I had originally planned to keep a reading journal last year, but I got really overwhelmed by designing my sister’s wedding stationery and other wedding related goings on. My other hobbies also fell to the wayside last year, but I managed to keep reading, mostly on my commutes to and from work.

I read 43 books last year, but a significant number were light novels, because I was watching The Apothecary Diaries anime and loved it so much I had to know what happens next. Next thing I know, I’ve binged all 15 of the currently translated light novels. The other four light novels I read were volumes 7 and 8 of My Happy Marriage and volumes 4 and 5 of Associate Professor Akira Takatsuki’s Conjecture.

I also read quite a few translated novels. 10, in fact. One Taiwanese, one Korean, one Swedish, and the rest Japanese. I would like to explore more Japanese literature going forward, but my favourite author is Sayaka Murata. The most intriguing book I read in this category is Strange Houses by Uketsu, translated by Jim Rion. The inclusion of floor plans to illustrate the mystery was very attractive to me, as I love a good lay of the land.

Another translated work that stood out to me was Butter by Asako Yuzuki, translated by Polly Barton. It very much reads like true crime and I’m convinced that I’ve come across a story like this before, whether real or in the form of a Japanese drama. I gave it four stars out of five, but my friends seemed to like it less than I did. I do acknowledge that I’m more tapped into mainstream Japanese culture though, so I recognize my bias.

My most anticipated reads of the year were Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins and James Islington’s The Strength of the Few, both parts of series. I enjoyed the elaborations on the respective worlds and I’m looking forward to Hierarchy book 3. I’m definitely going to the theatre to watch Sunrise on the Reaping when it comes out November 2026.

I didn’t read particularly widely in 20225, but many of the books were memorable and told very different stories. Piranesi and Bear Town had to be some of the most different books I’ve read all year and I loved both for simply being well told stories with their own messages.

I’m finishing up this post well into 2026 now, and my quest to read more widely continues.