52 books in 52 weeks (2023 edition)

Year 10 of Reading 52 Books in 52 weeks! That's 520 books in the last ten years. WOWZA! #NerdAlert

I love reading and this year I read some great books and some stinkers too. I wanted to read more books by women and BIPOC and I think I accomplished that. Out of the 52 books I read:

29 books were written by female authors. And of those 29, there were 21 different female authors because I read 8 books by Agatha Christie, my most-read author this year.

23 books were written by male authors. And of those 23, there were 20 different male authors. I read 4 books by Tom Perrotta, my most-read male author. 

So, I'm pretty happy with those stats. I made my way through a lot of Dame Christie's books, but still not done. Also, only read one Wheel of Time book this year which is less than I wanted to, but those books are hefty and long and take a bit... but maybe I'll try for two next year! 

As always, thanks to Goodreads and Storygraph for helping me keep track of my reads. Now onto my superlatives because that's the most fun part of these end-of-year blogs:

Favorite Book: Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. Love his prose and imagery and this one really made me think. 

Least Favorite Book: If On A Winter's Night A Traveler by Italo Calvino. MY GOD, this book pissed me off. What started as a clever conceit, quickly became nonsensical, boring, and wrath-inducing!! Hated this! 

Longest Book: Fires of Heaven by Robert Jordan. The Wheel of Time books do not mess around. They are long and plodding but I'm still invested, even 912 pages later! 

Biggest Letdown: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Somehow... this book just completely misses the mark for me and rang hollow. Surprised because of all the love it got... but nah, it didn't work. Special Mention to: All of Us Our Lying for also being really bad. Ugh. 

Least Favorite Character: That girl from Ninth House. Or, anyone and everyone in Stranger in a Strange Land or The Cabin at the End of the World. 

Most Batsh*t Character: Alex from The Guest. She had me sweating and screaming and cursing and frustrated at every turn, and yet, I couldn't put the book down!! 

Shortest Book: Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose. Short, but gripping and effective!

Favorite Character: Prince Harry from Spare. Jk, jk. But I am Team Sussex through and through. Hard to pick a favorite character but maybe Hercule Poirot from Agatha Christie's books. He manages to be charming, smart, and hilarious at every murder, which is saying something.

Favorite Author: You probably think I'd say, Agatha Christie, and you wouldn't be wrong, but unfortunately for that great dame, my favorite author I read this year is Haruki Murakami! Something about his novels just really relates to me and I admire his original, deeply emotional prose.

And that's it for 2023. George RR Martin still hasn't finished The Winds of Winter or even part 2 of Fire & Blood, but at least we're getting more House of Dragon in 2024. There's always hope he'll finish it or another great fantasy book series rises to the top. Happy reading to all.

- ben fleck

1. Bonfire - Krysten Ritter

2. Now Is Not The Time to Panic - Kevin Wilson

3. All the Light We Cannot See - Anthony Doerr

4. Foundation and Empire - Isaac Asimov

5. The Cabin at the End of the World - Paul Tremblay

6. The Fires of Heaven - Robert Jordan

7. Fleishman is in Trouble - Taffy Brodesser-Akner

8. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - V.E. Scwab

9. Spare - Prince Harry

10. Commonwealth - Ann Patchett

11. Americanah - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

12. Fire & Blood - George R.R. Martin

13. Without Remorse - Tom Clancy

14. The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin

15. Twelve Angry Men - Reginald Rose

16. The Two Faces of January - Patricia Highsmith

17. Little Children - Tom Perrotta

18. The Labours of Herclues - Agatha Christie

19. Taken at the Flood - Agatha Christie

20. Burn It Down - Maureen Ryan

21. How to be Perfect - Michael Schur

22. The Interestings - Meg Wolitzer

23. Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert A. Heinlein

24. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou

25. Mrs. Fletcher - Tom Perrotta

26. Children of Dune - Frank Herbert

27. Sea of Tranquility - Emily St. John Mandel

28. After All These Years - Susan Isaacs

29. The Abstinence Teacher - Tom Perrotta

30. Three Blind Mice - Agatha Christie

31. The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller

32. The Under Dog - Agatha Christie

33. The Inheritance Games - Jennifer Lynn Barnes

34. Mrs. McGinty's Dead - Agatha Christie

35. Tracy Flick Can't Win - Tom Perrotta

36. Crazy Rich Asians - Kevin Kwan

37. Circe - Madeline Miller

38. The Light We Carry - Michelle Obama

39. Under the Whispering Door - TJ Klune

40. Kafa on the Shore - Haruki Murakami

41. If On A  Winter's Night A Traveler - Italo Calvino

42. The Book Thief - Markus Zusak

43. Before the Coffee Gets Cold - Toshikazu Kawaguchi

44. Charmed Life - Dianna Wynne Jones

45. Dead Man's Folly - Agatha Christie

46. The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho

47. The Golden Spoon - Jessica Maxwell

48. Ninth House - Leigh Bardugo

49. One of Us Is Lying - Karen McManus

50. The Guest - Emma Cline

51. Hickory Dickory Dock - Agatha Christie

52. After the Funeral - Agatha Christie

52 Books, 52 Weeks, Only More to Come...

I did it. What does it matter if it's the last day and I only had a few hours to spare? I finished reading 52 books in 52 weeks. It wasn't easy at all. I struggled at points. Some books were long, some were short. Some I disliked strongly, others I fell in love with. But I kept reading and each new book opened up my mind to new ideas, experiences, and understandings. Books really are beautiful.

Sometimes it is hard to find time to read. Life gets in the way. Heck, life gets in the way of most things I want to do: write, travel, explore, etc. But I believe reading is a key essential of life. As my favorite character from Game of Thrones, Tyrion Lannister, so shrewdly puts it, “I have a realistic grasp of my own strengths and weaknesses. My mind is my weapon. My brother has his sword, King Robert has his warhammer, and I have my mind… and a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge. That’s why I read so much, Jon Snow." Back at ya, Mr. Lannister.

If you hate reading, I encourage you to give it another chance. No one likes to be told to read when they are at school, but reading for your own pleasure is an immensely wonderful thing. So, please READ.

Why not make some superlatives for all the reading I did this year. People like lists, right? I like lists.

Favorite Book: The Arm of the Starfish and/or The Amber Spyglass really surprised me.

Least Favorite Book: The Hunger Pains - just god awful trash!

Longest Book: The Goldfinch -  it was over 1,000 pages and went on and on...

Favorite Character: Lizbeth from the Millenium Series

Least Favorite Character: Quentin Coldwater from The Magicians, BY FAR. He's the WORST.

Biggest Letdown: Allegiant - Why, Veronica Roth, why? Just a terrible ending...

Favorite Author from these 52: Madeleine L'Engle or Agatha Christie - Old Ladies, FTW.


2014, you've been a weird, challenging year. I accomplished a lot of things, but I still yearn for more new and exciting adventures. I'm always hopeful at the end of the year/beginning of the new year and I won't change that. I've always been an optimistic person.

So, as I go into 2015, I know that I want to see more, create more, and be more alive. I'll be doing the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge again. I'll finally finish my first book and also some of the many screenplays I'm writing.

2015 is the year to put myself out on the ledge, get vulnerable, and live...


So cheers to that. See ya on the other side, brotha!

-ben josé

Below follows the 52 books I read in 52 weeks, 2014 Edition.

1.  Heir to the Empire - Timothy Zahn
2. The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway
3. The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson
4. The Fall - Albert Camus
5. Candide - Voltaire
6. On Writing - Stephen King
7. Divergent - Veronica Roth
8. Carrie - Stephen King
9. Redwall - Brian Jacques
10. The High Druid's Blade - Terry Brooks
11. The Arm of the Starfish - Madeleine L'Engle
12. The Accidental Billionaires - Ben Mezrich
13. Sparkling Cyanide - Agatha Christie
14. The Shining - Stephen King
15. The Wishong of Shannara - Terry Brooks
16. The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson
17. The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
18. The Hunger Pains - The Harvard Lampoon
19. A Swiftly Tilting Planet - Madeleine L'Engle
20. Eragon - Christopher Paolini
21.  The Lost Symbol - Dan Brown
22. Artemis Fowl - Eoin Colfer
23. Gathering Blue - Lois Lowry
24. House of Secrets - Chris Columbus & Ned Vizzini
25. A Handful of Dust - Evelyn Waugh
26. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman
27. Insurgent - Veronica Roth
28. The Fault In Our Stars - John Green
29. The Magicians - Lev Grossman
30. Allegiant - Veronica Roth
31. American Gods - Neil Gaiman
32. Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn
33. Inferno - Dan Brown
34. An Acceptable Time - Madeleine L'Engle
35. The Subtle Knife - Philip Pullman
36. Animal Farm - George Orwell
37. The Egypt Game - Zilpha Keatley Snyder
38. Dark Force Rising - Timothy Zahn
39. The Goldfinch - Donna Tartt
40. The Amber Spyglass - Philip Pullman
41. The Thousand Dollar Tan Line - Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham
42. Aurorarama - Jean-Christophe Valtat
43. The Beautiful and Damned - F.Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Seventh Tower - Garth Nix
45. The Big Sleep - Raymond Chandler
46. Dragons in the Waters - Madeleine L'Engle
47. The Prince - Niccolo Machiavelli
48. The Murder at the Vicarage - Agatha Christie
49. Death on the Nile - Agatha Christie
50. A Floating City - Jules Verne
51. The Scorch Trials - James Dashner
52. Yes Please -  Amy Poehler