stargazer

2020 in Retrospect

Probably, most posts about 2020 begin with This has been a very unusual year or something to that effect. Which I can only second.

But while I can’t wait for our return to normal – and it looks like it will happen in 2021 – I must admit, I have enjoyed working from home. For sure, I’ve missed my colleagues, but not having to do daily fights to get on (and off) the tube, avoiding the endless lunch queues and generally having more flexibility to plan my working day has turned out to be both pleasant and productive. Oh, and did I mention the joy of wearing loungewear and flat shoes all day and not having to worry about bad hair days, when I unintentionally look like Einstein?

My reading in 2020
Reading wise, 2020 has been quite good with several five star books. It’s always interesting to look back on the year and figure out, which books have made a lasting impression. Amongst the strong contenders are The Dutch House, Girl, Woman, Other and The Vanishing Half.

However, the one which just hit all the right buttons may come as a surprise. Kitchen, an unexpected little gem, instantly brought me into this otherworldly state of mind of beauty and melancholy, which Japanese authors seem to be especially good at. A perfect fit with my own temperament. Generally, my venture into Japanese fiction in 2020 has been highly enjoyable, with Kafka on the Shore, The Housekeeper and the Professor, The Memory Police and Convenience Store Woman all providing great entertainment and food for thought.

In the nonfiction section, two books stood out. Dark Towers about Deutsche Bank’s rise and fall was surprisingly dramatic and captivating. The Planets, a companion book to the amazing BBC series, hit the rare sweet spot of being light enough to entertain people without science background, whilst at the same time containing enough proper information to be educational. It’s a common misunderstanding that “popular science” books make the mysteries of science understandable to everyone, but I’d say The Planets can be enjoyed by most people.  

My writing in 2020
I wrote 44 posts in 2020, which is ok after my standards. I know some of you manage a lot more, but each to their own abilities and all that. More importantly, I’ve had lots of fun writing and I especially enjoyed coming up with new concepts such as the Literary Duels or Literary Locations posts.

My most viewed posts in 2020 are:

Last time I looked at my statistics, there wasn’t a book review in sight amongst my most viewed posts, so I suppose the above result is progress. What I learned from The Metamorphosis has turned out to be strangely popular amongst the google audience. Presumably, this is due to desperate school kids having been tasked with writing essays about The Metamorphosis. I feel quite bad, because I am not sure my post will be much help.

Looking forward to 2021
Since my day job is filled with targets and goals, I refuse to introduce any such measures in my hobbies. So I’ll read and write as I feel like. However, I have realised certain things about my blogging life, which I will utilise even more in 2021:

  • Like in any other sphere of life I get easily bored. It is sad to admit, but there you go. This means, in order to maintain my interest in blogging, I need to keep developing new types of posts and possibly spread out a bit more. So hopefully you’ll see different concepts in 2021.
  • There will undoubtedly be periods, where I don’t have time or energy to write. In order to keep up a somewhat regular posting schedule, I’ll have to write as many posts as possible during the quiet periods, which I can then post, when life is busy. This has worked relatively well, but not perfectly, in 2020. When you start seeing too many WWW Wednesday or Mini Reviews, you know I’ve run out of reserve posts. 😉
  • I would like to keep better track of my books and my reading, so hopefully 2021 will be the year, when I start embracing Goodreads. Let’s see…

That’s all folks. See you in 2021.

46 comments

    • Thanks Nicki! I look forward to see what I come up with as well – no guarantees it will be any good 😉😁

    • Thanks! No, not really. One of the purposes of using Goodreads more systematically is to be able to get all these statistics without any effort. So maybe my 2021 wrap-up post will include more details!

    • You too! Yes, I think many introverts have found it ok working from home. But it will be good to get back to more normal conditions, though.

    • I did find The Vanishing Half very captivating, I could barely put it down, once I started reading. Thanks Callum, I hope you get a great 2021 as well with lots of amazing books!

  8. An interesting wrap-up. I loved the Evaristo, but the Dutch House didn’t make a great impression on me either way. And just as you have embraced Japanese fiction, I’ve read quite a lot from South Korea: in fact more books in translation generally, and I plan to keep that up. I look forward to seeing how your blog develops next year!

    • Thanks! I have seen very mixed reactions to The Dutch House, but I was amongst those who loved it. Besides from Han Kang, I am not aware of any South Korean authors, but like you, I mean to read more translated literature. I finally downloaded my first Russian novel, Crime and Punishment – let’s see how that goes…

  10. Wonderful overview! I’ve been wanting to read The Planets for a while now, hopefully 2021 is going to be when I finally do. I’ve had a Goodreads account for a while now but I started keeping it updated recently. Even now, I think it’s a few weeks behind 😂 I think using a notebook to keep track is so much easier.
    Looking forward to reading more diverse content soon!! Best wishes for 2021!

    • Thanks so much! I hope you get to read The Planets, I thought it was excellent and it made me want to watch the television show again (I have watched it many times already). Haha, I think Goodreads is a matter of habit, at least I hope so! If you just get used to adding new books as you go along, it won’t feel like a chore and you will just do it automatically. All the best wishes for 2021 to you as well!

  11. Congrats on the achievements in 2020, and I’m looking forward to your posts in 2021! I am also going to follow a similar pattern in terms of blogging – a lot of writing during quiet periods and trying to think of new blogging content. Blogging is a valuable experience, but it’s also fairly time-consuming!

    • Thanks so much, I look forward to a new blogging year and new posts as well! Yeah, I think it’s a good idea to have a storage of posts to use in order to blog regularly. As I remember it, you are a relatively new blogger as well? I tell myself, when I become a more established blogger, it may not be as important to blog regularly – one is less likely to be forgotten, even if taking some longer breaks.

      • Yes, I am a fairly new blogger as well! I don’t post super regularly anyway, but it’s true that it’s pretty important to have a storage of posts. What I also tell myself is, if they want to stick around, they will stick around 😉

        • Yeah, you are probably right. Personally, I quite like to get to know other bloggers so I have an idea of their reading taste and perhaps know a bit of their background. You never really manage that with bloggers who don’t blog on a relatively regular basis.

    • With the vaccines and everything, I do believe we will get closer to our old normal in 2021. But as 2020 has shown us, anything can happen, so your approach of having no expectations make sense!

  13. What a great post! Yes I’ve always loved the idea of working from home 🙂 More organizations should adopt it even after post pandemic! I love your picks for best books read in 2020 coz I agree with all of them. I must check out Kitchen coz I love Jap lit for the same reasons you mention. Have a great last few days of 2020 my friend. THen onward and forward. Hello 2021!!!!! woot woot!

    • Thanks so much! I think / hope that working from home some of the time will be more common even after the pandemic is over. You should definitely check out Kitchen, it’s a short novella, so shouldn’t take much time, but I found it very impactful considering how short it was! Hope you get some enjoyable time the rest of 2020 as well and of course a good start on 2021!

  14. Well, OK, Goodreads – but what you really need is a spreadsheet! A bookish spreadsheet! With multiple worksheets and loads and loads and loads of columns! Colour coded! 😀

    I always found I got more done working from home – and working in PJs is a special joy! Does your brain resemble Einstein’s on bad hair days too?

    • Yes, a spreadsheet would be a good alternative – I quite like spreadsheets, even if they remind me of work. But I’ll make an attempt with Goodreads in 2021 and if it doesn’t work, I’ll create a spreadsheet. Not sure, I’ll be able to compete with yours, though!

      Haha, no unfortunately the brain capacity doesn’t follow – if it did, I dare say, I might be able to live with the hairstyle!

  15. It’s a goal of mine every year to keep better track of the books I read, and I always fail! Lol. Maybe 2021 will be my year. 🙂

    And I am hopeful that 2021 will be more of a return to normal although there are some things that I think I will keep from this year, such as homeschooling and being more intentional and the slower pace of life (which was not intentional this year lol).

    • Haha, I wouldn’t be surprised, if I fail as well, but I will at least give it a try! I agree there are things worth holding on to, the slower pace has definitely suited me well. I do love to travel and normally travel a lot for work, but staying at home has given me the opportunity to focus on other things and most of the year has been less stressful than usual. Hope you manage to continue with the homeschooling – from your posts it sounds like both you and your son have enjoyed it!

    • Thanks, I am so glad to hear that, I have enjoyed visiting your blog as well! I hope you’ll like The Dutch House, if you decide to read it. In case you get on with audiobooks, I will recommend the audio-version narrated by Tom Hanks. It is surprisingly good!

  18. I’ve loved your new features this year, especially the ones featuring your travels. I learned so much from each of them! So, now I’m even more looking forward to where your creativity takes you this year! You made valid points about working from home. I’m definitely going to miss it too. Happy New Year, stargazer! ❤️

    • Great that you enjoyed my travel posts, I had so much fun writing them. The next one will be about Alaska and the Grizzly bears, I remember you’ve been there as well! Happy New Year to you too, Jennifer, I hope you’ll get a great 2021 and I look forward to more bookish chats with you!

  19. My 2020 wasn’t that different other than during the first lockdown they combined our school sites so I was working with different children which was a bit weird. I was very happy to have my own class back again in June! I haven’t written a blog post in forever but I feel like having a break is probably right for me at the moment.

    • Yes, your experience of the lockdown may vary a lot depending on what you are working with. It must have been weird working with different children for a while. It will be interesting what will happen in 2021, they are talking about closing the schools again. If you need a break, you should take one. Blogging should never feel like a chore. Hope you get a great 2021!

  20. Wishing you a happy and healthy 2021, Stargazer. Happy blogging! I’ll look forward to reading along more regularly this year 😊

    • Thanks so much Sandra, I wish you a happy and healthy 2021 as well! I look forward to see you back in the blogging sphere, but I also know there are more important things than blogging.

  21. Nooooo, why did you have to make me imagine you as Einstein going into 2021?!?! 😛 I hope this New Year will allow you to enjoy fantastic books and explore new ones that you never saw coming too. Stay safe and happy! 😀

    • Hehe, unfortunately it is only the hairstyle, not the brain which may have any resemblance to Einstein! 😆 Thanks so much Lashaan, hope you stay safe and happy as well!

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