May 2015 Bout of Books

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 11th and runs through Sunday, May 17th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 13 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I'm excited to take part in the Bout of Books in May! It's a great chance to concentrate on reading and keep caught up with all of my challenges!

Dewey's Read-a-thon April 2015

I'm excited for the April Read-a-Thon!

End of Event Meme:

Which hour was most daunting for you?

Hour 16 when I fell asleep!

Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?

I didn't get to it, but I wanted to get started on Harlan Coben's newest mystery.

Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?

Keep working on the Goodreads group experience.

What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?

The Goodreads Group!

How many books did you read?

I finished 2 and started others.

What were the names of the books you read?

God Help the Child and Queen Margot

Which book did you enjoy most?

God Help the Child

Which did you enjoy least?

none

If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?

na

How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?

Definitely - I'll be a reader

Mid-Event Survey:

1. What are you reading right now?

Queen Margot by Alexandre Dumas

2. How many books have you read so far?

Almost 2 completed, 1 long and 1 short

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?

The Bees by Laline Paull

4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?

No, just walking the dog, and I needed that for a stretch break!

5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?

How long I've been going and how focused on reading I've been this time.



Opening meme:

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

Fox Island near Tacoma in WA State

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?

God Help the Child by Toni Morrison

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

Popcorn!

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

I'm a retired high school librarian. I have a husband, two grown kids and 3 pets.

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?

I'm going to try short power naps this time because we were out late last night celebrating family April birthdays.

Novels:

Print:

God Help the Child by Toni Morrison

Audio:

Queen Margot by Alexandre Dumas
The Bees by Laline Paull

Short Stories:

Under the Banyan Tree by R K Narayan
Get in Trouble by Kelly Link

Bout of Books

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 5th and runs through Sunday, January 11th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 12 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I'm joining in the fun of the Bout of Books! Why not join me? 

Time Devoted to Reading

I'll be reading all week long and enjoying the post-holiday relaxation.

My Goals

• Finish at least 5 books.

Books to Read

• Finish Books in Progress and Books Due at the Library

Updates

Monday

Books Ongoing/In Progress: 
To the End of the Land by David Grossman
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
Demons by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Number of books I've completed today: 1
Total number of books I've read: 1
Book Completed: 
Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum

Tuesday

Books Ongoing/In Progress: 
To the End of the Land by David Grossman
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
Demons by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Number of books I've completed today: 1
Total number of books I've read: 2
Book Completed: 
Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson

Wednesday

Books Ongoing/In Progress: Today was all about reading from these three books:
To the End of the Land by David Grossman
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
Demons by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Number of books I've completed today: 0
Total number of books I've read: 2
Books Completed Today: 0

Thursday

Books Ongoing/In Progress: 
To the End of the Land by David Grossman
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
Demons by Fyodor Dostoyevsky 
First Impressions by Charlie Lovett
Number of books I've completed today: 0
Total number of books I've read: 2
Books Completed Today: 0

Friday

Books Ongoing/In Progress: 
To the End of the Land by David Grossman
Demons by Fyodor Dostoyevsky 
First Impressions by Charlie Lovett
Number of books I've completed today: 1
Total number of books I've read: 3
Books Completed:
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander

Saturday

Books Ongoing/In Progress: 
To the End of the Land by David Grossman
Demons by Fyodor Dostoyevsky 
First Impressions by Charlie Lovett 
One Pot Cookbook
Number of books I've completed today: 0
Total number of books I've read: 3
Books Completed Today:

Sunday

Books Ongoing/In Progress: 
To the End of the Land by David Grossman
Demons by Fyodor Dostoyevsky 
Number of books I've completed today: 2
Total number of books I've read: 5
All the Books Completed:
First Impressions by Charlie Lovett 
One Pot Cookbook
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson
Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum

Dewey End of Event

End of Event Meme:

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?

I went to sleep after hour 14, and so that one did me in. I did participate for 2 more hours, but I missed the first 2 hours, so 14 was my total.

2.Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?

I don't have a specific title, but I liked reading short stories because I was able to finish quite a few.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?

Clarify on the Goodreads group site that the official participation site is the website. Some people joined there, but didn't understand the website was the official site.

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?

The addition of the Goodreads Group

5. How many books did you read?

Parts of 5 books.

6. What were the names of the books you read?

Six Kinds of Sky, Magic for Beginners, Lisette's List, The Hurricane Sisters, Afterworlds

7. Which book did you enjoy most?

No favorite

8. Which did you enjoy least?

I liked them all

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, as a reader.

Dewey's Read-a-Thon October 18

Opening Meme:

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

I'm reading from Fox Island, WA

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?

Lisette's List by Susan Vreeland

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

Popcorn

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

I'm a just retired high school librarian. I'm frustrated to be late to the party, but my dog had a weird reaction to some medicine and literally paced until midnight, so now I'm up and at it!

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?

Well, I've never started late before, so I'm not going to change anything else and just get caught up and read as much as I can!

I'm Ready for April 26th!

I have some great books planned:

In the Middle of the Night by Robert Cormier

Finish: Completed

A Theft of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan

Finish: a chapter read

The Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Finish: Completed

Strange Pilgrims by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Finish 2-3 stories: 2 read

If Ever I Return, Pretty Peggy-O by Sharyn McCrumb

Finish: about 100 pages read

Juliet by Anne Fortier 

Listen to at least 3 hours: Completed

The War of the End of the World by Mario Vargas Llosa

Read at least 100 pages: not completed

End of Event Meme:

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? Hour 16: I made it straight through to hour 16 without sleeping, got halfway through and went to sleep. i usually get up again and finish the last couple of hours, but not this time:(
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? Short thrillers by Robert Cormier
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? I had trouble with scripts not loading on my computer. Other than that, it was awesome!
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? Cheerleading, Google forms
5. How many books did you read? Finished two and read from 4 others
6. What were the names of the books you read? see above
7. Which book did you enjoy most? The Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor
8. Which did you enjoy least? none
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, as a participant

Mid-Event Survey
 
1. What are you reading right now?
If Ever I Return, Pretty Peggy-O by Sharyn McCrumb 
2. How many books have you read so far?
I've finished 2(which were in progress) and read parts of 3 others
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?
A Theft of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan 
4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day?
No, I was home anyway today
5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?
I did have to text with some friends to help with a crisis, but I just read in between
6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?
How fast it's going!
7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
No, but I really loved the pre-posts and I like the Google forms
8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year?
Not sure. I usually change my ways each time. I'm not doing many mini-challenges this time, so I might add more back in.
9. Are you getting tired yet?
Not terribly
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?
I try not to get too distracted by the other activities. I enjoyed being close to finishing a couple of books this time.

Intro Meme

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?
Gig Harbor, WA
2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?
Strange Pilgrims
3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?
Chocolate!
4) Tell us a little something about yourself!
I'm a high school librarian:) about to retire :)
5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?
Have more snacks.

Retirement and Reading

After 38 years teaching, I am about to experience retired life! I'm going to keep track of my Goodreads challenges and participate in Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon here, and that's about all.