Keeping track of books read

[wilful]

Does anyone else keep track of the books they have read.  I do.

At age 5, in the first grade, I read poorly, so my one year older sister took me under her wing during summer vacation and taught me how to read.  After I learned - I loved this new tool/pleasure.  From then, thru eight grade - I spent much of my non-working time reading.  Our school covered grades 1 thru 8 and I devoured a goodly amount of the books in the school library.  After becoming a teen - the volume of my reading dropped precipitously and didn't resume until decades later when I retired.  

I have 16 Excel spreadsheets - each for a different author.  Mostly fiction/mystery stories.  All in chronological order.  When I come across a new(for me) author - I make up a spreadsheet with all of her works and start with her first one and mark it "read"(after reading it) before going to the next one.

I do all the reading on the Kindle.  I really appreciate the adjustable font and small (slip into my pocket) size.  I donated many hundreds of my old paper books to libraries, vets, etc.  

My favorite author is Stephen White.  Sadly, I think his illness is preventing him from writing any more books.

Am always open to suggestions of authors or books.  Not sure, but I think it was here that the wonderful book "The Book Thief" was suggested.   

[djhenderson48]

I like the idea of keeping a record of books I've read. I sometimes want to recommend a book to someone in my family and I have difficulty recalling the title. I was interested in finding out about Goodreads. I will look into that.

[jm23584536]

My mother kept tracks of the books that I brought back from the library - and especially the Readers Digest books, she loved them, and the library used to send her books then when that stopped I would go to find her some more.  She usually got the same books over and over, but she loved to read them.

[g944145h]

Goodreads.com stores the books you've read, currently reading,.and books you want to read. At the end of the year you get a list of books you've read,.how many pages, etc. There is also a reading challenge per year

[b135134r]

I have kept a list of the books I have read since 1956 when I was a Jr. in High School.

People are amazed when I have mentioned that.

Up to 0ver 1000 books, but didn't read as much when I was raising 3 children.

[barbr94742]

My 6"x9" red notebook, alphabetized by author and a page of their book titles, keeps track of every book I've read. It goes with me to the library, where I check each list to make sure I don't check out a book I've already read, which are way more than a thousand, over the past 20+ years. Barb Raynes, Gold Beach Oregon

[j551112f]

I am amazed that so many people take the time to record each and every book and author that they have read for many years. I find it hard to believe that with all that reading and recording that there is much else to do in some people's lives on a daily basis.  I do write down certain books and authors that I want to follow, but writing down each and every book for decades??  I don't have the time for that. But, to each his own. Some people's lives are far more simpler and easier than others.

[nyadrn]

@j551112f   

Well I find it interesting that people take the time to tell other people how they are wasting theirs...  kind of the same thing wouldn't you say  : )

[j551112f]

LOL, is that comment aimed at me??  I don't believe I told anyone that they were wasting time.  I said that I don't have time for recording each and every book I read with so many other things to do in a day. This is the first time I've taken the time to look at the AARP forums, it was out of curiosity, I am not someone who usually does that.  I don't participate in any social media as a rule.  And as far as AARP goes....I find that there are very few benefits to being a member.

[nyadrn]

For those of you who recommended Goodreads.com  thank you..   it is a part of Amazon and looks pretty good.. going to give that a try.

[SassiLady]

@nyadrnThanks for your comment on Goodreads. I had no idea they were a part of Amazon. I will check this out as soon as I get caught up on some other things.

[1avidgolfer]

I keep track of books I'm reading, or will read on my Kindle EReader...I think its a great way to read 

without having the clutter of hardback books on shelfs accumalating space.

[ld8716]

I have been writing down the titles and month/yr read for 21 years now. I put a star next to it if I loved the book. I know electronically recording is the way to go but I like writing it down. I have a top 30. I look forward to the day I don't work 40 plus hours a week.

[amcoffiebean]

j551112f, I started writing down what I'd read when I got hooked on Lawrence Sanders and his "Deadly Sins" series, the titles are the same except for "first", "second" etc. I couldn't remember what I'd read and hadn't read. It really helps when I love a particular author and read lots of their books. I don't keep books and my memory has never been strong.  I use a public library for books now and seldom buy a book, but it's still a bit frustrating to get ready to dive into a book and discover it's a repeat! So in my case it actually saves me a lot of time.  Plus on LibraryThing, which is free, there are good forums, good reviews which I enjoy reading.  LT also has groups, like mystery, historical, etc and within those groups I've found some fabulous recommendations that I would not have discovered otherwise.  I wish I could remember everything I've ever read!  Too late for me tho, going in the other direction!

[sm7726]

My mom used a telephone contact diary to easily jot down books she read in the alphabetical sections. She kept it in her purse so it was always at hand. I used to tease her about it but now I’ve reached an age where I completely appreciate the idea!

[rockaria]

It takes so little time. Maybe about 30 seconds to log Title, Author, Date of Completion. Then on to the next one. It took me a lot longer to enter this reply than to log a book I've read. 🙂

[kada328]

"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. A man who never reads lives only one." George R. R. Martin

Read 117 books last year which I read on my mini-iPad that I carry with me everywhere. Switched to the mini-iPad after years of packing and unpacking boxes of hundreds of books whenever I moved ... a real pain in the back ... literally. So much easier now, and I've always got something with me to read whether I'm just out-and-about or traveling. Plus, there are thousands of 'free' eBooks available for download including most of the classics. I also keep track of my books (purchased/read) on both 'Goodreads' and 'Calibre'. Both are free programs and very easy to use. 

[amcoffiebean]

Thanks to those of you recommending goodreads.com, I will check it out.  I've used LibraryThing for years so have not paid much attention to what else it out there.  I use LibraryThing on my PC, and I suppose by now they have an app too.

[debbiec909128]

I love my Kindle, but love the feel of a book in my hands as well.  I use a die called "Goodreads" to help me keep track of what I've read.  I believe I read somewhere between 35 - 40 books last year. I hope to surpass that by far in 2018. 

[kz4144856]

Yes. I keep track of all books I have read each year. I include the title, author, number of pages, and a brief summary of the story line.

[tallyjones49]

I have kept a spreadsheet in Excel of books I have read since 1993.  I have the alphabet on tabs across the bottom for the author's last name.  I click across and add my new books whether they are ones I have purchased or borrowed from my wonderful local library.  I also do the same thing for movies.  

[lightraes]

I like Goodreads app & have used it for several years now.

[rg23513392]

Every single one!  Not necessary to read it twice.

[SassiLady]

@wilful, Yes, I keep track of books I have read but not as well as you do. Mainly because Excel and I never could get together, no matter how I tried it always baffled me and I have to say that I gave up on it several years ago.

I make a list under the author's name and list the books I have chosen to read and as I read them I go to the list and highlite the one I have finished reading.

I really like a variety of genres and jump around between, romance, thrillers/murder, drama and parapsychology/paranormal.

I have about 600 books on my newest Kindle Tablet and they are also on my previous Kindle which still works fine. I read every day, sometimes for just an hour and sometimes for most of the day.

I started borrowing books on my mother's library card before I was old enough to have my own. I read every Nancy Drew mystery and would check out several books at a time. My love for reading has never dwindled.

[l573559s]

My husband and I both record and review all the books we read.  We use Goodreads.com - very easy to set up an account and then you have bookshelves to place your Read, Want to read, Currently reading, etc.  Love it!  To date I have more than 1450 books on mine and my husband has over 800.  We have been doing this for several years. 

[j551112f]

LOL, wow....I don't feel I have the time to record all the books I've read in 60+ years. I am an avid reader and I guess it's not that important to me, there are so many more things to do in a day.  

[pianoplayer135]

Me too! 70 years now☺️

[christinee16653]

What kind of books?

[j551112f]

What kind of books do I read?  I like murder, mystery, serial killer.  Nature, wildlife.  And occasional biography.  Same things that I watch on tv and in movies.

[wilful]

It doesn't matter whether one keeps track of their reading on a spreadsheet, Word, scrap of paper, notebook, etc.  Nor - if they do none of these.  Nor, whether they read new, used, paper or Kindle or Nook.  What matters is that they do what works best for them, and they ARE READING.

You see - we are all different and are openly displaying our uniqueness here on these pages - while being drawn together by our great single commonality - A Love of Reading!

Keep on reading, my friends.