No, not me.

I read for pleasure. That sounds like an awful lot of work.

Sounds like it works for you. 👍🏻

I agree with you, roxsolid. Also I don't get to read too much too often, so my list would not be that long. Probably just looking at the author would do it for me.

ETA I do have a list of books by Lisa Scottoline on a piece of paper around here somewhere. I come across it from time to time but I haven't made any progress on it.

You read for pleasure? Isn't that true for everyone once education is done and not counting what has to be read for work?

Keeping a list is very little work and it's very handy. I put a shortcut on my PC's home screen for the list - I double click on it and it comes up. I can scroll to or search for an author in seconds to add or refer to. Adding to the list or referring to it takes little more than a minute or two. Save the new file if it was added to, then close it. Done.

I use a basic spreadsheet (a tool I use rarely and I'm not very good with). I was able to sort the entries to come up with a count just now. There are over 1000 titles listed. Entries for titles I chose to not finish are only several dozen.

I rarely listen more than one hour a day, unless it's a day of air or car travel. Many days, not at all. The hours add up. The list is just books I've read since retiring. An average size book of 350-450 pages may be 8-12 hours. I don't shy away from long books, some are quite long. Winds of War and War and Remembrance total over 100 hours taken together. Caro's Power Broker is 66 hours.

Books I read before I retired aren't listed but are likely fewer than 100 in total.

There's no way my memory could keep track of that many titles and authors.

Yes, it is true for me. That’s why I said it.

I can’t speak for others. 🤷‍♀️ I have no idea what or why they are reading.

" I can’t speak for others. "

Sure you can. This is a low risk of being wrong situation, there is a very limited range of possible answers. Assume it's the same for others as it is for you with a high confidence level of accuracy. That's why I responded to your words, it seemed like an odd comment. I wondered if you had something in particular in mind.

You are way more organized than I could be. But, rereading is not a crime.

No, it's not. And it's a practical approach.

Someone in another thread mentioned Lee Child's Reacher series as one she liked and that's a good example. I like Child's work too and after having read through the titles and each year's new additions. I find that rereading an older one I enjoyed after some time has passed (like, no less than 5 years) is almost as good as having a newly released and unread one to read.

And really, I'm not nearly that organized with anything else. It just happened to be one area that I saw there seemed to be no other way to keep straight the information I wanted to have.

“Sure you can. ”

Well, I can. But I won’t.

I assume nothing.

I had nothing in mind. 🤷‍♀️

That seems like an odd comment.

I found keeping a list to be a bit cumbersome. I have been using goodreads for a several years. I find it great because when I hear of a book, I can look it up and add to my want to read list. It has all the info readily available for me- author, # pages, date published, all the things. I find it very helpful.

elm, I guess keeping a record of books you have read could be considered a good hobby, though. It sounds like you enjoy it.

Fun and practical for you.🤠

rox, I neither enjoy it or dread it and it's far from being a hobby. The list is a useful tool that requires little time or effort. In my situation, it would be dumb to not keep track, for the reasons already mentioned. Too many titles to track solely by memory, averaging more than one a week over many years.

Reading is the hobby.

It sounds like it is part of your reading hobby. I don’t think it would be dumb not to keep track. To me, and as faftris said, rereading is not a crime. I wouldn’t be that bothered by rereading something. I wouldn’t worry about it.

That’s me, though.

eta To me it is similar to bird watchers who keep track of every bird they’ve seen or heard. It is their hobby.

No; it never occurred to me to do so. I wouldn't care if I reread something if I'm enjoying it, and I don't care if it's something I finished or didn't finish previously.

" That’s me, though. "

Fine, I don't consider it as part of the reading hobby. If keeping the record took more effort than the very little it does, I wouldn't do it. I often forget to update it for newly read books and when I realize that something appears to be missing, I rarely go back to fix the omission.

I did a total count for the purpose of this thread. I don't think I've ever done that before because - it's not something that interests me in the tracking. Nothing beyond individual entries for author and title and when is useful to me.

I hope you've had enough play time today.

“I hope you've had enough play time today.”

?

I’m not following, elm. What do you mean?

No, I don't keep a list because I always read the latest release of the authors I follow. If I pick up a new-to-me author, then I will read from their earliest release to their latest. I do sometimes forget why I've dropped an author from my always-read list and some sort of notational record would be helpful for that.

rox, no one else seems to be interested in doing things his way and he isn't happy about it.

There are a million ways to do things. We don't all have to do things one way.

My husband also keeps a spreadsheet list of books he’s read. He used to keep the library check out slips but when he discovered the joys of spreadsheets for many uses he converted the papers to a spreadsheet and kept going. He started this listing practice years before his retirement. I just asked him for his list total - he went to check. It’s 2,636. He reads a lot. When he was working he kept an active book at home, another in his office and another in the car. The book in the car was read if he was waiting for me in the days we carpooled to work & he was picking me up. He was able to track these 3 different story plots simultaneously without issue. His ”data tidbits” are much the same as Elmer’s. Author/Title/publication date (not read date). He doesn’t check the list before getting a new book to read but will check it if that book sounds familiar. If he’s enjoying the book he’ll continue with his reread of it. He doesn’t keep a list of books stopped mid-read.

As far as the practice of list keeping and who finds it useful, I don’t but I wouldn’t dream of being critical of my husband choosing to keep a list. My list is limited to books I want to remember to read. After reading the comments here, I wonder if this type of data compilation is born of a thought process type. My husband isn’t an engineer of any type but he worked with so many engineers over the life of his career that his mind now works like an engineer type. Very precise, highly analytical and logical approach to problem resolution.

murraysmom, well that’s not something to be unhappy about!

I like our differences. That’s what makes us human.

I kind of thought elm sounded upset, but I wasn’t sure.

I hope that isn’t what his comment was about.

“ I wouldn’t dream of being critical of my husband choosing to keep a list.”

I wouldn’t either. It sounds like it works for your husband, just as it works for elm.

I keep a list alphabetically on my computer and phone by authors I've read and some I haven't. Each author has a folder with a list of their books, whether or not I've read them. If I've read or listened to a book, I mark it as such. If I liked or disliked a book/audio, I mark it as such. If I own the book or audio, I mark it as such. A long time ago I belonged to a group that shared books and audios. I don't always remember if I've read a particular book, so my list keeps me from the disappointment of checking out a library book I've already read or listened to.

I like keeping track and more than once, when someone has recommended a book to me, I will add it to my to be read list, and see that I already read it i 2015 or so.. :)

I was going to respond but then the snarkiness emerged as it inevitably does so I will just say Goodreads.com

Annie, snarkiness? Did I say anything wrong? It wasn’t deliberate.

I thought the conversation was fine until elm’s confusing (to me) comment. It kind of went downhill after that.

Perhaps, he can explain what he meant.

I, too, wasn't being snarky. It just seemed like no one else, at least above, did what Elmer does. I think it's great if you have a method that works for you, no matter what it is. Certainly no harm, ill feelings or snarkiness was intended by me.

I have a reasonably good memory too, sushipup. Your approach wouldn't worth with the downloaded audiobooks I read because there are no back covers to refer to.

I'm not surprised that among the serious responders who weren't bored yesterday, maybe half do have an approach to keeping track of books read. I know that Goodreads is a popular tool and is used by many. I sometimes refer to Goodreads as a way to find new titles to read. The user experience as a record of books read is unappealing to me and anyway I'm disinclined to keep information of any nature online.

The idea to use a spreadsheet came from a conversation with a friend who's a more avid reader than I am. That conversation, a duh moment for me, led to my using a spreadsheet to keep track of two (and only two) different types of info - books read and passwords I have and use. Simple solutions that work for me. I have current copies of both on my smartphone too for quick reference.

I look at Goodreads for reviews / ratings. I wasn’t aware of its book tracking functionality. Back to the self created spreadsheet method, I just asked my husband why he started his list. It was as I’d thought & alluded to in my last post. He discovered how useful the spreadsheet tool is. He didn’t use it at work - their programs used were secure, no external access, security clearance needed type stuff. No use in his work world for commercially available software. However, my work required use of MSFT suite of apps & I had remote access so he was exposed to various types of spreadsheets used for many tasks other than number crunching. So, like you Elmer, he did have a ’duh’ moment too. Since we’re now an Apple family it’s Numbers he uses & of course his spreadsheet is available to him on all of his devices.

ETA: I told him about you tracking books you didn’t complete. He said he does have some but a mere handful compared to the books read so he’s not interested in tracking them. He has however started tracking DVD’s he gets from library. He started that because of getting DVD’s that are part of a series - wants to easily find which seasons he’s watched. Sadly I’m not interested in very many of the DVD’s as most are Sci-Fi, war or just too gruesome topics for me. I am watching the Longmire series with him though. We’re waiting for Season 4 now. What’s not to like about a good & honest sheriff in a movie with horses but takes place in recent history? Lou Diamond Phillips is great as is Robert Taylor as Longmire. The series follows the books pretty closely.

I do not keep a list. I will occasionally write down suggestions from others but never consult the lists. I have a very good memory these days though not so good as it was. I read different sorts of things than most but dont expect others to like what I like either. So many books and so little time. When I was young I used to have a rule of finishing anything I started no matter how drecky but when I had cancer many years ago I stopped doing that. It had its advantages, cancer treatment that is, in that my mind was practically washed clean and I could reread favorite books as if I had never read them before.

I read very little recent literature except short stories. My idea in the past was that time had erased a lot of popular but actually rather poor literature and sort of sieved it all out leaving the best but there is a lot of fun stuff that got lost by the wayside. I like a complex sentence and modern lit is choppy to me. Hemingwayesque so to speak.

In ninth grade we had to write down for Mrs Threlkelds edification how many books we read a year and I said 350 which was a gross understatement. I also read several books at a time. I have a book I read only at lunch (Tuchman's A Distant Mirror at the moment a reread) Books I read downstairs, Books I read in the car, Books I read intermittently and so on. I read a whole lot of short stories and when I read an anthology and run across a previously read story it can be an old friend or a skip it. How would I keep a list of previously read shorts?

KW PNW, I'd meant but forgot to comment on your earlier post so I'll do a combined one. I'm impressed with your husband's accomplishment, cumulative total-wise. He's a lucky guy. I didn't have time to read during my career years. Not at work, very little in the car (audiobooks were expensive in the early years) When driving, I was often on the phone. (First car phone purchased in 1984, I remember the year because I remember the car I had it installed in just after purchase. I needed it and it got a lot of use). I didn't have a 5 day a week, 8 hour a day job for most of the year so that when I got home it was kids, wife, and just a little non-private downtime.

My list of started, not finished books is short - maybe just several dozen over the years since I've been keeping track. Oddly enough, they seem to hit me in waves. Not one every few months but sometimes three, one after the other.

As I mentioned before, I'm not a personally overly- precise or organized soul, so long as the disorganization I choose to live with doesn't become limiting. Encountering anew a book I disliked in the first instance is a waste of time I don't want to repeat, so I track them in the same record. Rereading a book I think is new is something I want to do by choice and not inadvertently, so same purpose is accomplished with the same record.

For others reading this, Google Docs has a free basic spreadsheet capabillity (along with other light capabilities, including word processing). Because it's accessed using a browser, it's usable on all hardware, whether Windows, Mac, or even Linux. Also, accessible on both Android and iPhone devices.

A Distant Mirror is an outstanding book, one I've reread several times. (The last time was December 2019 ;-) )

I too read little or no "literature". I read fiction for entertainment and diversion. I don't want allegorically conveyed insights or philosophical musings on the human condition. I read non-fiction that's interestingly written to learn things I don't know.

Back to Distant Mirror, the chateau of the de Coucy lords was well described in the book. Into the 20th Century, it remained one of the largest and most significant remaining structures of its type from the Middle Ages. Once on a visit to the Champagne region, we took a short drive to go see it. We were disgusted with what we found and learned. During WWI, retreating German forces set explosive charges to destroy it. Here are before and after photos. Heartbreaking and senseless.

(Click to enlarge)

That kind of destruction is just sickening. I can't understand indiscriminate bombing! Bombing itself is bad enough. But to destroy buildings with historic value is heartbreaking.

Agreed, murraysmom!

Very sad, indeed.

Nope, life is too short.

An acquaintance keeps a notebook of every book she has read since junior high school. She is a lot of fun, and loves books and reading in addition to everything else. I always wished I was keeping a list, but now I keep a list of books I want to read instead. Unlike I could have done in school, I keep it on my phone.

Yes and I like having lists I can refer to. I use the Any List app. I just started book lists last year when I started reading more. My lists are- Books Read 2025, Books Read 2026, and Books to Read. I just list the title and also a rating of 1-10 once read. One is rated Incomplete because I stopped and didn't finish it. My library delivers books so its easy to pick out one or more from my Books To Read list and order it online. Books to Read has over 50 books on the list, most from suggestions here!

NO but I wish I had started a list of what I read, what I started and didn't finish. Libby an online app thru most libraries, will tag ones you have read, but you have to scroll through thousands of books to see what you have read. I would use it for thinking about a book that I read a long time ago, really liked, but have no clue of name or author. Like trying to find an old friend.

My neighbor that is starting a little dementia has a paper list she takes to the library ( I take her) to look for more by a certain author, etc. As long as she can do that, she's not too far down the rabbit hole.

I do not keep a list of what I have read in any form, but my town library has a system of putting a slip of paper inside the back covers. This is supposed to be for patrons to rate the book (10 = be sure to read it, 1 = don't bother, lol). Not required, of course, but I always add my 2cents worth and leave a signature happy-face -- which informs my aging mental gymnastics that I did read the book. It is helpful to me!

Roxanna, the reader response slip is a nice idea!

I should keep a list of movies we have watched. We watch a lot of movies from the library, and too often I bring one home that DH says we saw. He doesn’t like to watch a movie twice unless it’s been awhile and it’s really good. I will watch some movies on a loop! But I know when we watch, zi’m only paying partial attention, listening but not looking much of the time.