least Favorite? Why?
Eh, none of them were really bad. I enjoyed most of them.
How Many Books do Want to Read in 2022?
At least 10. I’d love to finish the books I’ve been hoarding for five years now, probably around fifty.
What Are You Looking Forward to Reading in 2022?
I want to finish my Ray Bradbury collection, at least. And everything on my currently reading, like Mrs. Dalloway, Life of Pi, Tortilla Flat… I also want to read some of C.S. Lewis’s sci-fi, and read more of Chaim Potok’s stuff as well as the rest of the Ender’s Game series. And a lot of manga. Ofc, a lot of manga.
Lately, it's been on my brain
Would you mind letting me know
If hours don't turn into daysHow Many Books Have you Read this Year? List every one you read!
1. Left Behind by Tim LaHaye & Jerry B. Jenkins (the whole series, which is 13 books)
2. The Great Awakenings by Bill Bright & Jack Cavenaugh (four-book series)
3. The Winter War by Gina Detweiler & Priscilla Shirer (the fifth book in the Prince Warriors series)
4. The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
5. Tales from Watership Down by Richard Adams (sequel to Watership Down)
6. The Viking Quest Series by Lois Walfrid Johnson (four books)
7. Princess Academy by Shannon Hale (and the two sequels that went with it)
8. The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
9. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
10. Last Day on Mars by Kevin Emerson
11. The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynn Reid Banks (three-book series)
12. Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson (and the sequel, Hattie Ever After)
13. The Great Brain by John D. Fitzgerald
14, The Gammage Cup by Carol Kendall
15. The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielson
16. The Epic Order of the Seven by Jenny L. Cote (I only read the first four books in the series)
17. The Edge on the Sword by Rebecca Tingle (and the sequel, Far Traveler)
18. The Art of the Swap by Kristine Carlson Assyelen
19. Bridge to Terebithia by Katherine Patterson
20. The Wilderking Trilogy by Jonathan Rogers
21. Piercing the Darkness by Frank Peretti (the sequel to This Present Darkness)
22. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom
23. Glitch by Laura MartinAnyway, those are the main ones. I might have read some others, but I don’t remember. Oh, and that doesn’t include all the books I reread either.
Which Book Was your Favorite? Why?
I really liked The Viking Quest series by Lois Walfrid Johnson. It was really inspiring to me. The main character had such amazing faith in God and was always so positive, even when she was going through some really hard things. It was a very uplifting story, but also super suspenseful. It also educated me a little bit more on the Vikings, as it was historical fiction.
I also liked The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. It was such a touching real-life story, and I cried at a few parts. How Corrie and her sister Betsy were able to even be the slightest bit positive during that time of their lives is a pure miracle to me.
Which Book Was your Least Favorite? Why?
The Bridge to Terebithia by Kathering Patterson was probably my least favorite book. The story wasn’t very uplifting, and the characters didn’t seem realistic at all. All the kids in the story were super mean to each other, and the one character that I sort of liked died at the end. There wasn’t even a goal to the story.
Okay, so maybe I’m being a bit too hard on the author here, because the book wasn’t all bad. There were some funny parts and it was interesting enough to keep me reading until the end. But overall, I just don’t get it.
How Many Books do Want to Read in 2022?
As many as I can! I’d like to read a little more than this last year. I have a HUGE GoodReads list of books to read that I really need to start reading some of them. I don’t even know where to start.
What Are You Looking Forward to Reading in 2022?
Well, some books on my To Read list are Skytalons by Sophie Torro, The Flight and Flame Trilogy by R.J. Anderson, the rest of The Ascendance Trilogy by Jennifer A. Nielson, the rest of The Chronicle of the Dark Star by Kevin Emerson, The Whisper of Glocken by Carol Kendall, and SO many others. I’m not going to list them all here.
In the words of Jinto Queb, "Hurry, reading is fun!"
Your book list is epic! And I love Viking Quest too — it’s like, my favourite book series ever! But my series of it has 5 books — have they changed it or something? My family’s series is the first editions.
I’d love your recommendations for kid-friendly manga and/or anime. My younger sister wants to watch more anime with me, but my family has very high standards for the younger members about no inappropriate content, no graphic violence or violence that involves blood, generally, and no bad swearing. I know this narrows it a lot, but would you have any recommendations?
The end of a story, a beautiful picture; a feeling of longing yet hope~
That’s my wish to create.@trahia-the-minstrel Hm… Well, pretty much everything I can think of has swearing in it, so I’m afraid not a lot of my reccs will be completely clean. Yotsuba&! is one of my favorite wholesome slice-of-life mangas with no anime adaption, about a little girl, so it should be enjoyable for adults, and probably for kids as well. Other than that, well, I usually enjoy stuff for older people, so everything’s pretty dark and gory and all that. I’ve heard that Chi’s Sweet Home is good for kids, though. I could also recommend some of Ghibli’s movies, like My Neighbor Totoro and Ponyo, which are children’s movies. Other than that I’m afraid I don’t have anything, sorry! I didn’t start watching anime until I was fourteen and at this point I’m desensitised to pretty much everything so my list is very short.
Lately, it's been on my brain
Would you mind letting me know
If hours don't turn into daysThanks for the reccs anyway! My sister and I have actually already watched Totoro and Ponyo, she loved them, and I enjoyed them a lot more than I thought I would. They’re such cute movies!
The end of a story, a beautiful picture; a feeling of longing yet hope~
That’s my wish to create.Oooo, that’s a very exciting list of have-reads!
What did you think about the  The Wilderking Trilogy? I’ve only read the first book and am interested in the rest.
Also, how did you like Princess Academy? I read that series a while ago, and liked it well enough. A little mushy, but that’s a common complaint of mine. 😉
(I’m not against romance, it was just a little…over done yet not enough?)
I’ve been so curious about the Hiding Place…
Anyway, Happy New Year!
You have listened to fears, child. Come, let me breathe on you... Are you brave again? -Aslan
The Wilderking Trilogy was pretty good, but I found it a little bit predictable, mostly because I already knew the story of David which it was based on. The second book, The Secret of the Swamp King, was the best since it had an exciting twist at the end which I won’t spoil for you. Overall, it’s a pretty good series.
Yeah, I did like Princess Academy! I was a little bit disappointed when I found out that the “Academy” was really just a little quickly put-together shack. I was kind of hoping for something a little more interesting. Really what I pictured in my mind was a middle-grade novel with a medieval twist. I guess I just set my expectations wrong. I was fine with the romance, but I kind of wished there was more of it in the third book.
The Hiding Place is a must-read, although only if you’re prepared for something very intense. I don’t know how to describe it. It’s an amazing story, but it’s also really hard to read. It changed my entire perspective on my life, and now I realize how much I really do have compared to other people during that time.
Happy New Year to you too!
Yeah, I think I accidentally typoed the number of books in the Viking Quest series. I read all five 🙂
In the words of Jinto Queb, "Hurry, reading is fun!"
Ok, that’s good to hear! Sometimes predictability is a bit of a problem for allergies. (And now I’m intrigued.)
Hmm, I can see how expectations could be, um, met by false advertising? 😉
I’m afraid that when I think ‘with a medieval twist’ especially on anything to do with royalty…well, stolen kingdoms, sudden tragedy, and unflinching courage steal my imagination.
*Shoves the secret heir of the country behind Mount Eskel back in the closet*
There are some books I should never write fanfiction for. 😂
Concerning the romance in it, I completely understand. It was fine enough, just a bit unbalanced, in my humble opinion. (Have I ever mentioned that I despise love triangles? I know, it’s shocking.)
I can see that. It was a very intense time. It sounds like a good book. Accounts like that are amazing to read.
Thanks!
You have listened to fears, child. Come, let me breathe on you... Are you brave again? -Aslan
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