October 17, 2015 / Leslie

Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon

Let the Reading Begin

Many of you are familiar with the Readathon, a twice yearly event which begins today at midnight GMT and continues for 24 hours.

Hundreds of readers are participating and posting on their blogs, Twitter, Facebook and Goodreads.

I will be participating most of the day with a few breaks for errands and other unavoidable chores. The pet birds really do need to be cleaned and fed! But that is what audiobooks are for.

The Readathon began for me at 7 a.m. Chicago time, and this is my eighth Readathon. I have yet to make a full 24 hours and probably won’t this time either since I have a few unavoidable things to do tomorrow, but it’s always a great time.

I will be updating this post throughout the Readathon.

Rather than fill my feed with posts that some of you may not be interested in, I will use this one post for my updates and mini-challenges throughout the day and on twitter at #readathon.

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Hour 1 – Introduction

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

I live in the USA in a suburb of Chicago.

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

In print I have several books I’m anxious to dig in to. I’m starting with Butterflies, which is part photography, part text, and Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin.

I’ll also be listening to an audiobooks. I have a few hours left to listen in A Good Family by Erik Fassnacht so I’m starting with that. I find it impossible to sit all day, plus there are always a few errands and other chores I need to get done.

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

I try to be healthy with my snacks. During the day it’s usually things like fruit, nuts, granola bars, and cereal. For this evening I have a box of Crunch ‘n Munch. I’m pretty sure that box will be empty long before midnight.

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

I’ve been blogging for about 10 years and have had a book blog since 2009. I’m an eclectic reader, gardener, bird watcher, amateur photographer and all around nature lover. I volunteer as a wildlife monitor and at a bird rescue and shelter for pet birds in need of new homes.

If you’ve visited here before, you already know I have a passion for birds. I share my photographs and stories in my Weekend Birding posts.

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today?

Once again, I would like to read Read More! I say it every time but it’s true, I get easily distracted by the challenges and visiting other blogs.

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Hour 2 Mini-Challenge: Cover Escape!

Dig through your shelves and share with us a book cover you’d like to escape into . . .

This has always been a favorite cover of mine . . . and I’d love to escape to Italy. Plus, this is one of my favorite books. I read it when it was first published in 2012, and then I listened to the audio last year when it was a book club pick. And I rarely re-read a book.

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Hour 5

Just finished The Good Family by Erik Fassnacht. Listened to last 3½ hours this morning.

Now moving on to the next audiobook: The Truth and Other Lies by Sascha Arango.

Mini-Challenge: Ugly Book Cover

Pick a book that you felt was a winner of a read but was sorely lacking in the cover art department.

The Humans by Matt Haig
Loved the book but that cover, ugh. What were they thinking!

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Hour 8 Mini-Challenge: Armchair Traveling

What book would you choose, and where would it transport you?

I read a lot of science fiction so my first choice would be another planet or the utopian world of Star Trek. But since we are keeping it real, I’m choosing The Apple Orchard by Susan Wiggs.

The author’s beautiful descriptions of the Sonoma Valley wine country made me want to be there with a glass of wine in my hand.

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Hour 20 Mini-Challenge: Shelfie

Take a picture aka Shelfie of your shelves.

Sadly there is a shelf behind all those disorganized books on the floor.

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Hour 21

That’s it for me. It’s 3am here and I’m tired. I’ll be back tomorrow for the wrap-up post.

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Closing Survey

Which hour was most daunting for you?
I was doing well until about hour 12 when I took a break for dinner. Distractions kept me away for a few hours.

Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?
I don’t think I could generalize because everyone’s tastes are so different. I never read as much as I would like because I enjoy spending time on the challenges.

Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
Nope, nothing. The organizers and everyone involved did a fantastic job.

What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
I liked having multiple places readers could gather and post.

How many books did you read?
Three. I finished one and am still reading the other two.

What were the names of the books you read?
A Good Family by Erik Fassnacht
Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin
The Truth and Other Lies by Sascha Arango

Which book did you enjoy most?
I like all of them but if I must choose – Black-Eyed Susans.

Which did you enjoy least?
I liked all of them.

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