my chaotic 2023 reading stats

Jack in the Books
22 Jan 202417:13
EducationalLearning
32 Likes 10 Comments

TLDRIn this video, the speaker shares their 2023 reading stats from the Storygraph, a platform that tracks reading habits with visual aids. They reflect on their reading goals, favorite genres, and authors, including Claire Keegan and Han Kang. The speaker also discusses their reading patterns throughout the year, influenced by mental health and life events, and mentions using the Listening app to convert text to audio for a more immersive learning experience. The video concludes with an offer for the audience to try Listening for free.

Takeaways
  • πŸ˜€ The speaker humorously mentions watching a Taylor Swift video repeatedly and recommends it to viewers.
  • πŸ“š The main focus of the video is to discuss the speaker's 2023 reading stats, using the Storygraph app as a tracking tool.
  • 🎯 The speaker set a reading goal of 180 books and exceeded it by reading 205 books.
  • πŸ“ˆ The Storygraph app provides graphs, stats, and visual aids to analyze reading habits and preferences.
  • πŸ“ The speaker suggests setting a realistic reading goal based on the average number of pages read per day.
  • πŸ“– The speaker's reading preferences lean towards reflective, emotional, and dark books, with a medium pace.
  • πŸ“š The speaker reads mostly shorter books, with 97% of them being under 500 pages, and a preference for books in translation.
  • πŸ“˜ The speaker's reading is predominantly fiction (79%), with non-fiction making up the rest.
  • 🎨 The top genre for the speaker is literary fiction, followed by contemporary, with historical fiction in fifth place.
  • πŸ‘©β€πŸ’» The speaker regrets not logging the medium of each book read (e.g., physical, Kindle, audiobook) and plans to do so for future tracking.
  • 🌟 The speaker's favorite author of the year is Claire Keegan, and there is a notable interest in female authors and international literature.
  • πŸ“Š The speaker's reading patterns reflect their mental health and life events throughout the year, with significant drops in reading during busy or emotionally challenging months.
Q & A
  • What is the main focus of the video?

    -The main focus of the video is to discuss the video creator's reading stats for the year 2023, as tracked on the Storygraph app, and to share insights about their reading habits and preferences.

  • Why does the creator mention Taylor Swift and the IRS tour in the beginning?

    -The creator mentions Taylor Swift and the IRS tour as an anecdote to express their love for a particular video they've watched multiple times, serving as a humorous introduction to the video's actual topic.

  • What is Storygraph and how does it differ from Goodreads?

    -Storygraph is a book social media platform that allows users to track their reading habits and provides graphs, stats, and visual aids to analyze what they read. It differs from Goodreads by offering more detailed analytics and visual representations of reading data.

  • What was the creator's reading goal for 2023 and did they achieve it?

    -The creator's reading goal for 2023 was to read 100-180 books, and they actually read 205 books, thus exceeding their goal.

  • Why does the creator plan to read fewer books in 2024?

    -The creator plans to read fewer books in 2024 to take a different approach to reading, focusing more on depth and quality over quantity, which will be discussed in a separate video.

  • What is the significance of the average book length in setting a reading goal?

    -The average book length is significant because it helps in estimating the number of books one can read in a year based on the number of pages they read daily. If a person reads 50 pages a day, they might read about 50 books in a year, considering the average book has around 365 pages.

  • What type of books does the creator generally prefer to read and why?

    -The creator generally prefers to read reflective, emotional, dark, sad, and challenging books, as these are the moods they gravitate towards and enjoy the most.

  • What was the creator's experience with reading books over 500 pages?

    -The creator found that books over 500 pages were very contentious, with some being their favorite books of the year, like 'The Beast' and 'Demon Copperhead', while others, like 'Iron Flame', were among their least favorites.

  • What is the Listening.com app and how does it benefit the creator?

    -Listening.com is an app that turns academic papers, PDFs, textbooks, web pages, and articles into audio, allowing the user to have content read to them. The creator finds it helpful for multitasking, learning on the go, and improving pronunciation of tricky words.

  • What is the creator's view on the importance of logging the medium of each book read?

    -The creator believes that logging the medium (physical book, Kindle, audiobook) is important for a comprehensive understanding of their reading habits but regrets not having done so consistently.

  • How does the creator's reading pattern reflect their mental health throughout the year?

    -The creator's reading pattern, with higher reading activity at the beginning and end of the year and a significant drop in May, reflects their mental health fluctuations, with less reading during busier or sadder periods.

  • What was the average star rating of the books the creator reviewed in 2023?

    -The average star rating of the books the creator reviewed in 2023 was 3.64, indicating a slightly higher critical standard compared to the previous year.

Outlines
00:00
πŸ“š Reflecting on 2023 Reading Stats

The speaker begins by humorously expressing relief that TikTok doesn't provide a year-end summary, as they've watched a Taylor Swift concert video excessively. They then transition to discussing their reading habits, using the Storygraph app as an alternative to Goodreads to track and analyze their reading patterns. The speaker reveals they surpassed their reading goal of 180 books, actually reading 205 books in 2023. They mention their intention to read fewer books in 2024, focusing on a different approach to reading and plan to delve deeper into this in a future video. They also discuss the importance of setting a realistic reading goal based on daily reading habits, using the average book length as a benchmark.

05:00
πŸ“ˆ Analyzing Reading Preferences and Patterns

The speaker continues by analyzing their reading preferences, noting a tendency to read more reflective, emotional, and dark books, while less frequently engaging with hopeful, inspiring, and light-hearted genres. They also discuss the pace of the books they read, with a majority being medium-paced. The speaker acknowledges their preference for shorter books and their lack of interest in fantasy, which often tends to be longer. They share their experience with reading books over 500 pages, mentioning a few titles and reflecting on their enjoyment of long literary fiction. The speaker also touches on their reading of fiction versus non-fiction, with a significant majority being fiction, and expresses a desire to improve tracking of the medium in which they read each book, such as physical, Kindle, or audio.

10:02
🎨 Diving Deeper into Genres and Author Preferences

This paragraph delves into the speaker's top genres, with literary fiction being the most dominant, followed by contemporary fiction. The speaker also discusses their least read genres and shares insights into their favorite authors, including Claire Keegan and Han Kang, and the impact they had on their reading journey in 2023. They reflect on their approach to reading, valuing breadth over depth, and express a desire to revisit and explore more works by authors they love in 2024. The speaker also mentions their intention to focus on gaining a deeper understanding of certain authors, rather than just reading a single book from a variety of writers.

15:03
πŸ“Š The Ebb and Flow of Reading Throughout the Year

The speaker examines the number of books and pages read each month, drawing correlations between their reading habits and their mental health throughout the year. They note a strong start to the year, a significant drop in reading during busier and emotionally challenging months, and a resurgence in their reading habit later in the year. The speaker also discusses the impact of writing on their reading time, suggesting a balance between the two activities. They conclude by sharing their average book rating for the year, reflecting on how their tastes have evolved and become more refined over time.

Mindmap
Keywords
πŸ’‘Tik Tok
Tik Tok is a social media platform known for its short-form videos. In the script, it's mentioned humorously as a platform that doesn't provide a year-end wrap-up, which would be embarrassing for the speaker due to their extensive viewing of a particular Taylor Swift video. This sets a light-hearted tone for the video.
πŸ’‘Story Graph
Story Graph is an alternative to Goodreads, serving as a book tracking and social media platform. It is central to the video's theme, as the speaker uses it to analyze their reading habits throughout the year, providing graphs, stats, and insights into their reading preferences.
πŸ’‘Reading Goal
A reading goal is a target set by a reader to complete a certain number of books within a specific time frame. The speaker mentions having a reading goal of 180 books but exceeded it by reading 205 books, indicating a personal achievement and a key point in their yearly reading review.
πŸ’‘Mood of Books
The mood of books refers to the emotional atmosphere or tone conveyed in literature. The script discusses the speaker's preference for 'reflective, emotional, dark, sad, and challenging' books, which helps to understand their reading habits and the types of stories they are drawn to.
πŸ’‘Pace of Books
The pace of books describes how quickly the narrative unfolds. The speaker notes that 70% of the books they read are medium-paced, with only a small margin more fast-paced than slow-paced books, giving insight into their reading preferences.
πŸ’‘Page Count
Page count is the total number of pages in a book, which can influence the reading experience. The script mentions that the speaker mostly reads shorter books, with only 3% of their reads being over 500 pages, indicating a preference for less lengthy works.
πŸ’‘Fiction vs. Non-Fiction
This refers to the two main categories of literature. The speaker's reading stats show a preference for fiction, with 79% of their reads being fiction compared to 21% non-fiction, highlighting a clear inclination towards imaginative storytelling.
πŸ’‘Literary Fiction
Literary fiction is a genre that focuses on character development, style, and often explores the human condition. The speaker's top genre, with 95 of the books read falling into this category, underscores their love for in-depth character studies and narrative prose.
πŸ’‘Author Obsession
Author obsession refers to a reader's deep interest in and dedication to the works of a particular author. The speaker mentions being obsessed with Claire Keegan, whose writing they find 'perceptive' and 'delicate,' illustrating a personal connection to an author's style.
πŸ’‘Mental Health
Mental health is the state of an individual's psychological and emotional well-being. The script uses the speaker's reading habits as a reflection of their mental health throughout the year, with periods of high reading activity correlating with positive states and vice versa.
πŸ’‘Star Rating
Star ratings are a common way to express the quality of a book on a scale, often from 1 to 5 stars. The speaker's average rating of 3.64 indicates a discerning reader whose ratings have become stricter over time, reflecting an evolving understanding of what constitutes a 'perfect' book.
Highlights

The speaker avoids TikTok's year-end wrap-up, humorously implying an obsession with Taylor Swift.

Introduction to the Storygraph app as an alternative to Goodreads for tracking reading habits.

The speaker exceeded their reading goal of 180 books, finishing 205 in 2023.

A discussion about setting a realistic reading goal based on daily page count.

Preference for shorter books, especially those in translation, and their tendency to be prizewinning.

The speaker's reading habits skewed towards 'reflective, emotional, dark, and sad' books.

A realization of the speaker's tendency to avoid 'hopeful, inspiring, light-hearted' genres.

The majority of books read were medium-paced, with a slight preference for shorter books.

Surprise enjoyment of long literary fiction, despite generally favoring shorter works.

A significant preference for fiction over non-fiction, with 79% of books read being fiction.

Lament over not logging the medium of each book read (physical, Kindle, or audiobook).

An endorsement of the app 'Listening' for converting text to audio, aiding in multitasking and learning.

The speaker's top genre was literary fiction, followed by contemporary, with a detailed genre distribution.

Claire Keegan was the most-read author, with a deep appreciation for her writing style and subject matter.

A reflection on the speaker's reading habits and mental health throughout the year, visible in monthly reading stats.

An average book rating decrease, suggesting a refinement of taste and higher standards for perfect books.

A final note on the correlation between writing and reading habits, with busier writing periods leading to less reading.

Transcripts
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