Shantaram, To Kill a Mockingbird, American Pastoral, Clockers, You Know When the Men Are Gone.
Read-a-Thon midway point survey
12 Hours in!
Mid-Event Survey
1. What are you reading right now? The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry
2. How many books have you read so far? This is my third
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? More reading, a walk, maybe taking 2 hours to watch the film of Beloved to rest my eyes a bit.
4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day? Hubby and my mom are here entertaining the little man.
5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those? Lots of little interruptions. Just took 15 minutes to put Gage to bed. It’s all good 🙂
6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? I’m not reading very fast!
7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? Not yet 🙂
8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year? Too early to tell.
9. Are you getting tired yet? Not quite yet, but I did have half a glass of wine with dinner 🙂
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? Read good books!
Read-a-Thon Shelfie & First Edition Challenges
For this challenge we are supposed to take a picture of our shelves. During my hour 18 mini-challenge you will see my books so I don’t want to spoil the surprise, BUT I will share a shelfie of the books I put aside to read from today. See any you love?
Since this is an ARC I don’t know if the same rules apply. Is it truly a first edition you think?
Read-a-Thon Hour 8 Update
Since my last update
Reading – Finished 2 books so far, The Firebird by Suasanna Kearsley and Traveling Light for Mothers by Max Lucado. Choosing my next book as soon as I post this.
Time Spent Reading – Took breaks to make lunch for my kid and to prep for the hot tub. Other than that, reading.
Mini-Challenges – I tried my hand at 2, Bookish Brews and The Best of Your Reading Year
Snacks– Had creamy orzo with corn and greens for lunch and am have been munching on this
Where – I did make a trip to the hot tub with my book. Bliss.
Read-a-Thon Best of My Reading Year Mini-Challenge
I’ve read 23 books so far this year so it’s a small pool.
Best Non-Fiction Book of Your Reading Year – A Gift From the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Best Romance Book of Your Reading Year – The Firebird by Susannah Kearsley (just finished it a few minutes ago!)
Best Fiction Book of Your Reading Year – The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress by Ariel Lawhon
Best Mystery Book of Your Reading Year – The Doll by Taylor Stevens
Best Cover of Your Reading Year
24 Hour Read-a-Thon, Hour 3 Update
So we’re just over 3 hours in and I’m having a great time.
Reading– The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley. I started it on my Nook ages ago and have failed to finish because I don’t read on my Nook very often. Most of you say you read faster on e-readers but it’s the opposite for me, so it’s slow (but very enjoyable) going.
Time spent reading– I did one load of laundry and made toast, other than that I’ve been reading or…
Mini-Challenges– I’ve participated in all 4 so far. It’s some of my favorite time during the Read-a-Thon. I particularly liked the Jigsaw Puzzle Cover Challenge and hope to steal the idea for a quiz of my own soon.
Snacks– Coffee, toast and popcorn so far.
Where- On the couch in the front room. Thinking about some hot tub reading soon!
Back to The Firebird!
Deweys 24 Hour Read-a-Thon starts now!
Hi! Welcome to Stacy’s Books! I hope to participate for the whole 24 hours. Here’s the cheat sheet for the day…
1. I’m joining in the fun from the Cleveland, Ohio area (there are beautiful areas here so don’t believe all the jokes!)
2. I am looking forward the all the books in my pile today, but probably The Firebird by Kearsley and The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Zevin the most.
3. There’s a mini peanut butter pie calling my name in the frig!
4. Last night, on one of our weekly date nights, my husband and I ended up at the grocery store and Old Navy. Yes, I felt incredibly old and boring.
5. The last read-a-thon I made the mistake of choosing the shortest books from my TBR piles even if I didn’t really want to read them so I burned out on not so good books fast. This time I’ve chosen ones I’m excited about reading. This is my 4th read-a-thon and I think I’ve made it the whole 24 hours twice. That’s not bad.
W is for When Winslet Wares Watership
Kate Winslet
There are some actresses that come across so true and gutsy on-screen as well as in real life and Winslet is one of the few for me. I love watching her in the movies, but more than that she is someone who I’d love to hang out with. Loved her most in The Reader, Revolutionary Road, The Holiday, Finding Neverland. Of course, Titanic is what put her on the map and she was flawless there too 🙂 What’s your favorite Winslet movie?
When Harry Met Sally
Can a man and woman ever truly be friends or will the sex thing always get in the way? When recent college graduates drive from Chicago to New York together they despise each other. When they meet a few years later they are both in happy relationships. Fast forward a few more years and they run into each other again, both in need of a friend. They become close and appreciate the friendship and avoid ruining it with sex, mostly.
Why I love it- I thought Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan had such great chemistry and the dialogue was spot on, only more funny. I liked seeing them get over their initial judgements of each other and see each other as friends. And it really did make me laugh out loud. A lot. The days of the week underpants, Surry with a Fringe on top, and the wagon wheel coffee table are a few that come to mind.
One of my top ten all time faves.
Watership Down by Richard Adams
I am not a huge fan of fiction books from the perspective of animals, but this one, well this one proved that I could love the right one. Oh, these rabbits stole my heart. On a journey from their home to find a new warren, adventure and heartache and everything in between befall these rabbits. Even of the bunny on the cover scares you off, I think you need to read a few chapters and see. A true classic.
Ciji Ware
In 2002 I won this book from Writerspace and once I read it, went on to read the other four she had written at the time. Loved them all. Not sure why I haven’t read her latest two releases. I need to get on that!
V is for Viggo Verdon’s Violet Vendetta
Viggo Mortenson
The man has charisma. And acting chops. And good looks. And he doesn’t choose boring parts. Before Lord Of the Rings he was in another favorite movie of mine, A Walk on the Moon
I love all three leads in this movie. And then came Lord of the Rings and it was all over for me. I swooned. His roles in the grim A History of Violence and Eastern Promises were outstanding too.
Violets of March by Sarah Jio
Emily, author of one bestselling novel years ago, has just signed her divorce papers. Not able to write and not sure what to do about it her best friend convinces her that a change of scenery will help, so Emily contacts her Aunt Bee on Bainbridge Island, Washington. Once she’s back on the island where she spent the wonderful summers of her youth, she finds a hidden journal written by the mysterious Esther, and Emily wonders if she is somehow connected to her family. Totally immersed in Esther’s story and frustrated by her aunt’s refusal to talk about family secrets, Emily found the perfect way to forget about her divorce and the muse to start writing again.
The story in the journal parallels current day Bainbridge Island and as Emily pieced together who was who I tried to keep up. I admit I had some ideas, but did get a bit confused by the large cast. I didn’t really care though, I was just happy to be along for the ride. One of these days I hope I find my way to Bainbridge Island. The place felt magical.
I loved this book. The writing was beautiful, there was such depth and beauty on every page. The awesome writing coupled with the two addicting storylines make this one easy to recommend.
John Verdon
I’ve read all three of his Dave Gurney thrillers and loved them all. (Think of a Number, Shut Your Eyes Tight, Let the Devil Sleep) His next one comes out in July so there’s still time to jump on the bandwagon!
V is For Vendetta, 2005
Dystopia, anarchy, and creepy masks…what more could you want?
U is for Uncommon Uma Under Unger
Under the Tuscan Sun, 2003
Frances finds out her husband is cheating and to cheer her up her two friends offer her a 10 day vacation in Tuscany traveling with a gay bus tour. Frances goes and falls in love with the house Bramosole which she impulsively buys and plans to restore, leaving her life in San Fransisco behind. She throws herself into the renovation, making friends as a way to heal her broken heart.
Why I love it – This is a story one woman’s heartbreak and the strength that led her to healing. I love Diane Lane, she can do little wrong in my eyes and this is one of my favorites. She shows Frances’s emotions in a way that we can all recognize. She was mad, hurt, sad, funny, endearing, and full of life.
Who hasn’t imagined (even just for a second) leaving everything behind to start over somewhere new? And what better place to do this but in Italy? I love the boldness of her decision, egged on by the exuberant Catherine who encouraged her growth at every turn. It was the eagerness to live the life she always imagined that had me rooting for her happy ending.
The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
The Queen is out with her dogs one day when she discovers the bookmobile parked by the palace. So begins her discovery of the joys of reading for pleasure. Always one to take her duties seriously, reading somehow begins to creep into her schedule, making her mundane duties most unpleasant since she must leave her book behind. And as the staff becomes more put-off by the reading, the Queen takes a hard look at her obsession. She is a doer, and ultimately, a choice must be made.
This delightful story enticed me with its lightness, but captured me with its unabashed love of reading books. As the Queen notes, reading is a generally solitary pursuit and many of her thoughts on this stuck with me, especially as I was passing out books to strangers for World Book Night. Thankfully, we can and do find ways to connect through reading. This will make you take a look at your own reading life, and most likely, you’ll identify with the Queen’s discovery of the new worlds books open and her eagerness to share what she’s read. I don’t think the general public is as unread as this author seems to think, but maybe they are and I just don’t want to see it.
Lisa Unger
I’ve only read three of Unger’s twelve books and especially enjoyed the two Ridley Jones books (Beautiful Lies & Sliver of Truth).
Uma Thurman
I like her in the few movies I’ve seen her in (Kill Bill, The Truth About Cats & Dogs, Dangerous Liaisons) and her name starts with U 🙂
