October 2011 Read-A-Thon Summary

Well, I lasted 14 hours or so. Last night a friend came over that we haven't seen in a while, and then I had a drink (when I knew I shouldn't, if I'm not in the mood to really drink than normally one drink is enough to guarantee I go to bed early, haha), so by 10:30 I called it quits and we just talked and watched Commando with Arnold. Personally, I think it's his best movie, haha. If you liked Arnold movies and have not seen Commando, do yourself a favor, grab some friends and popcorn and watch that flick right now! Go, no, don't even worry about the rest of the post, it will still be here.

Anyway...

The Read-A-Thon was a GREAT experience though, and I look forward to the next one. I'll definitely be a little more prepared, and if anyone comes over I'll barricade myself in the bedroom with my books!

To sum up what I got through:
1. Artemis Fowl - Eoin Colfer
2. Mogworld - Yahtzee Croshaw(the second half; read the first half a couple of days ago)
3. Still Missing - Chevy Stevens
4. Several short stories by Kelly Link, and one short story by Haruki Murakami

First two parts of Hunters, Herders and Hamburgers by Richard Bulliet, and the first section of the Aeneid by Virgil. I slowed down a bit by the end, since those last three books aren't my normal reading material. It was, however, a nice break from the YA fiction I've been reading. I've read a fiction book by Bulliet (Kicked in the Head by a Camel), and I was pleased to find his voice works just as well in non-fiction (his typical field). The Aeneid kept tripping me up - I know the gods and goddesses much more by their Greek counterparts, haha, so I kept doing mental translations in my head. And Chevy Steven's Still Missing is a book I'll talk about in my next post, definitely.

As for Link and Murakami's short stories - LOVED them as always. Even when I feel the message went over my head, haha.

To everyone who participated and cheered on others, it was great! Let's do it again some time.

Read-A-Thon Update, 1pm-8pm(ish)

For some reasons these last few hours have felt longer, but probably because I'm jumping between three books - all genres I don't normally read. Unlike Mogworld and Artemis Fowl, which felt quick, these are a bit tougher.

I'm jumping between Richard Bulliet's Hunters, Herders and Hamburgers, Virgil's Aeneid, and Chevy Stevens Still Missing.

Hunters, Herders and Hamburgers is a pretty fascinating look at our relationship with animals through history, and therefore food, and how it's all connected to a lot of different things about our lives.

Aeneid is just throwing me off. I'm not used to reading the Romanized names of the gods and goddesses, and sometimes I don't notice in time whether speech has stopped or not.

I'm also reading (much quicker than the other two), Still Missing by Chevy Stevens. It's... well, it's an absolutely horrifying read when you see what protagonist Annie has to go through. She was abducted for a year by a man who forced her to live with him in a secluded cabin in the woods, and faces everything you'd expect her to face in that situation. I'm not a fan of the gimmick - Annie's talking to her shrink the entire book, so it's cut up into flash backs and events she's telling the shrink directly. I don't think I'd mind as much if it was in third person, or if the shrink got to talk at all, but I don't like the first person feeling that the protagonist is breaking the wall between reader and story, like they're talking to you. I don't know why, and I've read exceptions that I've enjoyed. Also, the ending is shaping up to be not quite what I hoped, but, I'll save final words for when I finish it.

I'm still hanging in there! Taking a small break to make myself a cup of hot chocolate. Yum!

Read-A-Thon Update 7am - 1pm

So I'm - does some mental math - six hours into the 24 hour Read-a-Thon.

That being said, my progress so far: I've finished Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer & Mogworld by Yahtzee Croshaw.

Artemis Fowl:

LOVED the Fairy World in this book. It was hysterical, especially the Dwarf, Mulch Diggums. The way Dwarves create tunnels in this universe is horrifying with its grossness factors, but I still giggle like a five-year-old when it comes to fart jokes and potty humor so I loved it. Colfer created a great system, merging a modern setting and technology without losing the magical touch of the fairy realm, and Artemis is certainly a scheming twelve old with gold on the brain instead of in his heart, but all the same, you definitely get the feeling the story is about Artemis growing up, and it's a ride I hope to continue by eventually hunting down the sequels. I started this at page 1, having only ever read the first chapter before this morning.

Mogworld:

I started reading Mogworld a few days ago, and so I was already halfway through it when I picked it up after Artemis. I was wondering whether or not Yahtzee's humor would translate well into book form - his reviews are fairly short and if he's written longer articles I've unfortunately never read them - but I needn't have been worried. Mogworld's snarky, undead protagonist Jim, is a joy to follow. His attempt at not connecting with much always backfires - sometimes in expected ways, sometimes not - leading him to take a much grander adventure than he ever wanted. He races to the end of the book as body parts fall off and are replaced, gathering a small group of friends - Jim would say, "acquaintances" - to help him along the way. I would recommend it to anyone who likes some snarky and tongue-in-cheek humor, unique and odd characters, and video game humor (though the last is not a requirement).
Did I get all the jokes? Maybe not, but it certainly didn't limit my enjoyment of the story.

I'm occasionally checking in with other blogs, like Literary Lindsey, to see how others are fairing. I also sometimes stop on the main site of the event. I found this little meme and figure I might as well be semi-official about things (though really, I'm not official at all):

1) Where are you reading from today?
- Chicago

2) Three random facts about me…
- I'm obsessed with curry, I want cup cakes and peanut m&ms at my future wedding, and if I had to rank which is scariest out of dinosaurs, sharks, and crocodiles... I'd pick crocodiles.

3) How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?
- About 20. I don't expect to get through them all, and at least two are collections of short stories. Some are also very long.

4) Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?
- Just keeping reading until I reach 7am again. Or until I fall asleep with my face in a book.

5) If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, any advice for people doing this for the first time?
- I'm new to this, but it's been a lot of fun so far. I mean, I'm reading great books!

Well, enough of blogging, it's back to the books! I think my next step will something a bit different. Going to dive into Richard Bulliet's Hunters, Herders, and Hamburgers.

October 22, 2011 Read-A-Thon Start

Oh dear, I didn't remember how nasty it can feel waking up an hour earlier than normal. Like those 60 minutes you gave up is where all the energy for the new day is stored, and since you sacrificed it you're saying it's ok to function like a zombie with extra terrible morning breath for most of the day (or at least the first two hours).

But in about twenty minutes I'll be cozying up on my couch with Artemis Fowl - I could not even begin to fathom reading something not light and fluffy right now - and kicking off the Read-a-Thon. As mentioned, I won't be blogging much about it today, but I'll probably be poking around twitter a lot.

For all you readers out there attempting the task as well, good luck! And for all of you who aren't, even if it's just the back of a cereal box, read something today for the spirit of the things. ^_^

October 22, 2011 Read-A-Thon

So, I was catching up on Literary Lindsey posts, and I noticed her talking about a "Read-A-Thon."

Now, how can I ignore something like that?

So I googled October 2011 Read-A-Thon (instead of just clicking the link on Lindsey's page >.<) and found a challenge to end all challenges (except maybe writing a novel in a month for NaNoWriMo) - A 24-hr read-a-thon.

So, the officialness of the read-a-thon is something I'll probably pass on this year. For one thing, I'm finding out about it the day before it starts so I haven't read much pass "reading for 24 hours." I think you can sign up and maybe get prizes, or something, and sign-up to do it for charity, all things I'm sure the official site talks about in detail so you should head there if you're curious.

I'm going on the info I've gotten from Lindsey's blog and the schedule I found on the Read-A-Thon blog. The schedule for Chicago timezone people is = Begins 7am, Ends 7am.

Whew - early, but not too bad.

I'll probably blog at regular intervals, 7am Start, and then maybe every two to three hours. But, I'll probably tweet about it a lot (Oh my gosh! A reason to use my dust covered twitter account?) I'll add my twitter feed to this blog so it can be viewed here.

For anyone interested in reading, I suggest attempting this, or, making your own, smaller schedule for the day. If 24-hours is way too intense, shoot for 12, or even 4 or 2. Maybe just finally finish that book you started a month ago and is beginning to fuzz in your memory.

I'm going to take another page from Literary Lindsey and post some pictures of some of the books I have lined up for tomorrow. Having a selection that you're prepared to cycle through in case one book turns out not to be your cup of tea - or brand of hot chocolate, yum! - is a great idea, so thank you Lindsey!

Small Explanation:

Some of these books I've been waiting for time to read, some I've read before and have been meaning to read again, some are short story collections where I've only read some of them and would like to read more, and some are books that have been recommended to me but I've never gotten around to.

Other Books Waiting in the Wings but Not Pictured:

Mogworld, Yahtzee Croshaw

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles, Haruki Murakami

Five Flavors of Dumb, by Antony John

Leviathon, by Scott Westerfield

Sabriel, Garth Nix

The Folk Keeper, by Franny Billingsley

Pinocchio in Venice, Robert Coover

Anna Dressed in Blood, by Kendare Blake

Dead Until Dark, by Charlaine Harris

{Oh, goodness, I hope I've spelled everything correctly...}

Well, I think this post is long enough! For more information you can head to the Read-A-Thon main site, or, check out Literary Lindsey! She writes great book reviews and is darn more consistent than me!