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July 2018 24in48 Readathon: Wrap-Up!

This past weekend, I participated in the 24in48 Readathon. I posted about what the readathon is and how I was heading into it on Friday, before it started. If you’re interested in more details about the readathon, you can check out that post.

Here’s a little reminder of my TBR stack for the weekend.

I never intended to read all of them, because that would have been impossible, but I wanted to have a lot to choose from so I could mood read as I went.

So, how did it go?!

This is a wrap-up post, so of course it’s all about how the weekend went. Obviously, the overarching goal of the readathon is to read 24 out of 48 hours. Spoiler alert, I didn’t read for that long. But it was still an awesome weekend! So let’s get into it.

Duration and Quantity

In total from Friday at 9pm to Sunday at 9pm, I read for 17 hours and 27 minutes! During that time, I read 3.5 books. Here’s my stack, basking in this morning’s sun:

No idea what WordPress did to the quality of this photo, but if you want to see it in its full glory, you can visit my bookstagram @paperbackpatronus.

I was pretty happy with how long I managed to spend reading. I did the 24in48 Readathon for the first time in January, and I read for 13 hours. So I bested that time by 4.5 hours this go around!

A breakdown of the order of operations

I started the 24in48 weekend off by finishing the last 3/4 of Austen’s Northanger Abbey. I was only intending to read a chapter at a time, as I tend to do with classics, but I really got into it about halfway through and just kept going. I loved it, and there will be a review up soon!

Then I found myself inspired by a newfound Bookstagram friend and fellow ‘thonner, Kasturi (@bruadarachreads) to start Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, which serendipitously also happened to be in his TBR stack. I finished that one on Saturday night and wanted something a bit lighter. So, I started with the children’s series and began The Diamond in the Window.

After finishing the children’s book on Sunday morning, I found myself really wanting to finish the Rebel of the Sands series, so I grabbed Hero at the Fall from my stack. I ended the ‘thon at 9pm Sunday having read almost exactly half of it.

Things that weren’t so great

I’ll start with these, so I can end the post on a more positive note.

First, I felt super sick on Sunday, so that was probably the low point of the readathon for me. It was also really hot in the apartment, so I was pretty uncomfortable all around. I was literally sitting on my chair on top of a towel, soaking through my clothes and feeling crappy. It made it hard to focus on reading, and I ended up watching a lot of rugby instead.

Also, I didn’t meet the 24-hour target. I hadn’t really been expecting to anyway, but I’m a super competitive person. I also didn’t win any door prizes, sad face. Again, not unexpected.

Finally, the 7s Rugby World Cup was a good and a bad thing. Going into this weekend, I was incredibly excited to have the weekend absolutely full of two of my most favourite things: reading and rugby. But looking back, I think I would have preferred having the two on separate weekends. I stopped reading completely to watch each of Canada’s games, which was fine and in the plan.

However, I had all the other games on in the background, and it meant that I wasn’t entirely focused on either rugby or reading. I think I would have finished more books if I hadn’t been watching rugby in the background, because I would have read faster. Oh well, it is what it is! I have no control over scheduling for either of these events, obviously. And I still really enjoyed both watching hours and hours of amazing rugby and reading for hours and hours. Which brings me to the great stuff!

Things that were awesome

First, I read 3.5 books in a weekend! In the summer, I generally try to read a book a day (unless I’ve got events or things going on) because I have so much free time. So to read almost double that was a great accomplishment for me.

I also got to make connections with a couple of awesome people through the readathon, Kaitlin (@bookedandready) and Kasturi (who I mentioned above). I have been virtual friends with Kaitlin through Bookstagram for a while now, and I discovered that she was also doing the readathon. Kasturi found me somehow on Bookstagram shortly before the ‘thon, and we decided to share in the experience together as well, with Kaitlin! It was totally organic and fantastic. We supported each other throughout the weekend, tagging each other in posts and stories, and generally motivating each other to keep going.

Last, I had a serendipitous reading moment. I posted about it on Bookstagram already, but it needs to be shared here too! On Saturday night, I finished Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, and it was past my bedtime, but I really wanted to start the first few pages of a new book anyway. As I outlined above, I started The Diamond in the Window. As it turns out, both authors chose a Ralph Waldo Emerson poem for their epigraphs.

The epigraphs in “Miss Peregrine’s…” and “The Diamond in the Window.”

Also, Emerson features heavily in both books! How cool is that? I love book magic like this.

So that’s a wrap on 24in48 for 2018!

The next 24in48 Readathon is scheduled for January 26-27, 2019. I can’t wait!

Happy Reading!

– Paperback Patronus

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July 2018 24in48 Readathon: TBR!

The 24in48 Readathon is a competition/challenge that occurs twice a year. It started in 2015, but I heard about it for the first time back in January, which is when I participated for the first time.

How does 24in28 work?

The basic premise is a challenge to read for a full 24 hours out of a 48-hour period. Officially, the readathon starts at 12:00 AM on Saturday, and ends at 11:59 pm on Sunday, EST. For me, that means official time starts at 9:00 PM on Friday, and ends at 8:59 PM on Sunday, as I’m on PST.

You can track your reading however you want, usually with a timer on your phone or another type of timing device. There’s no way for the hosts of the readathon to really check if you actually read the whole 24 hours, but us bibliophiles tend to be pretty honest characters, in my humble, rose-coloured glasses opinion.

But… Why?!

That’s a question many people have asked me, including my husband and friends.

My main answer is because it’s fun! I love an excuse to read all weekend long without feeling guilty for not doing anything else. Although I will be doing other things – I’ve got plans to meet a friend who’s in Vancouver for a visit with her baby, and the hubs and I have a standing weekend pitch & putt date. It’s good to take breaks and move your body!

Also…

The reason you need to time yourself (other than the excitement of a challenge, of course) is that if you manage to read for a full 24 hours, you’re eligible for prizes! Us bibliophiles also really love giveaways, including books, bookish merch, and credits to book stores. They also do photo challenges using the hashtag #24in48, which is super fun and helps you to stay engaged with the readathon all weekend long.

Another thing that I find helps me stay engaged with the readathon is to set a TBR. I choose a huge one, just like I do for my monthly TBRS. This helps me stay motivated, and it also gives me a lot of options to mood read from in the event that I get bored or that I am not enjoying a particular book. I do not expect to finish all these books.

So, without further ado, here’s my July 2018 24in24 Readathon TBR!

A photo, first:

Here’s the list:

  • Northanger Abbey – Jane Austen
  • The Hall Family Chronicles, Books 1-6 (entire series) – Jane Langton
    • The Diamond in the Window
    • The Swing in the Summerhouse
    • The Astonishing Stereoscope
    • The Fledgling
    • The Fragile Flag
    • The Time Bike
  • Hero at the Fall – Alwyn Hamilton
  • Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children – Ransom Riggs
  • P.S. I Still Love You – Jenny Han
  • A Court of Mist and Fury – Stephanie J. Maas
  • A Dance With Dragons – George R. R. Martin

Last, I’m going to give you a few explanations as to the choices I made in building this stack, as I chose it with a lot of intention and purpose.

My Classics Challenge

This was inspired by Whitney of The Unread Shelf Project 2018. She’s been the inspiration for a lot of my reading goals this year, and you’ll see another aspect of that later in this post.

Whitney suggested as a challenge during one month this year (March I think?) to choose a book that’s been on your unread shelf for a really long time with the target of finishing it by the end of the month, and to give it away if you don’t. So, I’ve been trying do this with my classics, because historically I struggle to read them. My goal is to read one per month, and if I don’t finish, I have to give it away. I set a page per day target to help keep me on track. This month’s classic is Northanger Abbey, which I’m already about 1/3 of the way through. I decided to add it to my TBR for the readathon to motivate me to finish it.

The Unread Shelf Project July Challenge: Finish That Series

Something that has helped me determine my TBR for July, and for the 24in28 readathon, is Whitney’s challenge for July, “Finish That Series.” I have a lot of unfinished series. I read 5 books that were part of series on my vacation to Calgary, and now I’ve added a bunch more to this TBR.

I read Traitor to the Throne (review upcoming) in Calgary, and this weekend I hope to finish the trilogy with Hero at the Fall. I’ve been majorly putting off finishing Game of Thrones, so that’s on there too. I read A Court of Thorns and Roses earlier this year and didn’t think it was that amazing, but I’ve heard the series gets way better as you go, so I picked A Court of Mist and Fury too.

I read To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before last summer (incidentally, on my vacation to Calgary) and bought the sequel quite soon after but never got around to it. Now is the time! A bit of fluff as a spacer between some of my heavier choices.

I chose Miss Peregrine’s because I own the series but haven’t started it. Similarly, I chose The Hall Family Chronicles because I read at least the first two books when I was 13 or 14, and then never finished the series, and that cannot stand!

That’s it for now!

Let me know if you’re participating in the readathon in the comments. Make sure you sign up at the website I linked above to make sure you’re eligible for prizes! I’d love to hear what you’re planning to read!

Happy reading!

– Paperback Patronus

 

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My First Read-A-Thon!

This past Saturday, the 13th, my friend on Bookstagram, @yannesreads, hosted a 24-hour read-a-thon.

What’s a read-a-thon, you ask?

You’re asking the right person! Essentially, it’s a set time on a set date in which participants who sign up read as much as they possibly can. In this case, the read-a-thon was 24 hours long. People usually decide between two types of participation.

Type A: Full-Tilt

This type of participant will attempt to read for the entire 24-hours without stopping for sleep. Props to them, I could never do it. I’ve only pulled three all-nighters in my entire almost-27-year lifetime, and each of them destroyed me physically for about a week.

Type B: Passive

This type of participant, aka me, will attempt to read as much as possible during the 24-hour period while still sleeping and doing other regular life activities.

So, how’d it go?

I really enjoyed this. I often have weekend plans to read. However, I more often just get cozy with my face in my phone most of the time. Having the extra motivation of a read-a-thon and posting about it on my Bookstagram really gave me that kick I needed to get off my phone and in between some pages. Here’s what I read!

Books I read during the read-a-thon:

The Graduate – Charles Webb

I started this book on Friday evening and finished it on Saturday, the day of the read-a-thon. My review of this one appeared a few days ago. I won’t spoil it, but it wasn’t very good.

Quiet Girl in a Noisy World: An Introvert’s Story – Debbie Tung

I’ll be posting my review of this graphic novel soon! I LOVED IT. Story of my life.

Braving the Wilderness – Brené Brown

I’ve also read Rising Strong by Brené Brown, and compared to that, this book was a disappointment. Review coming shortly!

Just Little Things – Nancy Vu

This was a lovely little “break book” in between finishing Braving the Wilderness and starting Astrophysics…. It was such a sweet little reminder of all that is good about life. Short review coming soon!

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry – Neil DeGrasse Tyson

I read about half of this book on the read-a-thon day. I finished it two days ago and will be posting a review soon, it was pretty great!

Station Eleven – Emily St. John Mandel

This one I barely started in the evening, but so far it seems like it’s going to be amazing!!!

What’s Next?

I’m glad you asked!! I really enjoyed participating in this read-a-thon, so now I’m planning to host my own! I’m not sure when, because I’ve got a very busy few weeks coming up (hello, parent-teacher!), but all you lovely people who read this blog will be the first to know!

Happy Reading!

– Paperback Patronus