2010 Reading list summary

I'm fairly certain that I won't have time to knock off one more book this year, so I've decided to go ahead and do a summary of the 76 books I read for 2010. Didn't quite reach my goal of 100 books, but since I did reach another more important goal (that I'll talk about later in the week), I'm still feeling pretty good about this number.

So here's the rundown:
Of the books I read, 51 could be classified as young adult, 25 as children's or middle grade (see the complete list here). I didn't read any adult books this year. That's right, ZERO ADULT BOOKS. I'm quite certain this will change in 2011 as I have one adult book that will be released in March that I'm really looking forward to. But aside from that, I'd like to note the one adult book I tried to read, Anne Rice's Angel Time, I couldn't get into! That's right. I just couldn't get engaged in it, which is really weird considering how much I've loved Anne Rice in the past.

More categories:
Paranormal/Fantasy  - 26
Dystopian - 4
Historical - 4
Contemporary - 42

After looking at this list, I'm actually shocked. I write paranormal, so what's up with all the contemporary?? Obviously my tastes have changed of late, not sure if my writing preference ever will but it's something to think about.

Most read authors:
1. Rick Riordan -8
2. Laurie Halse Anderson -5
3. Sarah Dessen - 4
I had many doubles listed and I'm sure that I'll be picking up more of their books in the future. Of particular  note are Jaclyn Moriarty, Melina Marchetta, Courtney Summers and Meg Rosoff. In the children's category I'd love to pick up another book by Patricia Riley Giff.

Books with serious issues that are highly recommended:
1. Smack by Melvin Burgess - drug addiction
2. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson - anorexia
3. 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher - suicide
4. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen - rape

Best of:
Best paranormal (for concept) Peeps by Scot Westerfeld
Best paranormal (for writing) Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Best contemporary (most moving) If I Stay by Gayle Forman
Best off-beat contemporary - Beatle Meets Destiny by Gabrielle Williams

Strongest female protagonist - Nya from Blue Fire by Janice Hardy
Male crush - Mason from Lighter Side of Life and Death by CK Kelly Martin
Favorite female character - Emily from Dreaming of Amelia and The Year of Secret Assignments by Jaclyn Moriarty

Best overall YA (too addictive to put down) - City of Glass by Cassandra Clare. It is really necessary to read the first two in this series to get to the third. I found the second to be kind of slow, but it's worth it to get to the last book in this series.

Best overall Middle Grade/Children's - The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan. I chose this one because I think it's most attractive to kids, but Holes by Louis Sachar comes in a close second.

I can't leave this post without declaring my goal for next year. Since I may be taking classes in the spring, I'm going to have to trim my reading down a bit. I'll be happy if I manage to read 50 books, though I'm going to hope for more of course. Hope this post gives you some ideas to put on your own reading list for 2011.