Book Buying Tally: 2013

A few years ago, I decided to keep a tally of all the books I bought or checked out of the library to see what the trends were. Ever since then I've kept a list of books and my reasons for picking them up and posted the results each August.

2010 results
2011 results and analysis
2012 results

August has come around once again so it's time for the annual tally. My list has taken a hit now that I'm at university and don't go to the library as much as I used to. The only books that count for the list are ones that I've bought to read for pleasure. I have a whole set of novels that I will read for pleasure but bought for class (it's on Tolkien).

I'll summarize the results to begin and then break them down. In brackets are last year's percentages for comparison.

Book in series: 29% -- [30%]
Author: 29% -- [20%]
Word of mouth: 18% -- [17%]
Add to collection: 12%  Genre research: 6%
Classic: 6% -- [3%]

Looks like my habits are staying relatively the same. I expected series books to be high, because they make up the majority of my pre-orders. I'm a little disappointed that premise, which was a major factor last year, has completely disappeared from the tally. It's not really a surprise, though, because when I'm at school the vast majority of books that I buy are ordered and I tend to stick to series and authors that I know unless I'm physically inside of a bookstore.

Genre Research
  1. Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen - My love of historical novels was a recent one and this book was a product of that sudden interest. I also had an idea for my own historical so I was looking to learn more about the genre. 
Book in Series
  1. A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin - Second book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series. 
  2. The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan - Third book in the Heroes of Olympus series. 
  3. A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin - Third book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series.
  4. Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare - Final book in the Infernal Devices trilogy.
  5. A Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin - Fourth book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series.
Author
  1. Every Day by David Levithan - It was David Levithan. Also the premise sounded incredible and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it.  
  2. The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling - It didn't really sound like my thing but it was her first book since Harry Potter so... 
  3. Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler - I loved Twenty Boy Summer and this one sounded like a great read.
  4. The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith - I just have a feeling Rowling could write amazing crime novels.
  5. Prep School Confidential by Kara Taylor - She's a friend.
Classic
  1. Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky - I was a little torn on how to classify this one because it was on my mental "to read" list for years because it was a classic, but I bought it because I wanted to read it before seeing the movie.
Word of Mouth
  1. Slam by Nick Hornby - This book was recommended to me years ago and when I found it in a store for less than a dollar, I knew I had to get it. 
  2. Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry - I've heard so many amazing things about this book and I'm tired of not having read it.
  3. Cinder by Marissa Meyer - I haven't heard a word against this book yet.
Add to Collection
  1. Wolf-Speaker by Tamora Pierce - Read a hundred times but didn't own 
  2. Emperor Mage by Tamora Pierce - Read even more than above but also didn't own 

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