End of Read-a-Thon Survey

Each year of the read-a-thon, I think "Next year, I'll get a chance to participate". I never do get to read, but I did get to cheer this year. Only for about an hour at the beginning. And the final 8 hours or so. But it's been a lot of fun, even if I didn't get to spend as much time as I would have liked. But I thought I would finish off with the Ending Survey:


1. Which hour was most daunting for you? Since I'm a third shifter, the first couple of hours were the worst. I hadn't been to bed yet!! These last few hours, I've been wide awake!

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? This year has been such a great year of reading for me. I would suggest quick, fast-paced reads like The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and The Knife of Never Letting Go. Books that make your heart almost stop!

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? Nope. From what I saw, the read-a-thon was a total success!

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? Everything!!

5. How many books did you read? Only a cheerleader. I did finish 3 short stories tonight though!

6. What were the names of the books you read? short stories from John Connolly's Nocturnes

7. Which book did you enjoy most? N/A

8. Which did you enjoy least? N/A

9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? Have fun! Visit as many blogs as you can....and try to visit new-to-you blogs. It's always fun meeting new people!

10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? I will always participate in same way, shape or form. If I could be a reader, I definitely would do it. But just cheerleading has been a lot of fun. Hopefully, I made at least one person smile tonight. If so, my work here is done!

Library Loot, a Couple of ARC's and a Cheerleader....Again!

Every since our library system went online, I've been grabbing books left and right. It is just so easy to log on to the system, look up the books that I'm interested in, and click that little button that says "hold". Now, each week, one of the friendly librarians call me and say my holds have come in. I have books waiting for me. When I had to ask someone to order the books for me, I had far fewer ILL books checked out. Sometimes, I think that would be better. I'm not the quickest reader these days. Just not enough time. And yet, I still have over 40 books checked out from the library!! Crazy, I tell you. Just crazy!

But some are must have's. Others are whims. And some, I've been waiting on for awhile. So without further adieu, this week's library loot:

First and foremost, is The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness. I debated for about a minute on requesting this book. It's the sequel to The Knife of Never Letting Go. But as much as I want to read this one, I'm worried that I'll be even more uptight once I finish. I mean, what will I do till the trilogy is finished??? How will I ever sleep at night?? But, in the end, I couldn't wait. Had to order it right away.

Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff is actually book 1 in a trilogy of books. Because book 2 is on the list of Michael Printz Award books, I figured I'd better read Book 1 first! It is one of my big quests to read every book on this list by the end of next year!

The Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko is a books about vampires. It is a Russian book that is the first in a series. I'm reading it A. for the Orbis Terrarum challenge and B. because it's a vampire book (and do I really need a reason to read a vampire book???)

SOOOO many people have told me that I need to read one of Michelle Moran's books. So, I requested Nefertiti. I love the cover. I love the time period. And hopefully, I will love the book itself!!

The next book is Geektastic: Stories from the Nerd Herd. This is one of those books that I have seen popping up all over the internet. It's a book of short stories by YA authors. And it looks really good. Sounds like a great addition to the "pile"!

Monster by A. Lee Martinez is a total impulse pick-up. You know how I'm distracted by shiny objects? Well, this cover is a total shiny object. I saw it and was captivated!! A cool cover is half the battle. Hopefully the book will be as good as the cover.

Elfland by Freda Warrington is another totally impulse pickup. I was skimming the books in the New Books section of our library, when this one caught my eye. A beautiful cover. A story of faeries. And magic. Couldn't get a book that sounds more perfect!

Cirque du Freak: Book 1 A Living Nightmare by Darren Shan is the first book in the Cirque du Freak series. The kids want to see the movie, The Vampire's Assistant. Figured I might want to read a few of the books and see if I like the series.

Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill is a book I've wanted to read forever. I actually bought it when it was released. Then it was stolen by my brother, and I haven't seen it since! Decided it would be a good book to finish up the RIP challenge....so I just decided to get it from the library. Who knows? Maybe I'll actually see my copy again someday!

Another impulse pickup is Zombie Blondes by Brian James. Isn't that like the creepiest cover??? Besides, it's another zombie book, and right now I'm all about the zombies!!

Fallen by Lauren Kate is an ARC that I received in the mail this week. Not sure if I'll like it. The whole Fallen Angel thing may be getting a bit overdone these days. Let's hope for a better book that Hush, Hush.

The Wrong Mother by Sophie Hannah is another ARC that I received for review. It's a murder mystery/thriller. Looks like it could be good!!

Finally, today is Dewey's Read-a-Thon!! Although I can't participate because of work, I will be cheering y'all along, especially in the wee hours of the night. When you need the most cheering. So, I'm getting my pom poms out....dusting them off, and gearing up for a long night. Good luck to all who are participating!!

Of Read-a-Thons, Work and a Little Sadness.....

Today was the Dewey-inspired 24-Hour Read-a-Thon. (OK, technically, it was yesterday since it's after midnight...but a few hardcore readers are still going!) I SO want to join in this one day, but circumstances have never let me!! The fall is right in the middle of my son's football season. All games are on Saturdays, and usually take up a majority of the day, since it's a travel league. Today, my daughter had a soccer game, and I was scheduled to work....like 15 hours. So while all of you were reading, I was having a Work-a-thon of sorts!

Since I wasn't able to participate, I did want to do a little shout-out to all of you that signed up, and are still reading!! I tried to do a little cheerleading earlier. I'm not really good at it though! I've tried to hit some blogs and leave them comments....and I've also tried to follow some the action on Twitter.

Anyway....Kudos to all of you that participated in one way or another today!! And if you are still readintg, KEEP IT UP!! It's sad that Dewey isn't with us anymore, but a great thing that her legacy has lived on!!

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On a final note, I will probably be off-line for a few days. You all know my grandmother has been sick. Well, she passed away late last night. As sad as I am, I truly know she is in a better place, where there is no sickness or pain. I'll be heading out of town for the visitation, funeral, and family gatherings. Hope to be back on Wenesday morning. I'll try to catch up with all of you then.