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The 10 most popular posts of 2016

I love the time when one year ends and another begins, so I can indulge my inner nerd with all the recaps of the year past and goals and projections for the year to come. (This can’t be just me, right?)

Today I’m sharing the 10 most popular posts of 2016, as determined by pure numbers. These are the 10 posts that garnered the most pageviews during the calendar year beginning January 1, in order, most to least.

The internet is a funny place. It’s always interesting to see what ends up on this list, because “popular” doesn’t mean “best.” These aren’t necessarily my favorite posts, or yours. Two of them weren’t even published this year.

Some of these posts did well because you loved and shared them; some are here because facebook kept showing it to people, or it got pinned like crazy, or (for reasons I don’t understand) they ranked high in Google search.

Without further adieu … the most popular posts of 2016, in order:

1. 13 books everyone will be talking about this summer. Your guide to the season’s certain bestsellers, to help you decide if they’re right for you.

2. 9 bestsellers actually worth the hype. Just because a book is a bestseller, that doesn’t mean it’s any good. These 9 titles are actually worth the hype.

3. 7 books that will make you a better human. Have you ever read a book and thought the world would be a better place if EVERYONE read this?  These 7 books made me think exactly that.

4. 9 books you should have read in high school that are totally worth reading nowIf you tend to get a little panicky when you consider all the books you feel like you should have read by now, take heart: you’ll get more out of reading these novels now than you ever would have gotten out of them in high school.

5. The ten-item wardrobe. Some people think this topic is superficial, but we all have to get dressed. If you put some thought and organization into this daily task, you can completely change your life.

6. 6 books I had to be talked into reading (that I’m so very glad I read). Here are six examples of wonderful books I nearly didn’t read because I avoided them for stupid, shallow reasons. I’m sharing them in hopes that YOU won’t make the same mistake.

7. The 2016 Reading ChallengeDevoted readers and aspiring readers: this list is for you if you love to read (or want to read more) but don’t believe reading is a competitive sport. (See the new 2017 Reading Challenge right here.)

8. 13 things I’ve learned in 30 months of Stitch Fix (aka my best Stitch Fix tips). 30-something fixes later, these are my best tips for getting the most out of Stitch Fix.

9. The 2016 Summer Reading GuideMy hand-picked top reads for the season (and the year). I’ve read every book in it, front to back, and can tell you why each title may or may not be the right book for YOU. Amazon has millions of books, your local bookstore has thousands, but this guide has just 30 handpicked titles—-that’s 5 books each over 6 categories–so you can bypass the duds and go straight to the good stuff.

 

10. 20 life-changing nonfiction books you can finish in a dayThese twenty slim nonfiction works all run 200 pages or less, and deliver a lot of bang for the buck. Most readers can knock one of these off in an afternoon, but will think about what they read between the covers for weeks, months, even years after they finish.

I’ll share my favorite posts here soon. If 2016 is anything like previous years, there won’t be much—if any—overlap between the two lists. Funny how that works, huh?

11 comments

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  1. Jamie says:

    I think it goes to show that your readers like lists and numbers. Start writing all your posts in numbered, bullet point format and watch your readership SOAR! Hahaha 😉

  2. Susan in TX says:

    Definitely shows that the readers are your biggest fans! 🙂 And, no, you are definitely not the only one — I love all the end of year stats related to my reading that I spend way too long cranking out at this time of year! 😉

    • JessB says:

      It should actually be ‘without further ado’, meaning without any more trouble, or without any more talking.
      ‘Without further adieu’ means without further goodbye, and doesn’t make any sense! But I think it’s a common autocorrect mistake.
      So sorry to point this out, Anne! Just a little error in a really interesting post.

        • JessB says:

          Oh gosh Anne, I’m sorry! I do hate pointing out little errors in fantastic posts, it does seem so petty!
          I suppose you could consider it a credit to you? That we enjoy your posts so much, we read them very closely?

  3. Seems like the numbered lists do well! And I’m like you – love looking at my blog’s stats at year-end, setting goals, etc and am doing that now.

    It is funny (and random) to see which posts get the pageviews vs. your favorites. I also share my most commented on posts and those are very different from the ones with the most pageviews. But, I think a good mix of these different kinds of posts makes for a good blog!

    Happy New Year!

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