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Getting Ready for the Read-a-Thon!

Getting Ready for the Read-a-Thon! post image

In case you haven’t heard, this weekend is Dewey’s 24-Hour Read-a-Thon! I inevitably miss most or all of this event every time it happens, I have no idea why, but this weekend looks promising.

Tonight after work I’m driving out to Ames, Iowa to spend the weekend with my sister, Jenny, and we have plans to Read-a-Thon for part of the day. She has homework, and I have sweet, sweet books. Plus, I’m basically couch-bound because of a sprained ankle, so some of the fun, “Let’s go walk around Ames!” activities have been sidelined.

I dragged a moderately insane number of books to Iowa with me, mostly because I just wasn’t sure what I’d want to read. They’re all nonfiction and all pretty short, which I suspect is good for the Read-a-Thon. I don’t think I’ve made a serious effort to read before, so I’m not sure.

Anyway, the books!

  • Ghost Hunters by Deb Blum – I grabbed this one because it seems like a great October book, plus I want to review some nonfiction Halloween books at the end of the month.
  • 84 Charing Cross Road by Helen Hanff – I recently saw a play based on this book and have wanted to read it since. Plus, it’s absurdly short and should be easy to read right away to give me a boost at the start or late at night when I’m addle-brained.
  • Writers Gone Wild by Bill Peschel – I got this for review a few days ago and it looks humorous. It has lots of short sections, which should make it a good Read-a-Thon book.
  • Bookmark Now edited by Kevin Smokler – Anastasia (Bird Brain(ed) Book Blog) sent this to me this week (along with some other awesome nonfiction, to be highlighted another day). It’s a collection of essays, which might be good Read-a-Thon material if I’m trying to read when distracted.
  • Cover Me by Sonya Huber – This is a short book coming out this month that I’d like to review. Its length was the big appeal!
  • Strange Bedfellows by Howard Richler – I’m reading this for the Eco Libris Green Books Campaign in November, plus, it’s another short book.
  • Food Fray by Lisa H. Weasel – I’ve had this review book about genetically modified foods for awhile now and wanted to give it a slot. I’m not sure if it’s a good Read-a-Thon choice or not; we’ll see.
  • And the Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman – This is another review book set for November that I grabbed because it’s mostly illustrations. If I read late into the night, this could be a good option.

There is absolutely no chance I will read all of these books, but I like options. I’ve also got my nook, which has The Shallows by Nicholas Carr and Best American Essays 2010 on it that I’ve started. Those could be options too.

I’ll try to post pictures tomorrow; I know Jenny will be just thrilled to have her photo gracing the Interwebs yet again – especially at 7:00 in the morning! </sarcasm>

Also, a last note of advice/warning inspired by my experience as a cheerleader a couple of years ago:

Happy Readathon! What are your plans for the big day?

Comments on this entry are closed.

  • Marieke October 8, 2010, 6:40 am

    All nonfiction! That would fry my brain. I do actually have 84 Charing Cross Road on my pile for Saturday too (but audio). Enjoy being couch-bound with all your books!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:39 pm

      Marieke: I saw your comment right before I left this morning, and grabbed a fiction book off my TBR just in case the nonfiction does start to fry my brain. We’ll see – I’m obviously hoping it won’t!

  • Amy October 8, 2010, 7:40 am

    What a great list of books! And a town called Ames!!! My nickname from a lot of people is Ames, so it’s like a town with my name. I really must visit there some time. Happy reading!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:38 pm

      Amy: That’s so funny! I wonder if they have shirts that just say Ames on them… my sister visited Kansas University awhile ago and got my a t-shirt that said KU on it, my initials, and I sort of love it 🙂

  • Steph October 8, 2010, 9:04 am

    I think you have the most eclectic pile of books for the readathon that I’ve seen. I predict great reviews in your future! Good luck and happy reading!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:36 pm

      Steph: It is pretty eclectic, but that’s how a lot of my nonfiction reading is. I like that a lot. Fingers crossed they are all awesome.

  • Anastasia October 8, 2010, 9:15 am

    Bookmark Now I remember did go by very fast, although I think I skimmed one essay because it was boring. 😀 Have fun in Iowa, and good luck in the ‘thon!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:35 pm

      Anastasia: Thanks! I think it’ll be a nice book if I get to it, I love essays.

  • Trisha October 8, 2010, 9:33 am

    I am so happy you have Writers Gone Wild! I just got that one as well. On a side note, I have family in Iowa, one of whom lives in Ames to attend Iowa State.

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:34 pm

      Trisha: Wow, those are two coincidences! Or not really, since I think you’re the one who recommended my blog as one for Writers Gone Wild 🙂 The Ames one, that’s a real coincidence.

      • Trisha October 10, 2010, 11:18 am

        Yes I did! But that was so quick I figured I had recommended you after you had already received a request!

        • Kim October 11, 2010, 7:07 pm

          Trisha: Nope, the one that mentioned you was the first. But they overnighted the book to me, so I got it really fast after that.

  • Erin October 8, 2010, 9:35 am

    I’ve chosen almost all fiction, plus a book of essays, because nonfiction sucks a lot of energy out of me. It’s my first time participating in any aspect of the Readathon, so I thought I’d start easy! I’m happy so many people are asking that word verification be turned off. I’m cheering for a bit, and I can absolutely see how that would drive a cheerleader batty.

    Have an excellent time with your sister!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:33 pm

      Erin: I think it just depends what type of reader you are, if fiction or nonfiction works. I find a lot of nonfiction relaxing, but that’s just me. Yay for no word verification! And most of all, have a ton of fun! Cheerleading is a blast.

  • Thomas at My Porch October 8, 2010, 10:16 am

    84 Charing Cross Road is delight to read. Perfect choice for a read-a-thon. And then you need to rent the film. It is a wonderful adaptation with Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins.

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:32 pm

      Thomas at My Porch: I love both of those actors, awesome. Can’t wait to watch the movie.

  • Care October 8, 2010, 2:32 pm

    I’ve been to Ames! Have fun reading. The Hanff is just delightful. I think the essay route might be excellent strategy for ReadAThon. CHEERS!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:31 pm

      Care: That’s random! I’m hoping the essays will be good for late at night, or just for reading and talking with Jenny while we’re hanging out.

  • Stephanie October 8, 2010, 4:16 pm

    Yay for the read-a-thon! I really want to read 84 Charing Cross Rd.

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:30 pm

      Stephanie: I’m really looking forward to that one. I might save it for late at night because I’m confident it’ll be enjoyable.

  • Shelley (Book Clutter) October 8, 2010, 6:09 pm

    I’ve got 84, Charing Cross Road on my pile too, and it’s high priority for me so I’m pretty sure I’ll get it read. It looks as though then I will have a play and a movie to watch!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:30 pm

      Shelley: Yeah, the play was so fun! I haven’t seen the movie, but I really want to. I hope it’s on Netflix.

  • Christy (A Good Stopping Point) October 8, 2010, 6:47 pm

    I don’t have any non-fiction slated for the read-a-thon – mostly because non-fiction usually takes me longer to read. Or at least it feels that way to me. I look forward to hearing about how these books work for you tomorrow!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:28 pm

      Christy: Yeah, we’ll see. I don’t think I’ve ever read for long periods of the Read-a-Thon before, so I’m not sure how nonfiction will work out. A couple are good narrative books, which should be fine if the other ones don’t.

  • Amanda October 8, 2010, 7:32 pm

    LOL Love the cartoon! 😀

    I read 84 Charing Cross Road for Readathon last October and it was a perfect read.

    I love the idea that you’ll be hanging out with your sister while doing this, even if she has to do homework. Sorry about the sprained ankle though. 🙁

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:27 pm

      Amanda: The bottom picture is one that one of my college roommates made for me when we first discovered the South Park character creator. I sometimes put it as my Facebook profile when I’m feeling a little crazy 🙂

      I’m excited to be hanging out with Jenny, too. I think we’ll get some reading done before we go hang out in Iowa. I’m bummed about the ankle too, but at least it’s an excuse to spend the day reading.

  • Lisa October 8, 2010, 9:28 pm

    Good reminder about the word verification–need to go take care of that!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:41 pm

      Lisa: Yay, glad to remind you. I remember the year I was just a cheerleader it drove me batty! Too many random letters when your eyes are already tired 🙂

  • Ash October 8, 2010, 9:31 pm

    You are 25 minutes away from me right now.

    And my word verification is off so, hopefully you won’t get too frazzled!

    • Kim October 8, 2010, 9:42 pm

      Ash: That’s crazy! Where do you live? And yay for no word verification – it’s such a pain when cheerleaders are trying to leave a million comments.

  • softdrink October 8, 2010, 10:38 pm

    Hell yeah on the effects of word verif!!

    And 84 Charing Cross Road is an excellent choice.

    • Kim October 11, 2010, 7:08 pm

      softdrink: I made that comic in a fit of word verification induced madness – it’s for real 🙂

  • Memory October 9, 2010, 1:40 am

    You’ve reminded me that I want to read 84 CHARING CROSS ROAD. I’ve actually had it on my must-read list for a loooong time now, but I always forget to search for it at the library. I must remedy this.

    • Kim October 11, 2010, 7:08 pm

      Memory: I wasn’t going to review 84 Charing Cross Road, but I want everyone to read it and maybe a review will remind people. It’s such a lovely book.

  • Buried In Print October 9, 2010, 7:55 am

    Oh, my, if I had to pack my possible reads for this Read-A-Thon… ::looks nervous:: You’ve done a great job of narrowing down your choices I think. Hope you find their pages turn quickly!

    • Kim October 11, 2010, 7:09 pm

      Buried in Print: The packing was a little frustrating. After I picked the books, I kept thinking of more I wish I’d added. But then I only read three, so I think I had plenty of variety 🙂

  • Care October 19, 2010, 10:53 am

    How’s The Shallows? I really wanted to get to Nicholas Carr’s event at BBF but it was full when we got there. I just *KNEW* you had read something they were going to discuss!!!! (sorry, I missed it.)

    • Kim October 20, 2010, 8:29 pm

      Care: The Shallows was fine, I got sort of distracted from it and haven’t read much for like a month. It’s on my nook, so I always forget about it. It would have been cool to see him speak, but Carr has done a lot of recent media essays that cover some of the same topics, I think.