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Category Archives: Reading Events

Dewey’s 24hr Read-A-Thon – Hours 9-10

dewey2-2015Hours 9-10

After my unanticipated 4 hour (or nearly 4hr) nap this afternoon, I looked forward to jumping back into my reading for the last 2 hours and I managed to knock another book off Mt TBR. One of my goals for the last three months of the year is to try and get caught up on some of the different series that I’ve been reading – there are a few that I read as soon as new books are released and others that tend to get put on the backburner. Maya Banks – Sweet series is one of those backburner series – but several of the books in the series fit into some different reading challenges – so its been a good reason to try and get caught up.

sweet-possessionI also took a brief break about 30minutes or so ago, to watch my friend Rachel cross the finish line at IM North Carolina! Its been a rough week for her because after training for 6 months, they annouced that the course was going to be shortened and changed; but like a trooper she stuck in. She finished the official course around 5:30 (and was all smiles as she hit the finisher’s chute for the run. But being the over-achiever that she is, she is going to go and jump on her bike trainer and ride the other 56 miles of the bike course that got shortened (yeah, she’s nuts!) – but I figured seeing her do this was a good reason to take a break!

Coming up:
Its dinner time in my house (for both myself and the dogs)…I’m nuking leftover pizza from last night (yummy) and looking forward to settling back down for a couple more hours with some more reading!

 
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Posted by on October 22, 2016 in Read-A-Thon, Reading Events

 

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Dewey’s 24hr Read-A-thon – Hours 5-8

dewey2-2015Hours 4-8
So the last four hours definitely weren’t the most productive…I got home from running errands, listened to my audiobook for a little bit more and went to curl up in bed to read and….promptly fell asleep…

I remember thinking it was 1:10 and I’ll take a 20min nap…so I set the alarm…then when the alarm went off, I thought I snoozed it but rather turned it off and kept sleeping, waking up just now…sooo yeah…there is something to be said for curling up with the pups on the bed (even if my big white goofy one did try to steal the Cheetos that I was snacking on).

I did manage to read a little bit in those 4 hours (I think maybe about 100page between 2 books), but not enough to really report on (so make sure to check out my Hour 9-10 blog post for more updates)

Coming Up:
I’m going to continue to work on the 2 books I was reading when I fell asleep – a fiction book set in Afghanistan and an erotic romance (two totally different types of books to be sure!)

here’s hoping the next couple of hours are more productive 😉

 
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Posted by on October 22, 2016 in Read-A-Thon, Reading Events

 

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Dewey’s 24hr Read-A-Thon – Hours 3-4

dewey2-2015Hours 3 and 4

So at noon today, we are 4 hours or 1/6 of the way through the read-a-thon – in the last two hours – I’ve been focusing more on my audiobook listening, so that I could run some errands and stuff like that. So far i’ve listened to 105 minutes of Lothaire – and I have 7hrs 25min to go (so the likelihood of finishing is fairly slim, but you never know).

why-you-say-itI did read a chapter of Why You Say That? – Webb Garrison – non-fiction/etomology – this is one of those books that I can just use chapters here and there to fill in minutes during the day – its like reading the dictionary, but instead of word definitions, its more focused on what different works/sayings we use mean and how they came to be. Its interesting, but not a book that I can read in large segments.

Coming Up:
I just finished running my errands and being (in general) a responsible adult…the two dogs are currently outside playing (otherwise, we play let’s jump on mom while she is trying to read…) and I’m looking forward to settle down with the next book on my pile – A House Without Windows (Nadia Hashimi) – but in the little bit i’ve read so far, its a pretty deep(ish) type book, so i’m probably going to alternate with something else on my kindle

What about you?

 
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Posted by on October 22, 2016 in Read-A-Thon, Reading Events

 

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Dewey’s 24hr Read-A-Thon – Hours 1-2

dewey2-2015Hours 1 and 2
So my plan for kicking off this read-a-thon was simple…my local start time was 8am on a Saturday morning and since it’s no longer triathlon training season and I only have Marine Corps Marathon lurking on the horizon, I could sleep in. I set my alarm for 7:55 (about 5 min) before the kick-off – just enough time to let me get up, let the dog’s out, gather the first hour supplies and crawl back into my nice warm bed.

all-about-seductionFunnily enough in my intro post I listed a bunch of the books I had in progress, and yet the first book that I picked up to read at 8am, wasn’t any of those books. It was a book that I had read a chapter or so of last night before I fell asleep and since it was in my comfort genre (historical romance) – I figured that it was a good way to kick off this read-a-thon. It was a quick read (even though it was 370-ish) pages because the author (Katy Madison – new to me) had a way of writing that just sucked me in.

I took a couple of breaks during those first two hours – to tweet a bit; catch up on Goodreads and prep this blog – but i’m continuing my “reading” with listening to my current audiobook (Lothaire – Kresley Cole, narrated by Robert Petkoff).

The next couple of hours
Unfortunately, real life is going to get in the way for the next couple of hours…I have some errands to run, and need to go out and get life’s nectar (also known as coffee)…but I have both my audiobook and the kindle app on my cell phone, so I can keep reading even while i’m out and about

How about you – how are you doing so far?

 
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Posted by on October 22, 2016 in Read-A-Thon, Reading Events

 

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Dewey’s 24-hr Readathon – Opening Post

dewey-24-hour-oct

Are you ready to rumble? Or maybe, curling up with a good book(s) and read for a solid 24 hours (or at least attempt to read for 24 hours!)

I first found out about Dewey’s 24 Hour Read-a-thon a couple of years ago, but unfortunately, it never seems to work with my schedule (although I try to be a cheerleader when possible) – so I’m excited to take a stab at actually reading this time 🙂 (ok, well, maybe I lied – I think I tried it in either 2013 or 2014 but only made it to about 16 hours before I passed out…).

All this week, I’ve been reading the various warm-up posts on the websites, where veteran read-a-thon’ers (is that an actual word) provide advice on how to tackle this 24 hour period – with advice on how to pick what books to read? what to do if real world gets in the way? or if you just need a break? so i’m curious to see which of these various tactics (if any), I opt to use.

But to kick it of, I figure I’m going to try and finish up one (or more) of the many books that I have in progress…

Destiny – Alex Archer – mystery/adventure/urban fantasy
The Sweetness of Honey – Alison Kent – romance/women’s lit
Malicious Intent – Kathryn Fox – mystery/crime
Why You Say That? – Webb Garrison – non-fiction/etomology
A House Without Windows – Nadia Hashimi – literary fiction/afghanistan/legal fiction

While I have my stack of books, I know that I’m going to have to venture out of the house occasionally…but that’s ok, because I have my trusty Apple iTouch with audiobooks on it.

So in audio, I’m working on Lothaire which is the 12th book in Kresley Cole’s Immortal’s after Dark series and narrated by the fabulous Robert Petkoff (and since I have like 8 hours to go, I likely won’t finish it up during the read-a-thon…).

So let’s get this show on the road!!

 
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Posted by on October 22, 2016 in Read-A-Thon, Reading Events

 

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National Read Across America Day

read across america

So I didn’t know this until it popped up in my facebook feed, thanks to author Christy Reece, but today is National Read Across America Day. And not only is it National Read Across America day but its also Dr Seuss’s birthday. Dr Seuss was a huge advocate of getting children to read – I know that I have many fond memories of reading his books when I was younger. Not just the well known ones like Green Eggs and Ham and Cat in a Hat; but Go Dog Go; Hop on Pop and one of my all-time favorites – Oh Say Can You Say (to this day i can barely read it when i’m sober…lol!).

National Read Across America day is hosted by the National Educational Association (NEA) with the goal of encouraging young kids and teens to pick up a book and read. You can read more about this years even at the following link.

And on that note, i’m going to do what the day is meant for…i’m going to go and curl up on the couch and read. I have a historical fiction called America’s First Daughter by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie that I’m reading; along with an urban fantasy, Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews.

What are you guys reading on this special reading day? Any plans to curl up with a kid to read with them? (I checked my local library but didn’t see anything going on – maybe next year!)

 
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Posted by on March 2, 2016 in Reading Events

 

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The Case of the Traveling Book

hate is such a strong word 1 (1)One of the things I love about communities like Goodreads is how it can bring together people across the world over a simple topic, the love of books – (yes, I’m a dork and gushing…lol). I have made many friends over the years on that website, many of whom I have never met in person (and likely never will) and yet, I feel like I know them. Over the last few years, one of the groups I’m part of (YA Rated MA) has been doing a fun event called the traveling book.

hate is such a strong word 1 (2)The premise is simple, a group member donates a book that they think other members would be interested in reading – normally maybe an ARC of a YA book soon to come, or a book not widely released in the US (since that is where the majority of our members are from) and the book then travels from member to member. At each stop, its read (well, duh) and members are encourages to write notes in the book, highlight passages that really struck home for them (shock, horror if you don’t like writing in books) and sign their name in the front cover and leave a quick note in the back about their overall opinion. Best of all, they each include a postcard from where they live, so when the person who originally donated the book gets it back, there is like a treasure trove of gifts.

Over the last few months, my book donation of Hate is such a Strong Word by Sarah Ayoub has been traveling around the various members of the group and on Saturday, it arrived back home (and yes, there might have been a slight happy dance when I saw it in the mail). Hate is Such A Strong Word is a book that my mom sent me from Australia, written by a Lebanese-Australian author. The story revolves about Sophie, a 12th grader who is in a cultural clash between her Lebanese family and the more modern society she is living in (or so I have gauged from the description, because I haven’t read it yet).

I’m looking forward to reading Hate is Such a Strong Word in the next few weeks and until then, I’m going to enjoy looking through all the different postcards that i got in the package.

hate is such a strong word 1 (3)

 
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Posted by on December 30, 2015 in Reading Events

 

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National Young Reader’s Day – 10 November 2015

young readers appreciation day

Image Credit: Phillip Teacher, HUFS Language Institute

I’m always amazed at when I see people post about different days of recognition – because so often they are ones that I have never heard of. Case in point: the second Tuesday of every November is National Young Reader’s Day. According to Holidays Insights, this day was co-founded in 1989 by Pizza Hut and Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. While it is referred to as a National day, there have been no actual presidential proclamation making it so (would be a nice thought though right?). According to the creators, National Young Reader’s Day is “… a special day to recognize the joys and benefits of reading.”

As a book blogger, reading has always held a special place in my heart. It was something that I loved from an early age and that my parents instilled the love of in me. I remember sitting on the couch most nights reading a chapter book with my mom (most vivid is the Chronicles of Narnia). And as i grew older, I continued reading and still do to this day. So it hurts my heart when I hear young children and teenagers say that they hate reading. I can’t even imagine hating reading. Without reading I never would have been introduced to the lands of Narnia or going on a journey with the Hobbits. I never would have thought I found friends with the girls in the Babysitters Club (or the Babysitter’s Little Sister) or fallen in love with Jamie Fraser (Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander). Reading has been such an integral part of my life over the last three plus decades and I can’t wait to see what reading has in store for me over the next three (or four, or hopefully more).

For all my reader’s out there:
What books from your childhood influenced your love of reading the most?

If you could give ONE book to a child today, what would it be and why?

 
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Posted by on November 10, 2015 in Reading Events, Uncategorized

 

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ARC August: Week 3 Update

arc-august

Whoops, I’m a little bit behind in getting my week 3 post up, because I had my monthly weekend military drill – so it was an insane this past weekend and when I got home last night, I literally fell into bed and slept for like 12hrs. Unfortunately, that also meant that my weekend reading was almost non-existant (boo-hoo!) and the rest of my week wasn’t much better. I managed to finish 3 books this week, and also DNF’d one (because while they were short stories, they were too short for me and didn’t really work – but it felt good to get it off the pile).

Week 3 Completed:
ARC August week 3 finish
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Week 3 DNF:
Week 3 DNF
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Week 4 Goals:
Week 4 goals

 
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Posted by on August 25, 2015 in ARC August

 

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Bout of Books 14 – Day 4 Update

Bout of Books

Well, I can safely say, that day 4 wasn’t much more productive than day 3 for me…lol! Although I did realize that one of the books I was struggling with, I just couldn’t stick with and decided to mark it as DNF. Based on the description, I should have liked it, because I’m a fan of GLBT fiction and short stories, but unfortunately for me, these stories were more like vingettes and scenes, and not really stories. In fact, many of the stories, weren’t even 3 screen changes on my kindle (so maybe 300-400 words). I’m also sore and grumpy from my Physical Therapy appointment which for me made it hard to sit down and concentrate to read. Only a couple more days of Bout of Books left for this round – hopefully, I’ll actually manage to get a couple more books finished (I am closing it on the finish line for a couple of them).

Books Finished:
None

Books Marked as DNF
Best Bi Short Stories – Sheela Lambert (editor)

Books In Progress
Inn at Last Chance – Hope Ramsey
Dangers of Dating a Rebound Vampire – Molly Harper (audiobook)
Openly Straight – Bill Konigsberg
Conning for Keeps – Seleste deLaney
The Viking’s Captive Princess – Michelle Styles
The Rancher and the Rock Star – Lizbeth Selvig
When Books Went to War – Molly Guptill Manning

That was my Day 4, how was yours?

 
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Posted by on August 21, 2015 in Bout of Books

 

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