October 9, 2010

End of Event Meme

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? I had the most trouble around hour 8 because I hadn’t had much sleep and my night energy hadn’t kicked in.
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? For me, it’s mostly mysteries or light romance.
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
5. How many books did you read? 3-1/2
6. What were the names of the books you read? Wait for Marcy, Bridge of Birds, The Man Who Loved Jane Austen, part of The Search
7. Which book did you enjoy most? Bridge of Birds
8. Which did you enjoy least? I enjoyed all of them; none felt like work
9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? –
10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? Yes, absolutely. As a Reader but I might try to host a challenge and I will donate books

 Final Update

Title of book(s) read since last update: working on The Search
Number of books read since you started: 3-1/2
Pages read since last update: 55
Running total of pages read since you started:
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 2 hr
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 16-1/2 hr.
Mini-challenges completed: Character Photo; Sidekick

Hour 21: Update

Title of book(s) read since last update: 1
Number of books read since you started: 3-1/3
Pages read since last update: 291
Running total of pages read since you started: 857
Amount of time spent reading since last update:  4-1/2
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 13-1/2

Hour 21: Character Photo Mini Challenge

From At Home With Books

This photo is from Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughheart. The three cranes represent the 3 handmaidens of the Princess of Birds.

Ticking Over to Hour 16

Well, I was planning to start The Search by Nora Roberts, but thought I’d have a little nibble on The Man Who Loved Jane Austen. Turns out I might have to make a meal of it.

Entering Hour 15: Update

Title of book(s) read since last update: Bridge of Birds (last 87 pages), Half Magic
Number of books read since you started: 2-1/3
Pages read since last update: 216
Running total of pages read since you started: 564
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 4-1/2 hr
Running total of time spent reading since you started:
Mini-challenges completed: Pets, Mid-Event Meme,

Mid-Event Meme

Mid-Event Survey:

1. What are you reading right now? finishing up Half Magic

2. How many books have you read so far? Finishing up #3

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? a new Norah Roberts
4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day? Not really, just removed myself from the online flow, mostly.

5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those? Just a few; my sister’s birthday today, so some phone time; cleaning up cat barf, occasional Twitter and email detours. The delays have mostly been of my own making.

6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? How slowly my reading is going.
7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? I’d suggest making the sign-up page separate and right at the top of a page. I actually had to hunt for it — scrolled past it a couple of times once I figured out what page it was on. It also will be much easier to link to for promotion purposes.

8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year? Well, I said this last year and didn’t do it, but be more organized about assembling a stack of books ahead of time. And sleep more before the event.

9. Are you getting tired yet? I am a little tired but actually think I’m getting my stride now. I only got about 3 hours sleep so that was a problem earlier. But I’m a night person, so even when I’m tired I do better at night.

10. Do you have any tips for other Readers or Cheerleaders, something you think is working well for you that others may not have discovered? No, because it seems to me that everyone else is much more organized!

Pom Poms

There was a challenge I overlooked: to write a little cheer (as in pom poms) for fellow R-a-T participants. I didn’t get around to it, but if I had, I might have entered something short like this:

Read a book,
Check it off.
Reward yourself
With a cup of coff (ee).

Perhaps this is why I didn’t enter.

Hour 10 Challenge: Pets

From Lynnes Book Reviews

My cat Luna thinks she knows how to read. She definitely likes books. For a while she napped on The Pillowbook of Sei Shonagon while dreaming of Bridge of Birds.

Favorite pet book since I was a child: Pluto Pup Goes to Sea.

Pluto placed paws preemptively ‘pon peeing puppies pouncing ‘pon petulant ponies, possibly preventing pandemonium.

I was also quite fond of Charlotte’s Web.

Charlotte collected citronella candles, carefully controlling calamitously creeping centipedes.

Entering Hour 8: Update

Well, I’m definitely spending a lot of time on non-reading tasks…

Title of book(s) read since last update: Wait for Marcy; working on Bridge of Birds
Number of books read since you started: 1+
Pages read since last update: 248
Running total of pages read since you started:
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 4hr 20 min
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 4 hr 20 min
Mini-challenges completed: Hour 1 Meme; Back-in-the-Day Children’s Book Mini-Challenge; Six Word Celebration; {Indie}pendent Books Mini Challenge; Show Me the Books
Other participants you’ve visited: Deepali, Estella’s Revenge,
Prize you’ve won:

 

Show Me the Books Mini Challenge

 From My Reading Room

Three of the many book spots in my house.

 

Indie Pride Mini Challenge

From {Indie}pendent Books

The Man Who Loved Jane Austen, Kensington Books; The Stumpwork Robe, YouWriteOn;
Wait for Marcy, Image Cascade.

Mini-Challenge: Six Word Celebration!

From Estella’s Revenge

Cat purring, pillows fluffed, book open.

Back in the Day Children’s Book Mini  Challenge

I read all the time when I was a kid and there were so many favorites. Girl series books included Nancy Drew, Judy Bolton, Dana Girls, Trixie Belden, Polly French… I also loved Tom Swift, but not the Hardy Boys, for some reason. Nesbit’s books, of course, and Edward Eager. I have one of my favorite Edward Eager books in the stack: Half Magic (for a reread challenge and for sheer pleasure). One of my favorites that’s difficult to find is Loretta Mason Potts by Margaret Chase. I could go on, but I’m supposed to be reading books, not writing them!

 

 

 

Oh, nearly forgot to do the Hour 1 Meme!

1.  I’m reading from home, today, currently ensconced on the bed with purring cat.
2. Three things about me: (1) The April 2009 Read-a-Thon, my first, was also the catalyst for me starting a blog. (2) I’m an avid Squidoo lensmaster. (3) The combination of blogging and Squidoo have helped me conquer my fear of writing to the point that I now enjoy it.  
3. My stack: Basically, my whole house is my stack. I have some books set aside to fulfill other reading challenges, but it all depends on my mood.
4. No particular goals except to enjoy the experience and to participate as fully as possible.
5. This is my second read-a-thon and my best suggestion is to have some old favorites that will be quick reads as well as a new book by a favorite author whose work makes you HAVE to turn pages.

 

A Couple of Buttons I Did – Up for Grabs

    

 

Beginning of Hour 3

Taking a break after 1-1/2 hours of reading (didn’t start until 8:30). Wait for Marcy, the first in this 4-book series by Rosamund Du Jardin, was a favorite of mine in middle school (well, it was called Junior High when I was there). It was written in 1950 and reflects a late-1940s sensibility. It’s fun to realize just how much things have changed. It was a much simpler time. These stories definitely were fairy tales and I ate them up. This one still makes me smile. I have the other 3 in the series but probably won’t read them for Read-a-Thon. Better spread out, I think.

Pre-Read-a-Thon

Okay. A little over 8 hours from now I’ll be starting Dewey’s Read-a-Thon: a 24-hour event of reading, blogging, and participating in challenges. 

This will be my 2nd Read-a-Thon. My first was in April 2009 and it was the impetus for be setting up this blog. I spent a lot of time during that Read-a-thon just trying to figure out how to post! 

Everything I do for this Read-a-Thon will go on this page — however much or little that turns out to be. I have a stack of books to read and I have a blog on which to record my progress. Because WordPress is not set up to allow individual posts on sub-pages, this is going to be one long page. I’ll attempt to keep the most current entry at the top.

I admit that my attention is somewhat divided this time. I’m immersed in my Squidoo lensmaking and I am a SquidAngel this month so I’m supposed to be reading and reviewing lenses daily. Oh. Wait. I wonder if that counts? Better go read the rules, because there’s nothing that makes me happier than getting a two-fer. Back around 8 am.