Saturday, April 26, 2014

Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon: Part I (Hours 0-10)


Reading is in progress!! I'm participating in Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon today, so a lot of reading is going to be happening. (If you're looking for Saturday's A to Z post, it will be posted right below this one...W is for Wild Animal Hand Puppets!)

Unlike my last read-a-thon, this one takes part all in one day. That means just one post. It's going to get crazy. I'll be updating this post throughout the Read-a-Thon as I complete books, participate in mini-challenges (I won't be doing them all), and just have a darned good time. I'll also be on Twitter, chatting away. So if you're reading this before mid-morning on April 27th, you'll want to check back for updates. It's bound to be a long post...hang in there!


I'm giving myself a short set of goals for the day. Since I haven't done a 24 hour read-a-thon before, I'm not sure how I'll do. I'm starting with a goal of three completed books. Here's what's on deck:

1. Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares
2. Blackbird by Melanie Schulz
3. Acts of Contrition by Jennifer Handford

I'll be taking breaks every hour or two to update the blog, grab snacks, and do all the good stuff that comes up during the day. Other than that...I'll be camped out in my bedroom reading away.

The mini challenges will be titled in order below...interrupted by hourly updates on my reading progress. Let's go!!

Hour Zero:
Current Stats 
Currently Reading: Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares (currently on page 66 of 236).

Total Pages Read: 0
Total Books Finished: 0
(Note: Since I'm not getting started until Hour Four - I like to sleep in - 
this update won't reappear until Hour Four)
Intro Meme:

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

The western United States. I'm an Idaho girl. I'll be hanging out in the bedroom on my comfy bed with a blanket and my Anatolian Shepherd, Piper. I'll probably be intermittently joined by one or more of the cats and Piper (when Sadie goes outside).

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

 I'm actually pretty stoked for all three. I'm in the middle of Girls in Pants and loving it (just like I have the other books in the series). The other two books are galley reads that I've been given for review. Both of them have me hooked at their descriptions. I have high hopes.

3. Which snack are you most looking forward to?

 I haven't planned the snacks just yet. I'll be grabbing things as I go. But there is little doubt that LifeSavers, Jelly Bellies, and cookie dough will be making an appearance.

4. Tell us a little something about yourself.

 I joined the read-a-thon by invite after I announced my intention to participate in Bout-of-Books in mid-May. I'm a crafting blogger and just finishing up my month of the A to Z Challenge. I've been a busy girl all week and I'm excited to get settled in with a good book. I need to get caught up on my Goodreads Challenge. I'm also gathering books for this year's Book of the Year bracket. I pit the books I read against each other each year in a fight to the death and declare one book better than the rest.

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?

 Like I said earlier, this is my first standalone 24-hour read-a-thon. I'm kind of flying by the seat of my pants. I'm excited to see how much I can finish and I'm looking forward to finding some new book bloggers to follow and connect with over at Goodreads. I'm always on the hunt for the next good (or great) book.

Hour Four:
Current Stats 

Currently Reading: Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares (currently on page 102 of 236).
Snacks Eaten This Hour: Bowl of Lucky Charms (magically delicious!)
Other Things Accomplished This Hour: Showered, fed pets.
Minutes Read This Hour: 39
Total Time Read: 39 minutes
Pages Read This Hour: 36
Total Pages Read: 36
Total Books Finished: 0
How I'm Feeling: Let's Do This!
Hour Five:

Current Stats 
Currently Reading: Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares (currently on page 113 of 236).
Snacks Eaten This Hour: Nada.
Other Things Accomplished This Hour: Dressed. Hair/makeup done. Made bed.
Minutes Read This Hour: 14
Total Time Read: 53 minutes
Pages Read This Hour: A paltry 11.
Total Pages Read: 47
Total Books Finished: 0
How I'm Feeling: Time is speeding by!
Hour Six:
Current Stats 
Currently Reading: Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares (currently on page 142 of 236).
Snacks Eaten This Hour: Just filled up the water bottle
Other Things Accomplished This Hour: A little bit of blog housekeeping. Completed mini-challenge.
Minutes Read This Hour: 24
Total Time Read: 1 hour 17 minutes
Pages Read This Hour: 29
Total Pages Read: 76
Total Books Finished: 0
How I'm Feeling: Nice and comfy.

Mini Challenge: The Best of Your Reading Year:

Best Book of My Reading Year: 



I loved just about everything about this book. The writing is great and the book reads super fast. I loved the idea of the playlists! I actually ended up tracking down as many of the songs as I could and creating a playlist of my own for them in Spotify. It's pretty awesome. The characters were cute and real and when the book ended I just wanted to keep reading. I'm looking forward to more Morgan Matson reads.

Best Sequel of My Reading Year:


This one has to be Where She Went by Gayle Forman. The sequel to If I Stay, I think I actually enjoyed the sequel more. In fact, I think it would work well as a standalone novel. I love that the book is written from Adam's point of view, rather than Mia's. That just makes it work so well. Adam's voice adds a lot of uncertainty and depth to the storyline. And, as with If I Stay, the writing is superb.

Best Dystopian Fiction of My Reading Year:

I have a strong love for YA Dystopian Fiction. It just makes me happy. And Divergent by Veronica Roth just made me ecstatic. I could not put this book down. In fact, I stayed up until 2 a.m. on two subsequent work nights just to keep reading it. I had been waiting to read this one for quite a while, and I was not disappointed. The plot is quick and kind of intense. I was impressed with how into this book I got. It got my blood pumping.

Hour Seven:

 I won a door prize! So excited!!!

Current Stats 
Currently Reading: Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares (currently on page 177 of 236).
Snacks Eaten This Hour: String cheese, mixed nuts.
Other Things Accomplished This Hour: Started making lunch. Completed mini-challenge.
Minutes Read This Hour: 30
Total Time Read: 1 hour 47 minutes
Pages Read This Hour: 35
Total Pages Read: 111
Total Books Finished: 0
How I'm Feeling: Hungry.

 Mini-Challenge: Six Word Celebration

 Fun, challenging, loving it to pieces!

Hour Eight:
Current Stats 
Currently Reading: Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares (currently on page 218 of 236).
Snacks Eaten This Hour: BBQ Chicken Pizza
Other Things Accomplished This Hour: Ate lunch.
Minutes Read This Hour: 36.5
Total Time Read: 2 hours 24 minutes
Pages Read This Hour: 41
Total Pages Read: 152
Total Books Finished: 0
How I'm Feeling: A little sleepy.

Hour Nine:
Current Stats 
Currently Reading: Blackbird by Melanie Schulz (currently on page 36 of 295)


Snacks Eaten This Hour: None
Other Things Accomplished This Hour: Nada.
Minutes Read This Hour: 44.5
Total Time Read: 3 hours 8.5 minutes
Pages Read This Hour: 54
Total Pages Read: 206
Total Books Finished: 1 
How I'm Feeling: Confused (by the book).

 Hour Ten:
Current Stats 
Currently Reading: Blackbird by Melanie Schulz (currently on page 60 of 295).
Snacks Eaten This Hour: Just more water.
Other Things Accomplished This Hour: Worked on project for "Y" post for the A to Z Challenge. "Shelfie" Challenge.
Minutes Read This Hour: 28
Total Time Read: 3 hours 36.5 minutes
Pages Read This Hour: 24
Total Pages Read: 230
Total Books Finished: 1
How I'm Feeling: Picking Up Steam

Mini-Challenge: Shelfie

Don't mind the telescope leg. I had to move it to get the shot and then failed to crop it out.
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