Dewey's April 2015 Readathon Complete Post: All the Happenings from This Wonderful Day

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

I am reading from North Carolina in the awesome USA!

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

All of them of course!

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

Reese's Pieces

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

I am a biology graduate student that blogs about books in her free time. I am also a Christian, so I read a lot of christian fiction. I also love reading clean YA, children's novels, fantasy, and clean adult romance novels.

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?

I enjoyed the readathon so much last year that I think I'll do exactly the same: have fun :)

Hour 2 Mini Challenge: Classic Words of Wisdom

This hour's mini challenge is hosted by A Literary Odyssey and the challenge can be found here. Here is a quote about this hours challenge:

 So, for this challenge, you need to create a post highlighting your favorite "Classic Words of Wisdom" and then explain their meaning to you.

For this challenge, I thought of one of my favorite authors, C.S. Lewis. Here is one of my favorite quotes by him:

I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else. 

Hour 3 Mini Challenge: 4 Seasons 4 Books

The hour 3 mini challenge is hosted by Bart's Bookshelf and the challenge can be found here. In this challenge, you have to represent the four seasons with four books. Here is my entry:

#readathon hour 3 mini challenge. The bottom 2 are on my TBR for today :)

A photo posted by Jessica Bradley (@blog_gal) on Apr 25, 2015 at 7:20am PDT

Hour 7 Mini-Challenge

This challenge can be found here. For this challenge, I had to find 3 book covers: one with a tree, one with snow, and one with a weapon. Here is what I found:

#readathon #minichallenge Weapon: light saber from The Strange Case of Origami yoda Tree: background of The Sinners Garden Snow: cover of Son

A photo posted by Jessica Bradley (@blog_gal) on Apr 25, 2015 at 11:09am PDT

Mid-Event Survey
1. What are you reading right now?

I am currently in the middle of three books:

• The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger
• The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
• Son by Lois Lowry

2. How many books have you read so far?

I have read

• Spiderwick Chronicles 1 and 2 (Children's Fiction)
• The Care and Feeding of Sprites (Part of Spiderwick Chronicles)
• Amulet, Vol. 1 (Graphic Novel)
• Fairy Tales (Graphic Novel)

So I have read 5 books all together.

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?

I am really looking forward to Son by Lois Lowry.

4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?

Yes, I have been taking breaks and spending time with my husband. It is a great time to rest the eyes and I enjoyed it.

5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?

I am surprised by how much people are talking on Twitter. It is the best part of the readathon!



Ongoing Reading Progress

• Completed The Spiderwick Chronicles: The Field Guide (Book 1, 107 pages)
• Completed Amulet, Vol. 1 (185 pages)
• Completed The Spiderwick Chronicles: The Seeing Stone (Book 2, 108 pages)
• Completed The Care and Feeding of Sprites from the Spiderwick Chronicles (35 pages)
• Completed Fairy Tales, Vol. 4 (174 pages)
• Completed The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger (141 pages)
• Read 42 pages of The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neal Gaiman
• Read 47 pages of Son by Lois Lowry

Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon (Saturday, April 25): Reading Goals and TBR Grab Pile

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Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon is coming up very soon! Woohoo! You can sign up for the readathon here. Did you miss my announcement of participation in the readathon, my updated book recommendations for readathons or my post about my overall goals for this readathon?

Today, I am going to talk about my reading goals for this readathon and show you my TBR grab pile. Here are my reading goals:

• Out of these 21 hours that I was awake, I read actively for 8.5 hours. For this readathon, I hope to read actively for at least 10 hours.
• Read 1000 pages. In the october readathon, I read 859 pages (including graphic novels and childrens chapter books). My average reading pace overall was 1.68 pages/minute. By this rate and the additional hours that I plan to read, I should be able to reach this goal.
• Last readathon, I finished 2 adult novellas, 1 graphic novel, and 3 children's novels, for a total of 6 books. This readathon, I hope to finish 7 books.

Now for my TBR grab pile. These are the books that I plan on choosing from during the readathon.  I may grab some other books, but these are the ones that I am particularly interested in at the moment. There are too many in my grab pile to discuss here, so I have created a shelf on Goodreads that can be found here.

Are you signed up for Dewey's 24H Readathon? If not, you can sign up here. Do you want to be a cheerleader? You can learn more about being a cheerleader and how to sign up here. Do you want to host a mini-challenge? You can sign up for hosting a mini-challenge here.

If you are signed up for the read-a-thon, what are your goals?  I would love to hear about your read-a-thon progress during and after the read-a-thon! Comment below or tweet me at @blog_gal.

Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon (April 18, 2015): Overall Goals

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Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon is coming up very soon and there is still time to sign up! You can sign up for the readathon here. Did you miss my announcement of participation in the readathon or my updated book recommendations for readathons?

Today, I am going to talk about my overall goals for the readathon. 

• For the last Dewey's readathon in October, I had a goal of participating in all 24 hours of the readathon. I ended up taking a 3 hour nap during the readathon.  For this readathon, I hope to participate in all 24 hours. 
• I want to cheer as much as possible :)
• Tweet (@blog_gal) updates about my reading progress as much as possible.
• Write a wrap-up post the day after the readathon.
• Track progress on a spreadsheet similar to the one that can be found here.

Are you signed up for Dewey's 24H Readathon? If not, you can sign up here. Do you want to be a cheerleader? You can learn more about being a cheerleader and how to sign up here. Do you want to host a mini-challenge? You can sign up for hosting a mini-challenge here.

If you are signed up for the read-a-thon, what are your goals?  I would love to hear about your read-a-thon progress during and after the read-a-thon! Comment below or tweet me at @blog_gal.

Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon (Saturday, April 25): Updated Book Recommendations for Readathons

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Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon is next weekend and I am ecstatic about it! If you missed my last post about Dewey's readathon, you can find it here. Are you beginning to gather your books for your TBR pile for the readathon? For today's post, I am updating my book recommendations for readathons.  My previous recommendations can be found here. The books below are my additional recommendations.

Firstly, I am going to start with some books that I read during the last Dewey's Readathon. During that readathon, I read a lot of Children's fiction, novellas, and graphic novels. Here are my recommendations from the last readathon.

Children's fiction

Dying to Meet You by Kate Kline is my first recommendation. This is a hilarious children's fiction novel about a boy that moves into a haunted house. This book is written completely in letters and newspaper articles. This was a quick read and I really enjoyed the novel. I gave this book 5/5 stars. You can find my full review for this book here.

Adult Clean Romance Novella

The Year of Weddings novellas are my second recommendation.  The novellas in this series are clean romance novels, each written by a different author. I love novellas for a readathon because I can get a lot of them read and I fell like I have accomplished a lot at the end of the readathon. I have read the first two books in this series, both during the last readathon, and I gave them an average rating of 4.5/5 stars.

Lastly, I would like to recommend two young adult novels and a newly released novella that I have read since the last readathon. These are both full length novels, but they are really engaging and to me were pretty quick reads.

My next recommendation is the Giver Quartet by Lois Lowry. I have read the first three books in this quartet and they were amazing! I gave them an average of 4.7/5 stars. This is an action packed dystopian series with each book having different main characters.  The first book, The Giver, is about Jonas who is in a world where everything is seemingly perfect. There is no war, no fear, and no pain. Jonas is singled out to recieve special training from the Giver, but can he handle all that he has to encounter? You can read my full review of The Giver here.

In Between by Jenny B. Jones is a YA Christian fiction contemporary novel about a girl that is in foster care and is moved to a new foster home in the middle of no where. Filled with both laughter and sentimental moments, In Between is a book that I would recommend to anyone looking for a great, light, inspirational read. This book was also free on Amazon when I purchased it (and it may still be). I gave this book 5/5 stars. You can find my full review here.

12 Hours by Hannah Harvey is a YA contemporary fiction novella (released last week) that occurs two months after Ivy's boyfriend breaks up with her on graduation day with no explanation. The events of the book happen within 12 hours. This is a great, quick (only 65 pages), intense read that would be great for any readathon. My full review can be found here.









Are you signed up for Dewey's 24H Readathon? If not, you can sign up here. Do you want to be a cheerleader? You can learn more about being a cheerleader and how to sign up here. Do you want to host a mini-challenge? You can sign up for hosting a mini-challenge here.

If you are signed up for the read-a-thon, what are your goals?  I would love to hear about your read-a-thon progress during and after the read-a-thon! Comment below or tweet me at @blog_gal.

Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon (April 25th 2015): Announcement of Participation

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Another readathon is coming up soon. It is another Dewey's 24 hour readathon! Woohoo!

Dewey's Readathon lasts for 24 hours and begins at the same time across the world (times canbe found here). It is full of hourly challenges, giveaways, cheerleading (#rahrahreadathon), and lots of reading. You can find more information about this readathon here. I participated in this readathon last October. You can find my posts about the October readathon at the following links:

• Reading Goals for the October Readathon
• Book Recommendations for Readathons
• Overall Goals for the October Readathon
• Opening Meme
• Mid-Event Survey and Progress
• Wrap Up Post and Closing Meme

As you can see, I get very excited about this readathon so I have a lot of exciting posts for the days leading up to the readathon. Here is the outline of the posts that I am planning for before the readathon:

• Updated Book Recommendations for Readathons (Saturday, April 18)
• Overall Goals (Wednesday, April 22)
• Reading Goals and TBR Grab Pile (Friday, April 24)

Are you signed up for Dewey's 24H Readathon? If not, you can sign up here. Do you want to be a cheerleader? You can learn more about being a cheerleader and how to sign up here. Do you want to host a mini-challenge? You can sign up for hosting a mini-challenge here.

If you are signed up for the read-a-thon, what are your goals?  I would love to hear about your read-a-thon progress during and after the read-a-thon! Comment below or tweet me at @blog_gal.

Dewey's Read-a-Thon: Closing Meme and Wrap-Up

End of Event Meme:

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?
I took a 3 hour nap around the beginning of hour 18.
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?
If you like middle-grade, "Dying to Meet You" by Kate Klise was really interesting!  I also loved the first two novellas in the Year of Weddings novella series.
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
I loved the read-a-thon and I cannot think of any ways that it could be improved.
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
I loved being a cheerleader and being cheered.  It was really motivating seeing everyone's progress and having others cheering for you. I would read for about 30 minutes to an hour at a time and then take breaks to cheer others.
5. How many books did you read?
3 middle-grade books, 2 novellas, and a graphic novel
6. What were the names of the books you read?

Middle-grade

• Dying to Meet You by Kate Klise (43 Old Cemetery Road Series, Book 1)
• The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo
• The Tower Treasure (Hardy Boys Series, Book 1)

Novellas

• A December Bride by Denise Hunter (A Year of Weddings Novella Series, Novella 1)
• A January Bride by Deborah Raney (A Year of Weddings Novella Series, Novella 2)

Graphic Novel

• Lola by J. Torres and Elbert Or 

7. Which book did you enjoy most?
I loved all of them except Lola.
8. Which did you enjoy least?
Lola
9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?
It was a lot of fun!  Try to just hang out and chat with others about what they are reading.
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 participate in as many of Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thons as I can.  I would be a reader and a cheerleader.

My goals for this readathon were to read 1 graphic novel, 1 novella, and 1 book I recieved for review.  I completed all these goals and ended up reading actively for 8.5 hours and reading approximately  848 pages. The novellas were e-books and I used the estimated pages from Amazon to determine page counts.  The time that I was not reading I spent cheering others.  I only took a 3 hour nap during the run of the read-a-thon.  I had so much fun and cannot wait for the next Dewey's read-a-thon.

Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon: Mid-Event Survey and Progress

Mid-Event Survey:
1. What are you reading right now?
The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo 2. How many books have you read so far?
I have completed 1 middle-grade paranormal (Dying to Meet You by Kate Klise), 1 clean adult romance novella (A December Bride, Denise Hunter), and one YA graphic novel (Lola by J. Torres and Elbert Or) and I am 3/4 finished with The Tiger Rising, a middle-grade book.  I also DNF a YA graphic novel (Orcs: Forged for War by Stan Nichoils and Joe Flood) after reading 62 pages. 3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?
I am not sure what I am going to read yet.  I am pretty excited to finish the book that I am currently reading though. 4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?
I have taken breaks and had a few interuptions, but I just get back to reading afterwards and do not worry about the time I didn't spend reading or cheering. 5. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?
It surprises me how much time I have spent on Twitter.  I have really enjoyed Tweeting and cheering for others.

It is the half way mark of the read-a-thon and I have read for a total of 4 hours and 6 minutes.  I have also cheered and read others blogs when I was not reading.  I have not spent much of my time today doing things that were not read-a-thon related.  I have read a total of 523 pages so far.

How have you done on the read-a-thon?  Are you having fun?  I'd love to read your comments below :)
 

Dewey's Read-A-Thon: Opening Meme

Opening Meme:

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?
The wonderful state of Georgia in the USA
2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?
I am looking forward to...all of them!
3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?
I do not really have snacks planned out, but I will most likely have my favorite snack: yogurt.
4) Tell us a little something about yourself!
I am a Christian who loves to read fantasy, clean romance stories, and any other clean novel that I can get my hands on :)
5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?
This is my first Dewey's read-a-thon and I am really looking forward to cheering! Go #TeamBronte!

Book Recommendations for Readathons

In honor of Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon this weekend, this post is all about book recommendations that are perfect for read-a-thons.  I have not participated in a 24 hour read-a-thon before, but I have participated in several week (or longer) read-a-thons.

All of the graphic novels based on Ted Dekker books are amazing!  I gave an average of 4.3 to the The Circle graphic novel series (3 volumes) and an average of 4.25 to The Lost Books graphic novel series (4 volumes).  They are all very fast paced Christian fantasy/scifi novels.  Although they are Christian novels, these would be great for fantasy lovers also.

If you love children's fiction, you should check out the Eve Hallows series!  I gave 5 stars to all of these books!  They are a fun addition to your Halloween reads.  Eve has lived in Gravesville (with all the monsters) but has to move to the human world as part of her parent's job relocation and she is not happy.  She has to find a way to adjust to the happiness of the human world and the unusual behaviors that they have.

If you love YA contemporary novels, you should check out Appaloosa Summer.  I gave this book a 5/5 stars.  This was the cutest novel that I have read is a while.  The main character is Meg who is 16 and loves riding horses.  Her horse dies during a show and she has to learn how to deal with the grief.  She tries to escape her grief by working at a B&B over the summer where she meets Jared Strickland who is also grieving from the loss of his father.

A Ripple Effect Romance novella series would be a great choice if you love clean adult romance novels!  Although they can be a little cheesy and predictable, all of these novellas left me with a warm fussy feeling.  They are also great because they are quick reads at around 100-150 pages each.  The first novella is currently free on Amazon and the complete series is $7.99 on Amazon (all e-books).  I gave this 6 book series an average of  4.5/5 stars.

If you are looking for a Christian fiction novel, I would recommend either of William Sirls novels,  The Reason or The Sinner's Garden.  They are both fast-paced and emotion-provoking.  I gave both of these stand-alones 5/5 stars.

Finally, if you enjoy YA paranormal with lots of action packed fighting, I would recommend The Unbounded series!  I have read the first book and I am in the middle of the second one.  I gave the first one 4/5 stars.  These are a little lengthly (over 300 pages) but well worth it!  It is a quick read due to how much action is in the series.

Are you signed up for Dewey's Read-a-Thon?  It is next Saturday (Oct. 18), so there is still plenty of time to sign-up! If you are not signed up and wish to do so, visit the reader's sign-up page. If you are signed up for the read-a-thon, what are your goals?  I would love to hear about your read-a-thon progress during and after the read-a-thon!

Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon (Saturday, October 18th): Reading Goals

It's time for another post about DEWEY'S 24 HOUR READ-A-THON! Can you tell I am excited?

Today's post is about my reading goals.  In case you missed it, I already discussed my overall goals for this read-a-thon.

 My reading goals are not going to be too detailed this go around because I have never participated in a 24 hour read-a-thon before.  I have done a few weekly ones (Bout of Books and such) and also a two week readathon, but never a 24 hour one.  Therefore, I am keeping my goals light this time in order to make sure that I don't push my self beyond my limits and instead let myself have a little fun!

Without further delay, here are my reading goals:

1. Read one graphic novel
2. Read one book that I have received for review
3. Read one novella

That is it!  What do you think?  What are your reading goals for this readathon?  What books would you suggest that I read?  I am hoping to read short-ish books and/or books that are fast paced.
Are you signed up for Dewey's Read-a-Thon?  It is next Saturday (Oct. 18), so there is still plenty of time to sign-up! If you are not signed up and wish to do so, visit the reader's sign-up page. If you are interested in being a cheerleader, please visit this page.  If you are signed up for the read-a-thon, what are your goals?  I would love to hear about your read-a-thon progress during and after the read-a-thon!

If you would like to know my TBR before the read-a-thon, check back on Friday (Oct. 17th).

Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon (Saturday, October 18th): Overall Goals for the Read-a-Thon

It is almost that time again!  Another read-a-thon is coming up next week.  It isn't just any read-a-thon; it is Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-Thon!

I am excited about this read-a-thon not only because I love read-a-thons, but also because I have heard so many people rave about Dewey's Read-a-Thon.  This will be my first 24 hour read-a-thon, so I am excited to be joining this one.











My goals for this read-a-thon are not too detailed since I have never completed a 24 hour read-a-thon before.  Here are my goals:

1. I hope to participate as much as I can throughout the read-a-thon.  My goal as of now is to participate in all 24 hours of the read-a-thon.
2. I have signed up to be a cheerleader for every other hour of the read-a-thon.  I know this is a lot, but one of my favorite aspects about read-a-thons is the community feeling each one brings.  I love to communicate with others and meet more friends.  If you are not sure what I cheerleader is for Dewey's Read-a-Thon, check out this post.
3. I plan to read/eat/nap during the hours that I am not cheerleading.  I hope to read as much as I can during these remaining 12 hours, but I know that I need to take breaks.  I have planned that the hours that I am cheerleading are my break from reading, but we will see.
4. I am going to Tweet about updates after/during the hours that I am reading.  If you want to see my updates on my reading, please follow me at @blog_gal on Twitter.  I would love to hear from all of you during the read-a-thon, so feel free to send me your tweets of encouragement (I will need it!) and your Tweets about progress!
5. Finally, I will be writing a wrap-up post with details about what I accomplished and other happenings of the read-a-thon on the day after the read-a-thon (October 19, 2014).

Are you signed up for Dewey's Read-a-Thon?  It is next Saturday (Oct. 18), so there is still plenty of time to sign-up! If you are not signed up and wish to do so, visit the reader's sign-up page. If you are interested in being a cheerleader, please visit this page.  If you are signed up for the read-a-thon, what are your goals?  I would love to hear about your read-a-thon progress during and after the read-a-thon!

If you would like to about my reading goals for this read-a-thon, check back on my blog on Wednesday (Oct. 15th).  If you would like to know my TBR before the read-a-thon, check back on Friday (Oct. 17th).

Travel the World in Books Readathon Wrap-up

I did not read much for the Travel the World in Books readathon.  I had some books that I had on my plate to review that were written by authors from the US.  Here is what I accomplished:

• 78 pages of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• Participated in the create your own book map challenge
• Signed up for the giveaway associated with the read-a-thon and won a book!
• Chatted with new people on Twitter

It was a fun two weeks, but I wish I had had more time to read for this read-a-thon.

For more information on the read-a-thon, follow this link :)

Travel the World in Books Read-a-thon Challenge: Make Your Own Book Map

Today's challenge was to use Google Maps to create a book related map of your own.  This mini-challenge was hosted by guiltless reading.  I created a map showing the birth places of my favorite authors.  Here it is:






This was an incredibly fun challenge!  Thank you for hosting this challenge, guiltless reading!

Travel the World in Books Read-a-thon: Goals and TBR (September 1-September 14)

 

I am so excited about another read-a-thon that starts this week!  Travel the World in Books Readathon is hosted by Mom's Small Victories, Lost in Books and Savvy Working Girl.  Here is a blurb about the read-a-thon:

Explore countries other than the one you live in. Read as much as you can of books set in a different country or by an author from a different country. Read for your own pleasure or learning, read with your kids or both. Travel the world from the comfort of your own home and learn about different cultures. Expand your horizons and show publishers that #WeNeedDiverseBooks to promote cultural understanding and diversity in our reading. Support diverse authors and books.

Although I do not have very much time to read this week, this read-a-thon seems really unique and interesting so I decided to participate in this read-a-thon.  If you would like to still sign up for this incredible read-a-thon, there is still time.  All that you need to do is follow the link above and follow the instructions.  Here is the schedule for the read-a-thon:

August 29, 2014
* Sign ups are open until the end of the readathon September 14, 2014 at 11:59EST. You must be registered to be eligible for giveaways.
* Link up your readathon goals. This linkup will be open for the duration of the readathon so enter whenever you can.

Monday, September 1, 2014
* Readathon officially begins at 12:00am EST.
* Make Your Own Book Map Mini-Challenge & Giveaway hosted by Guiltless Reading – Start up your own book map using Google Maps … put in some of your past or recent reads. Be creative!
* Giveaways open for registered participants.

Tuesday, September 2, 2014
* Global Reading Exposure Mini-Challenge hosted by GirlXOXO – Share a favorite book that’s set in a different region of the World from where you live.

Wednesday, September 3, 2014
* Interview with Adria J. Cimino, Author of Paris Rue des Martyrs. My review. Giveaway.
* Facebook chat at 9-10pm EST. Questions will be posted on my Facebook page. Respond during the chat or come back later and enter your comments.

Thursday, September 4 2014
* Author interview/guest post to be announced.

Friday, September 5 2014
* Author interview/guest post to be announced.

Saturday, September 6 2014
* Author interview/guest post to be announced.

Sunday, September 7, 2014
* Linkup your first week’s progress

Monday, September 8, 2014
* Author interview/guest post to be announced.

Tuesday, September 9, 2014
* Spine Poetry Mini-Challenge hosted by Lost in Books – Create a poem out of book titles. Share your book stack and poems in the post comments, on your blog or on Instagram using the #TraveltheWorldinBooksRAT hashtag.

Wednesday, September 10, 2014
* Author interview/guest post to be announced.
* Twitter chat at 9-10pm EST. Follow Mom’s Small Victories, Lost in Books and Savvy Working Gal. Use the #TraveltheWorldinBooksRAT hashtag.

Thursday, September 11, 2014
* Book Scavenger Hunt Mini-Challenge hosted by me, Mom’s Small Victories. Find books from your TBR or online that fulfill the hunt requirements. Share in the comments, on your blog or on Instagram using the #TraveltheWorldinBooksRAT.

Friday, September 12, 2014
* Author interview/guest post to be announced.

Saturday, September 13, 2014
* Author interview/guest post to be announced.

Sunday, September 14, 2014
* Readathon and giveaways officially end at 11:59pm EST.
* Linkup your wrap up post showing us what you read and accomplished. Linkup will be open until Tuesday, September 16th.
* Take our feedback survey to let us know what you’d like for future events.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014
* Giveaway winners will start being notified via email.

I am not going to be able to read much for this read-a-thon as I am really busy this week, but I hope to read at least one book.  Here it goes!

• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
• Set in UK
• J.K. Rowling is from the UK
• Kingmaker, Kingbreaker by Karen Miller
• Written by an author from Vancouver, Canada

Bout of Books Wrapup and Day 7

On the last day of Bout of Books 11, here is the progress that I made:

• I read the last 122 pages of Amity of the Angelmen and finished this book.
• I read all of Asher of the Angelmen by T.C. Slonaker.  This book was 226 pages.

 As for my wrapup, let us look at my goals and whether I accomplished those:

1. Read at least 1 book that I have received for review

• Amity of the Angelmen by T.C. Slonaker
• Asher of the Angelmen by T.C. Slonaker

2. Finish at least 3 books throughout the week

• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
• Amity of the Angelmen by T.C. Slonaker
• Asher of the Angelmen by T.C. Slonaker

3. Participate in all 3 Twitter chats

• I participated in 1.5 of the Twitter chats

4. Participate in at least 5 Daily Challenges

• Participated and hosted the Create a Sentence Challenge
• Participated in the Like This, Try This Challenge
• Participated in the 5 Books Challenge

5. Chat on Twitter everyday using the #boutofbooks

• I did do this goal! :)

Now let's look at the details of what I have read this week:

Books finished: 3

• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
• Amity of the Angelmen by T.C. Slonaker
• Asher of the Angelmen by T.C. Slonaker

Pages read:801

Personal Goals Completed: 3/5

Bout of Books Challenge: 5 Books

Today is the last day of Bout of Books 11 :(

Today, I am doing a challenge hosted by Falling Down the Book Hole.  I am doing a challenge in which you have to choose 5 books that you would take with you in a post-apocalyptic situation.  Here is the situation:

It is 11:00 PM on a Sunday night. You are laying in bed thinking about all of the things you must do the next day. Tasks of the coming days consume your thoughts and while your mind is somewhere else you are caught off guard by a flash in the sky that is followed by a large wailing screech that pierces the air and shatters your bedroom window. Slowly you move to the window and what you see catches your breathe and causes you to stumble back a few steps. The aliens (at least you think they are aliens) have began to enter the city and destroy everything that is in their path. Through the window your view is consumed with destruction, screaming people and large flames that are dancing across the city at a fast pace. You notice that the creatures are heading in your direction and you realize you probably have about fifteen minutes before they reach your home. That means you have only about ten minutes to gather your belongings and escape before you are caught in the attack from the aliens invading the city.

 The 5 books that I would take with me in this situation are:

1. The Bible- This is the most important book that I own.  God can speak to me through the Bible and give me advise on what to do.
2. The Reason by William Sirls- This is one of my favorite contemporary Christian novels.  This book would remind me of how much God truly loves me and would comfort me in my times of trouble.
3. The Sinner's Garden by William Sirls- Seriously, William Sirls is an amazing author.  I would also take this book because it would remind me of how God can speak to us through a variety of ways.
4. Appaloosa Summer by Tudor Robins- This has to be one of my favorite contemporary novels.  It would give me that warm fuzzy feeling that I would need in order to not stress and to think clearly.
5. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling-  I love all of the Harry Potter novels, but seeing as this is a battle between the aliens and us, I would want to keep my book carrying weight to a minimal so I chose the lightest book in this series.

This was a really fun challenge!  I hope that you will also participate in it.  What books would you bring with you?

Bout of Books Updates Days 5 and 6 (Friday and Saturday)

I started another book on Friday and also got some more reading done for college.  Yay!  Here is my progress:

• I read the first 37 pages of Amity of the Angelmen by T.C. Slonaker.  I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review and I am loving this book so far.
• I read 16 pages of of my microbiology textbook, Brock Biology of Microorganisms (14th edition).

Today (Saturday), I read some more of Amity of the Angelmen and read some textbooks and scientific papers for college.  Here is my progress:

• I read 10 pages of a scientific paper (The Timing of Injuries and Manner of Death: Distinguishing among Antemortem, Perimortem and Postmortem Injuries by Norman J. Sauer).
• I read 25 pages of a text book for class (Questions and Answers: A Guide to Fitness and Wellness by Liguori and Carroll-Cobb).
• I read 80 pages of Amity of the Angelmen.

Bout of Books Day 4 Update (Thursday, August 21)

I finished a book today!  Finally!  I am proud to say that I am making some progress on re-reading the Harry Potter series.  Here is all I accomplished today:

• I read 73 pages of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling, completing the book.
• I completed a challenge (Like This, Try This)
• I emailed the winner's of the challenge that I hosted; please check your email, Mandy Zani.

Bout of Books Challenge: Like This, Try This

Today's Bout of Books Challenge is "Like This, Try This" and it is hosted by Writing My Own Fairy Tale.  Basically, all you have to do is recommend a book based on a TV show, movie, another book, or book genre.

Here is my recommendation:

If you like Clean YA Contemporaries, try: 

Bout of Books Day 3 Update (Wednesday, August 20)

I had a pretty great day of reading today.  I read a total of 118 pages today giving me a total of 212 pages for the week. Here is what I accomplished today:

• I read 44 pages of one text book (Skeletal Trauma by Kimmerle and Baraybar).
• I also read 8 pages from another text book (The 14th edition of Microorganisms by Madigan, Martinko, Bender, Buckley, and Stahl).
• I read 66 pages of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling (almost done!).
• I hosted a challenge :)
• I participated in a Twitter chat.  Here is my favorite conversation from that chat:

Q4. You’re being written into a book as a character. What type of character would you be and why? #boutofbooks
— Kelly Rubidoux (@soulswallo) August 21, 2014

#boutofbooks A4: A dragon, I would be the dragon
— Jessica Bradley (@blog_gal) August 21, 2014

@jljaina haha we can both be dragons! but I call using the humans as a toothpick! #boutofbooks
— Jessica Bradley (@blog_gal) August 21, 2014

@blog_gal Go get those humans! #boutofbooks
— Jay Riv (@jljaina) August 21, 2014