Tag Archives: readathon

readathon, reading challenges, TBR

24 in 48 Readathon: TBR and Game Plan

4 Comments

IMG_2035

It’s time for the 24 in 48 Readathon again!! *bookish party* You can sign up and get the details here: https://24in48.com/

I participated in #24in48 for the first time this winter and really enjoyed it; 24 in 48 is like a slightly extended and more flexible version of Dewey’s and it’s very low-pressure. The goal is to read for 24 hours within a 48-hour period, but really, you just read as much as you can and enjoy all of the social aspects of the challenge. I actually did pretty well last time; despite the fact that I entered the readathon on a whim, I finished The Just City by Jo Walton and read about 400 pages of The Wise Man’s Fear. You can find my post from last time here: https://beachesandbooks.wordpress.com/2016/01/19/24-in-48-reading-challenge/.

#24in48 runs from July 23-24, which has the makings of a great bookish weekend. This time around (of course) I have some obstacles: I’ll be working Saturday morning, and Saturday afternoon I have concert tickets to see several bands at a summer music festival. (Mostly I’m going to see AWOLNATION; I love them and have never seen them live.) So I’m planning on fitting in as much reading as I can Saturday evening and Sunday.

I tried to be strategic with my TBR stack by picking mostly shorter books, graphic novels, and YA, which seem to work better for me during readathons. I also threw in a of standalone short story that I have on my Kindle. My goal is to finish at least 3 of these during the weekend, but I think that depending on my choices I can definitely exceed that goal. One of the things I like about readathons is that if I don’t finish certain books during a given challenge, I carry them over to the next one. So the books I don’t finish here will likely be on my TBR for the next Bout of Books in August 🙂

Saga, Volume 6Six Months, Three DaysThe Complete PersepolisBinti (Binti, #1)Second StarEleanor & ParkBitch Planet, Vol. 1: Extraordinary Machinemilk and honey

So here’s what I’m going to attempt to read during the Readathon, ranked from most to least likely to actually read them:

Saga, Volume 6 by Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples – if nothing else, this is the book I will finish during #24in48. Saga is the only graphic novel series that I follow regularly; I love its heart and creativity. Luckily, I was first in line to put a hold on this at my library, so I snapped it right up.

Six Months, Three Days by Charlie Jane Anders – Anders is the author of All the Birds in the Sky (which I read earlier this year) and the former editor of io9.com, one of my favorite sites. This is her Hugo-award-winning novelette that I broke down and bought on ebook after the price finally dropped. It’s very short and about two people who can both see the future, but in different ways.

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor – for some reason, they do not have this novella at my library, or I’d have already read it. I found it on BookOutlet.com, and it finally arrived today 🙂 It’s very tiny, which means very doable for the readathon. It won the Nebula and was nominated for both the Hugo and Locus awards, and it sounds like science fiction with a focus on interactions between diverse societies, which is my preferred type of scifi.

Second Star by Alyssa B. Sheinmel – So I used to be a big fan of the TV show Once Upon a Time, and during the Neverland season I started searching for Peter Pan-inspired YA to read. I stumbled upon Unhooked, which I wasn’t able to get into but may try again another time, and Second Star, which sounds like a retelling where all of the Peter Pan characters are surfers and there is a love triangle. I am really interested to see how the author pulls this off; it could either be great or really terrible.

Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur – this is a poetry collection that’s been getting a ton of buzz; I was inspired to snag this at Barnes&Noble after someone posted one of the poems on Bookstagram. The poems are very short yet full of emotion, which I like.

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi – I actually saw the movie version of this graphic novel a few years ago (in French, in college, at an indie movie theater. It was a very hipster time for me.) or I probably would have read it sooner. It’s about a girl growing up in Iran during the revolution, and the story was so well told in the movie that I felt I wanted another look.

Bitch Planet by Kelly Sue DeConnick – another graphic novel! I may or may not be in a graphic novel mood during #24in48, so we’ll see how many of these I end up reading. I keep hearing about this on different blogs; it’s a dystopian, feminist graphic novel set in a prison for noncompliant women.

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell – this is the only Rainbow Rowell book I have not read yet; I’ve been avoiding it because realistic YA isn’t usually my thing. But Rainbow Rowell is wonderful, and I’ve liked every book she’s written so far, even when I thought I wouldn’t (I thought I’d be really bored by Landline, but it was actually very sweet). Not sure if I’ll have time to get to this during the challenge; it may end up being a Bout of Books read instead, but it’s definitely happening this year.

 

I can’t wait to jump into all of these! I’m tempted to start reading some of them now, but I’m going to resist. Is anyone else participating in #24in48??? Feel free to link to your TBRs!

 

Book Challenges, bout of books, readathon, reading challenges, Reading Recaps

Bout of Books Day 7 Updates and Wrap-Up

1 Comment

IMG_1699

 

Bout of Books is over! But apparently the next one is August 22nd to the 28th, which seems very soon, so I’m OK with it. My Bout of Books didn’t go exactly as predicted, but I had a really good time and read some awesome books.

 

q5ighFP

The weirdest thing for me about the reading challenge was how much audiobook time I got in. I’ve posted before about how I really struggle with paying attention to audiobooks, but I think I’ve finally found my niche–nonfiction. For whatever reason, it’s much easier for me to pay attention to nonfiction than it is to follow a storyline of a novel. I finished 2 audiobooks this week and started a third, which is crazy for me, as I usually get through one a month at most. I also was really surprised that I only read a little bit of A Court of Mist and Fury; I had really expected to either binge-read it prior to the start of Bout of Books or have it consume my readathon.

First, here are my Day 7 updates:

Books finished: Not That Kind of Girl, My Brilliant Friend

Books started: Citizen: An American Lyric, The Story of a New Name

Pages read: 107 pages of My Brilliant Friend, 18 pages of The Story of a New Name

Audiobook time: 1 hour of Not That Kind of Girl, 43 minutes of Citizen

Not bad for the last day!

 

And here are my overall Bout of Books stats:

Books completed: 4

  • Death My Own Way by Michael S. A. Graziano – 4 stars
  • Notorious RBG by Irin Carmon and Shana Kznizhnik – 3 stars
  • Not That Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham – 3 stars
  • My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante – 5 stars

Death My Own Way

Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned"

My Brilliant Friend (The Neapolitan Novels, #1)

Books read, but not finished: 3

A Court of Mist and Fury (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #2)

Citizen: An American Lyric

The Story of a New Name (The Neapolitan Novels #2)

Favorite book I read: My Brilliant Friend, which became my 4th 5-star read this year. Seriously, I know I keep talking about it, but you all really need to read it. Then we can talk about it. Especially the ending because OH MY GOD.

Total pages read: 471 pages

Total audiobook time: 9 hours and 38 minutes (if my math is right?)

 

I probably could have read more, but work has been super crazy and I’m very happy with the amount and quality of reading that I got done. The most exciting thing for me is that I’ve been reading books that I’m really loving instead of wasting my time on books that are only OK. I can’t wait for the next Bout of Books, but I also can’t wait to get back into all of the fantastic books I’m reading right now, which is a very good feeling 🙂

 

How did everyone’s Bout of Books go??

Book Challenges, bout of books, Currently Reading, reading challenges, Uncategorized

Bout of Books Updates: Days 4, 5, and 6

4 Comments

IMG_1689

I may not be reading quite as many books as predicted during this Bout of Books, but the important thing is that I’m absolutely loving all of the books I’ve been reading. And that’s rare for me, because I’m picky! In the last few days, I’ve finished the audiobook I was listening to, Notorious RBG by Irin Carmon and Shana Khnizhnik, and was both inspired and blown away by the life of the Supreme Court justice. I started a new audiobook, Not That Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham (apparently nonfiction has really been working for me in audiobooks!) and went in with low expectations which were totally exceeded. I do watch Girls, but find it inconsistent, with some episodes that are amazing and seem to be making such great insights into twenty-something life, and other episodes that are really unenjoyable.I also thought that Lena Dunham was way too young to be writing a memoir. But Lena’s memoir is hilarious and self-aware, and I love that she reads it herself.

My Brilliant Friend (The Neapolitan Novels, #1)

My main physical book is still My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, and it is still so good and immersive. I’ve been wanting to read it slowly and savor it, even though there are still 3 other books in the series; at the same time I can’t wait to see where the story goes next. I’ve also started obnoxiously promoting this book to everyone I talk to and insisting that they read it immediately.

So here’s my reading breakdown: (I’ve never really counted the time/pages of reading before, it’s interesting to see what I can get done in a week)

Day 4:

Books finished: Notorious RBG

Books started: Not That Kind of Girl

Pages read: 27 pages of My Brilliant Friend

Audiobook time: 45 minutes of Notorious RBG and 70 minutes of Not That Kind of Girl

Day 5:

Pages read: 35 pages of My Brilliant Friend

Audiobook time: 3 hours of Not That Kind of Girl

Day 6:

Audiobook time: 1 hour of Not That Kind of Girl

Mini-Challenge: Freaky Bout of Books for Friday the 13th

 

IMG_1694

As you can see, the bunnies are having a great time reading a lot of vampire literature. I hope everyone is enjoying their Bout of Books!

Book Challenges, bout of books, Currently Reading, readathon, reading challenges, Reading Recaps

Bout of Books Day 3 Updates & Mini-Challenge

2 Comments

IMG_1680

I had a really wonderful Day 3 of Bout of Books – Wednesday is my day off from work, so I was able to wake up semi-late and read in bed for awhile. After working out and getting some things done around my apartment, I walked down to the river near where I live and read My Brilliant Friend while enjoying the sunshine. I can’t believe it was 75 degrees out today! Then I did even more reading this evening. I have to say that I am LOVING My Brilliant Friend. I really wish I hadn’t resisted reading it for so long; I was clearly being silly about not reading it and should have looked into it sooner. But at least I’m reading it now and discovering its insanely well-crafted storytelling (and I caved and bought book 2 in the quartet, The Story of a New Name, so that I can jump in once I’ve finished book 1). I am also very gradually savoring A Court of Mist and Fury; I don’t want to finish it too fast and have it be over with, as it’s a perfect guilty pleasure read.

 

IMG_1681

 

Day 3 Updates:

Books finished: 0

Books started: 0

Pages read:

  • 101 pages of My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
  • 56 pages of A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

Audiobook time: 45 minutes of Notorious RBG

Mini-Challenge: 5 Favorites. I chose to display my five favorite science fiction books (and now I feel like I should be doing more of this! Stay tuned for my top 5 fantasy books, etc).

 

IMG_1686

 

I hope everyone is having an awesome Bout of Books! For more info, you can check out the site here: http://boutofbooks.blogspot.com/

Book Challenges, Book Recommendations, bout of books, Currently Reading, reading challenges

Bout of Books Days 1&2 Updates

Leave a comment

q5ighFP

 

I love reading challenges. I find they inspire me to read even more than normal, and I like the feeling of picking book options and going with whatever calls to me the most. I also get very Instagram-obsessed during these challenges because I love seeing what other people are reading. So far, days 1&2 of Bout of Books have been great, but the amount of reading I’ve done isn’t quite where I’d wanted it to be. It’s a good thing there’s still 5 days left 🙂 I ended up totally abandoning where I thought I’d go (of course) and not reading any of A Court of Mist and Fury OR My Brilliant Friend during the first two days; instead, I read a short novel and did some audiobooking.

Here’s where I stand at the end of Day 2:

Books finished: 1

What was I reading? Death My Own Way by Michael Graziano and Notorious RBG by Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik (audiobok)

Pages Read: 127

Audiobook time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Mini-Challenges: 1

I participated in the #shelfieforboutofbooks challenges and posted a shelfie of my more organized bookshelf (my other bookshelf is not color-coordinated and the rest of my books are currently stacked on my breakfast bar and in piles in the closet, but this shelf makes me look super organized).

 

IMG_1675

Mini-Review: Death My Own Way by Michael Graziano

This was a very short, philosophical novel about life, death, and art. The premise is that a man with terminal cancer sheds his clothes and former life for an anonymous escape through Central Park; he proceeds to have various encounters that shape his thoughts in different ways. As a reader, you become immersed in the book very quickly, and it’s a good book to read in one sitting. It’s well-written and thought-provoking without being pedantic; in addition to its thoughtfulness, the book is very self-aware and there is a lot of humor. I’d definitely recommend this book; it would actually be perfect for the #Weirdathon!

 

IMG_1677

 

How is everyone enjoying Bout of Books so far??

Book Challenges, bout of books, readathon, reading challenges, TBR, Uncategorized

Bout of Books Starts Tomorrow!! Here are my Thoughts and TBR…

1 Comment

IMG_1671

Bout of Books starts tomorrow! Since the weeklong readathon is less strict compared to Dewey’s, I’ve been thinking about how my reading this week will be different than normal. I typically read a decent amount in any given week, but I’d like to increase my amount of reading during the Readathon by switching up a few things:

-Listening to audiobooks during all of my driving time (instead of only occasionally)

-Reading for at least 2 hours every day (I’d like to do more than that for most of the days, but some might be busier than others and I tend to get out of work pretty late)

-Finishing at least 3 books (again, I think I can do more, but I’ll set a low goal for now)

-Posting frequent blogging updates on my progress

-Participating in as many of the mini-challenges as I can

-Bookstagramming up a storm!

 

q5ighFP

As far as my TBR goes, I’m currently in the middle of two books that I’m absolutely loving: My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas (which is VERY Rhysand-centric, fyi, for people who were bored by the Tamlin love story in book 1). I figure that this Readathon could go one of two ways: either I’ll focus so hard on those two books that they’re all I’ll be reading until I finish both and dive into a major double book hangover, or I’ll decide that I love them so much that I need to savor them and only read a little each day, in which case I’ll start something new sooner rather than later.

The other thing I’m thinking is that I really, really want to stick to my physical TBR shelf to keep up with the May #SmashYourStack challenge, but if I hit the aforementioned dreaded double book hangover I may hit the library or go in an ebook direction. Who knows! I’m terrible at sticking to TBRs, but I love to make them anyways.

Also! If I read 6 books (ambitious, for sure) I will beat my current record of 5 books from the last Bout of Books in January. So, that probably won’t happen.

I’m looking at reading these 5 books from my physical TBR shelf:

A Court of Mist and Fury (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #2)My Brilliant Friend (The Neapolitan Novels, #1)The Girl Wakes: StoriesDeath My Own WayStone Mattress: Nine Wicked Tales

As well as these audiobooks: I’m listening to Notorious RBG right now and really enjoying it but I think I’ll need a backup audiobook too in case I finish.

Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader GinsburgNot That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned"

 

 

Who else is participating?? I’d love to see your TBRs!

Book Challenges, bout of books, readathon, reading challenges

Can’t Wait for the Bout of Books Readathon!

1 Comment

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 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th 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 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

Dewey’s 24-hour Readathon has just ended, and although it was fantastic, I can’t help but wish that it was longer…and then I remembered that Bout of Books starts in 2 weeks!

I participated in Bout of Books for the first time in January (Here’s my wrap-up post: https://beachesandbooks.wordpress.com/2016/01/12/bout-of-books-wrap-up/) and loved it! The week-long challenge gave me plenty of time to read, but still left flexibility for reading on a busy schedule. The extra time also gave me more of an opportunity to participate in mini-challenges, something I never seem to have the time or inclination for during Dewey’s. Last time during Bout of Books, I finished 5 books and started 2, and, most importantly, felt completely immersed in my reading each night as a fantastic break.

I’ve already started brainstorming my TBR list, and plan to try to beat my previous record by reading 6 books this time. If possible, I’d like to read as much as possible from my physical TBR, although I always end up too tempted by the library during reading challenges. I can always dream!

Is anyone else participating in Bout of Books??

Book Challenges, readathon, reading challenges

Dewey’s Readathon Wrap-Up!

1 Comment

IMG_1635

The Readathon is over! I had an amazing time while I was Readathoning, even though work got in the way a lot more than I had wanted it to 😦

The good: I felt so relaxed settling down to read and focusing on a few short books that I’ve been eyeing for awhile now. I alternated reading with exploring different blogs and checking out gorgeous Instagram posts, and it was the perfect combination. I also treated myself to some Thai food and hot chocolate (not at the same time). I posted a lot on Instagram and managed to put up a few progress updates on this blog as well. It’s hard to describe how peaceful the Readathon made me feel; it gives me a solid excuse to totally abandon the rest of the world for books for a little while.

The bad: I had to work the morning of the Readathon, which I knew about (and attempted to escape from) ahead of time, and I was also on call all weekend. What I didn’t expect was to field several calls during the day and to get called back into work around midnight, which took up a good two hours of reading time and totally threw me off my game. I was going strong with a great book when I got the call, and when I got back home I was too distracted to fully commit to Readathoning the way I had been doing earlier. I was also really exhausted because I only got about 2 hours of sleep before. I was having a harder time focusing on books than I anticipated because I was so sleepy and read a lot less than I thought I would. So although the Readathon in general was awesome, it was bad timing for me this year.

Here’s my post-Readathon survey!

Which hour was most daunting for you?

1:30 a.m. to 2:30 a.m. I ended up getting called into work late last night, and when I got back I had totally lost my reading focus–I was in the middle of A History of Glitter and Blood when I left and had trouble getting back into the zone when I got back. I ended up needing to switch to my audiobook.

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

I think faster-paced, absorbing books are best for the Readathon. Short books work well too. Here are some that I didn’t use for the Readathon but wish that I had:

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire, Nimona by Noelle Stevenson, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, anything by Ilona Andrews, Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, The Rook by Daniel O’Malley, Texts from Jane Eyre by Mallory Ortberg (this would be literally perfect, maybe I’ll reread it for next Readathon! It’s a short read and hilarious)

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

No! I thought it was fantastic. Everyone was so engaged with reading and talking books.

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

All of it?

How many books did you read?

I finished 3 short books/graphic novels, read a decent chunk of a YA novel, and listened to about 3 hours of my audiobook.

What were the names of the books you read?

Finished:

Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell

IMG_1617

Through the Woods by Emily Caroll

IMG_1630

Fables, Volume 1: Legends in Exile by Bill Willingham

Read part of:

A History of Glitter and Blood by Hannah Moskowitz

IMG_1633

Yes, Chef by Marcus Samuelsson

IMG_1625

Which book did you enjoy most?

I loved Kindred Spirits–it was a perfect Readathon read. Quick, very cute, and nerdy in a great way. I also am getting really drawn into the world of A History of Glitter and Blood. It’s YA but definitely skews older–it deals heavily with teen prostitution and dismemberment is another key theme. It’s a very dark story about fairies told in an atypical way.

Which did you enjoy least?

Fables. Unfortunately, it just didn’t work that well for me. I love anything fairytale-related, but it just didn’t feel original enough to me. I’m not in love with detective-type formats in general; it’s just not my genre.

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

I’m already getting excited for the next Readathon on October 22nd!!! For next time, I’m planning on taking off work for sure instead of trying to switch shifts so that I don’t run into the issues I had this time around. I might try to incorporate a spooky/horror theme for the season.

So, another awesome Readathon ends! Now I’m getting pumped for Bout of Books, a week-long reading challenge that lasts from May 9-15. If you’re in the middle of a Readathon hangover, you might want to check it out (http://boutofbooks.blogspot.com/).

 

How did everyone else’s Readathons go? I can’t wait to check out all of your blog posts!

Book Challenges, readathon, reading challenges, Reading Recaps

Dewey’s 24-Hour Readathon: Halfway Update

2 Comments

DEWEYs

Halfway through the Readathon! Although it doesn’t really feel that way, since I started so late. I feel like Dewey’s came at a great time this year, and I love the feeling of letting everything fall away for a certain number of hours and just focusing on bookishness.

Here are my responses to the mid-readathon survey!

1. What are you reading right now?

I’m currently reading A History of Glitter and Blood by Hannah Moskowitz, which is turning out to be a very dark, fairy-focused YA novel set before/during/after a violent conflict between fairies, gnomes, and another group of beings called “tightropers.” It’s written in an interesting way–the “author” keeps jumping in and commenting on how badly they’re telling the story in between the third person narration, and there are excerpts from other books made to look like they’ve been taped in. I really like the style and dark tone. Don’t let the sparkles fool you on this one.

A History of Glitter and Blood
2. How many books have you read so far?

I’ve finished 3 so far! All were shorter books, which I think I needed due to how sleepy I am. But I’ve also listened to about 1.5 hours of my audiobook and read the first few chapters of A History of Glitter and Blood. Here’s what I’ve read:

Kindred Spirits

Through the Woods

Fables, Vol. 1: Legends in Exile
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?

I’m looking forward to getting deeper into A History of Glitter and Blood, which I’d ideally like to finish during the Readathon. I’m also planning on reading some of Mr. Splitfoot, which I’m about 50 pages into but haven’t read any of during the Readathon so far. I may also pick up Volume 2 of Fables to switch it up. And definitely more audiobooking with Yes, Chef.
4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?

I went into the Readathon knowing that I’d be missing out on the first 5-6 hours due to work and that I would probably get interruptions since I’m on call tonight, so I guess I dealt with them by being prepared and planning on just enjoying the time that I do have to participate! It’s still been a huge chunk of uninterrupted reading time for me and it’s been awesome.
5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?

I was planning on devoting most of my time to full-length books, but it’s turned out that I’ve read one short novella and 2 graphic novels. But I also feel like that’s helped me keep my momentum going. Also, I haven’t eaten any of my Readathon snacks! (Instead I ate lots of Thai food. No regrets there).

 

How has everyone’s Readathon been going???

Book Challenges, Currently Reading, readathon, reading challenges

Dewey’s Readathon Update #1: Hour 8

2 Comments

DEWEYs

Hour: 8

Books finished: 2

Time spent reading: 3 hours (I was at work for 5 of the hours!)

So far, the Readathon is off to a great start, despite some setbacks! Namely, my insomniac tendencies decided to go crazy last night, and I only got a few hours’ sleep before I had to go to work this morning. However, I got a full hour of audiobook time in during my commute (Yes, Chef is heating up–it’s now the early ’90’s and Marcus Samuelsson is in New York City for the first time), grabbed some Thai food on the way home, and started hardcore Readathoning pretty much immediately. Now my main fear is falling asleep. I don’t want to waste valuable Readathon time napping!

 

IMG_1617

The first book I finished for the Readathon was Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell (pictured here with the tiniest, cutest plant in the world that I found at Trader Joe’s). It was sweet and Rainbow Rowell-ish, and made me want to watch the new Star Wars movie for the third time. Not today, though! Today is devoted to the Readathon.

Through the Woods

And I just finished my second book of the Readathon, a graphic novel called Through the Woods by Emily Caroll. I went in with low expectations but ended up extremely impressed by the gorgeous artwork and old-fashioned vibe of the five horror stories. I would not, however, call this a scary book. Just a very pretty and interesting one.

 

How is everyone’s Readathon going so far???