Tuesday, April 21, 2009

4 Mini-Reviews in 4 Sentences

Since I finished 5 books in the read-a-thon, I am now really behind on my reviews. I have been having a difficult time keeping up with my reviews in the past several months, so I'm going to be VERY brief--I'm going to try to do each review in only 4 sentences. We'll see how this goes!! (I am going to write a "normal" review for My Antonia since I only read part of it during the read-a-thon, and it is one of my books for the Classics Challenge).




Matrimony by Joshua Henkin

Julian Wainwright is an aspiring writer who falls in love in college. As he matures into a full-fledged adult, his life does not take the path he imagined, but he learns the value of love, trust, friendship and family.

As many people have mentioned in their reviews, this was definitely a character-driven novel, which I really like. The story is fairly slow-paced, but an enjoyable read.
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Fire in the Blood by Irene Nemirovsky

Silvio is an older man who lives in a small French village, and is most content when he is completely alone in his small house with a bottle of wine. He tries not to remember the love from his youth, and what secrets surround that love--secrets only known to himself and one other.

I was disappointed in this novel, but maybe because I was reading it quickly during the read-a-thon. I felt no connection with any of the characters and though I was surprised to read the unexpected ending, I was a bit glad the novel was over.

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The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett

A very short tale about how the Queen of England accidentally checks out a book from a travelling library and her life and habits change dramatically. Her advisers don't know what has gotten into her, and they don't think it's a good idea for the Queen to always have her nose in a book.

Though there are many great bookish quotes, I was also a bit disappointed in this book as well. Though I love reading myself, so I can understand what it is like to want to do nothing else but read, I did not really find this book to be amusing or thought-provoking. (Sorry)
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Stardust by Neil Gaiman

Tristran Thorn is a young man who will do anything to capture the heart of the beautiful Victoria Forester. When he and Victoria see a falling star one evening, Tristran makes a daring promise that he will go through the forbidden gap in the Wall to find the fallen star and bring it back, if Victoria in turn will give him a kiss and her hand.

Stardust has a bit of everything that makes a story fun to read and memorable--adventure, magic, betrayal, a hero and love. This is my first Gaiman book, and it will not be my last!

Whew--I did it! It is hard to be so brief because I have a lot more to say about several of these books. I think most of them have been reviewed about a million times though, so I probably don't have anything new to say!

All four books completed April 18-19, 2009
Number of pages: Matrimony-291; Fire in the Blood-138; The Uncommon Reader-120; Stardust-333

Sunday, April 19, 2009

RAT: Hour 24 and End of the Event Meme

It is now 6:20, and I'm not going to start a new book. I'll do the survey, see if anyone else is still awake, then go to bed myself! This has been a GREAT read-a-thon! Thank you to the hostesses and cheerleaders!! Now I just have to get caught up writing the reviews for all 5 books I finished.

These are my final numbers:
Total number of pages: 1050
Amount that will be donated to FirstBook: $52.50
Total time spent reading: 860 minutes
Total time spent blogging: 375 minutes

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1. Which hour was most daunting for you? probably 18 and 19
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? Stardust was a good choice. The Glass Castle would be a good one as well.
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? having a list of mini-challenge ahead of time would be helpful
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? The 3 hostess did SUCH a great job organizing the entire event!
5. How many books did you read? 5--but I had already read about 1/3 of the first book
6. What were the names of the books you read? My Antonia, Matrimony, Fire in the Blood, The Uncommon Reader, Stardust
7. Which book did you enjoy most? Stardust
8. Which did you enjoy least? Fire in the Blood
9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? n/a
10. 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 in the read-a-thon as a reader again!

R-A-T: Hours 22 & 23

My cat FINALLY jumped up on my lap to cuddle with me (at 5am). She's been in and out of the living room all day! I just finished Stardust, so I'm not really sure what to do. I'm going to spend some time blog hopping and seeing who is still awake. After that, there will be less than an hour left--should I start another book? It seems a little ridiculous to be up for 23 1/2 hours, but at the same time, starting another book seems a little ridiculous as well! Maybe there will be a end of the event mini-challenge that I can do! Anyways...I'm very rambly...I'm really not at all tired right now. I have that weird hungry-ish late night eating feeling though. Do you know what I'm talking about? I'm not actually hungry...anyways...REALLY rambly...

Number of pages since last update: 150
Total number of pages: 1050 (yay! 50 pages over my goal!)
Number of books completed: 5
Time spent reading since last update: 78 min
Total time spent reading: 860 min (14.33 hours)
Time spent blogging since last update: 30 min
Total time spent blogging: 345 minutes (5.75 hours)
Mini-challenges completed: 4--intro meme, You tube video challenge, non-fiction question, mid-event survey

Is anyone else awake??

R-A-T: Hours 20 & 21

So it is 3:45 am here right now. It's funny how noticeable all the little noises around the house are at this hour. I'm still fairly awake-feeling, but my right eye is very stingy. I keep closing it and reading out of only my left eye. It's probably going to get mad at me too! I'm really liking Stardust, and it's moving very quickly. I'm not too far away from my 1000 page goal!

Number of pages since last update: 151
Total number of pages: 900
Number of books completed: 4
Time spent reading since last update: 87 min
Total time spent reading: 782 min
Time spent blogging since last update: 30 min
Total time spent blogging: 315 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 4--intro meme, You tube video challenge, non-fiction question, mid-event survey

R-A-T: Hours 18 & 19

">Fox Video

For some reason, this video made me laugh until I cried. I don't think it's supposed to be funny, but it was just very unexpected! Maybe you'll think it's funny, or maybe just interesting, but either way...it's a fun 60 seconds!

I'm feeling pretty awake, but my hubby just went to bed (at 1:30 am), and I know lots of others have gone to bed, so this is when it starts to feel a little lonely for me. I just started Stardust, so hopefully that will be an engaging read.


Number of pages since last update: 111
Total number of pages: 749
Number of books completed: 4
Time spent reading since last update: 75 min
Total time spent reading: 695 min
Time spent blogging since last update: 25 min
Total time spent blogging: 285 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 4--intro meme, You tube video challenge, non-fiction question, mid-event survey

Saturday, April 18, 2009

R-A-T: Hours 16 & 17

Well it's almost midnight here, and even with my fun IHOP break, I'm feeling a little restless. I keep putting my book down and just staring at the wall. Hopefully that will go away soon. I finished Fire in the Blood, and have moved onto An Uncommon Reader. It is nice and short, so that will feel good to finish a book quickly!

Number of pages since last update: 96
Total number of pages: 638
Number of books completed: 3
Time spent reading since last update: 70 min
Total time spent reading: 620 min
Time spent blogging since last update: 40 min
Total time spent blogging: 260 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 4--intro meme, You tube video challenge, non-fiction question, mid-event survey

I'm planning to post a funny 60 second YouTube video on my next update. I actually don't think it is intended to be funny, but for some reason, I think it's hilarious! Is everyone still awake and reading??

R-A-T: Hours 13-15 and Mid-Event Survey




I just had a very eventful hour 14, as I met up with Trish, Kari and Krystal (our unofficial cheerleader!) at IHOP. Blueberry pancakes=yummy deliciousness! We felt a little silly with our books and cameras, but our server was very kind in taking our pictures! It was a little difficult to concentrate on reading, as I tend to talk A LOT, and there was music playing, plus people to watch, but it was fun and a good break from being at home! I feel very wide awake now, thanks to the 2 1/2 cups of coffee.
My updated stats from the last post are:

Number of pages since last update: 96
Total number of pages: 567
Number of books completed: 1
Time spent reading since last update: 70 min
Total time spent reading: 550 min
Time spent blogging since last update: 35 min
Total time spent blogging: 220 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 4--intro meme, You tube video challenge, non-fiction question, mid-event survey
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Mid-Event Survey:
1. What are you reading right now? Fire in the Blood by Irene Nemirovsky
2. How many books have you read so far? this is my 3rd
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? reading The Uncommon Reader
4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day? nope
5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those? I've had almost zero interruptions all day. Hubby has been very considerate and has been outside or in the garage working on various projects. He is actually reading right now!
6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? how quickly the time is going!
7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? Everything has been really great, and I only have one suggestion. It would be helpful to have a list of the mini-challenges ahead of time, to make sure not to miss any.
8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year? I can't think of anything at the moment--maybe go to bed earlier the night before
9. Are you getting tired yet? not yet...but I've had quite a bit of caffeine
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? having a spreadsheet to keep track of pages, time spent reading and blogging, mini-challenges, etc. is really helpful. I don't know how I would keep track without it!