End of Year Read-a-Thon

It's almost the end of 2011! Join this leisurely read-a-thon to finish a few more books for the year. We'll be reading from 3 p.m. Central Time on Wednesday December 28 to 3 p.m. on Saturday December 31 (and if people want to go up until the new year, that's fine by me).

This will be a drop-in read-a-thon, meaning you can read and stop in whenever you feel like. So you could read for 20 minutes or (if your ambitious bordering crazy) all 72 hrs--but there's no pressure to do that. And it's up to you how you would like to post/update. In the past we've done books, pages read, time spent reading/posting, food and drinks, and what's been happening during breaks. I won't do full memes this time around, but I'll post at least one question a day for those who like that aspect.

Sign up by posting your name and location. I'll post a list of everyone that's participating. Feel free to leave a link to your challenge thread or blog that might see a post or two about your progress.

Read-A-Thon-ers
Katie (katelisim) -- Minnesota
Kerry (avatiakh) -- Aukland, New Zealand
Ellie (ellipotten) -- England, 75 thread
Brit (weejane) -- Westtown, PA
Jean (majkia) -- Niceville, Florida
Lori (thornton37814) -- TN/MS
Monica (crazy4reading) -- Pennsylvania
Faith (dk_phoenix) -- Ontario
Caroline (cameling) -- Boston, MA
Katie (katiekrug) -- Dallas/Miami
Laura (laurabrook) -- Milwaukee, WI
Heather (souloftherose) -- Hertfordshire, UK
Calm (calm) -- Wales
Genny (gennyt) -- Newcastle, UK
Kelly (VioletBramble) -- Roosevelt Island, NYC
Deborah (cariola) -- Pennsylvania
Cushla (cushlareads) -- Wellington, NZ
Stephanie (srkromer) -- Pennsylvania
Helenoel
Chèli (cyderry) -- Bethesda, MD
elkiedee
Amy (porch_reader) -- Iowa
Darryl (kidzdoc) -- Atlanta
Scott (madpoet) -- Dalian, China
Foggidawn -- Ohio
Morphidae -- Minnesota
Lynda (Carmenere) -- Ohio
Suzanne (Chatterbox) -- Brooklyn
rebeccanyc
Kathy (archerygirl) -- Nova Scotia

I'm in
Kerry -- Auckland, New Zealand (GMT +13) - 19 hours ahead of Central Time so readathon starts 10am Thursday, 29th.
I still have a few books I'd like to read before year's end.

Woohoo! I finally have enough days off for a read-a-thon! AND it's coming right when we have guests in the house, which is the perfect excuse for me to hole up somewhere and ignore them. ;)

I'm Ellie *waves hello to everyone* and I'll reading from freakishly mild England. Can't promise I'll be around for 72 straight hours (though it would be worth it for Katie's sleepy-maniac posts, hehe) but I WILL be around for all three days and very much looking forward to getting some books finished! I still have a couple of blog challenge books, a stack of review books, plus some shiny new Christmas presents, so I've got plenty to be going at!

I'll stick around here, and might also update and ramble a bit more over at my 75-Book thread:
http://www.librarything.com/topic/128821

P.S. I absolutely adore that picture up top! Trees AND book stacks, my favourite things... :D

P.P.S. How many hours difference are there between Central Time and GMT? I'm getting the general idea from various time converters that it's six hours - so I'll be starting at 9pm, does that sound right?

I'll join! I'm in Westtown, PA. I just hope I actually will be able to fit some reading in! Things have been busier than normal around here, even though school has been out. Thanks for setting this up Katie!

I'm in ! Jean in Niceville, Florida

I plan to do some reading during that time period. I will likely have finished my current read before that one begins, but I've got more lined up! I won't be posting every hour, but I'll put in some progress reports!

I'm in too! I have a few ER books to finish plus some library books I need to start on. I also have some gifts that I would like to read too.

Monica from Pennsylvania

Yes Ellie you are correct about the time difference for you.

Welcome all!

Thanks Monica for the time zone knowledge--I'm terrible with it.

Ellie, lucky you with days off. I thought I would have Thursday off, but no, I work everyday of the read-a-thon. So there probably won't be too much crazy from me this time around *le sigh

Oooh! I'm fairly certain I can participate for a good chunk of this! I have a few commitments during this time, but I'll read around them. :) I want to finish three more books before year's end, so this sounds great!

Great picture, Katie.

Count me in please. I'm in Boston, MA .... it will be interesting for me to see how much reading I get to do around the other things that I have on my calendar,such as driving back to Boston from NY, prepping for a dinner party, and spending a girl's afternoon with a couple of friends.

NOOOOOOOO! Oh well, I guess I'll just have to stay up late once or twice for the requisite dose of madness, won't I?

You are welcome Katie. I just did some googling to make sure. I have trouble with time zones too if I am not looking at a map.

I am lucky to be off Friday and I usually get done work by 4 so I should be able to read most of the evenings after work.

The madness will live!!

I'm in! I'm at my mother-in-law's and spend most of my time here reading and on LT anyway.....

Katie from Dallas, Texas but reading from Miami, Florida

Me too! I have to work a little on all three days, but I'd like to get a few ER books read and reviewed, so this is the perfect excuse.

Laura from Milwaukee, WI

I'm in too. I have this week off work and as we have done the rounds of visiting and being visited by family and friends for Christmas I can hopefully put my feet up and read for the rest of the week :-)

Heather from Hertfordshire, UK

I'm in - calm in Wales. I won't be reading straight through but I don't think I've got anything else planned for the rest of the week:)

I'm in for some of it. I'm Genny from Newcastle, UK. My time off officially starts tomorrow, but I'm meant to be driving down to see friends and family from Thursday onwards so my reading time may be limited. HOwever, I may delay departure by one day, and set off on Friday, which would give me all of Thursday.

As well as reading, I have some cataloguing to do, and some reviewing/summarising of the remaining 2011 reads before we start over again in 2012, so some of the time may be spent in other book-related things besides reading, but I do want to get another 3 books read before the end of the year if I'm to reach 120 in total.

I'm in for Thursday and maybe part of Friday. I plan to finish my last two books for 2011 and do laundry before heading to New Jersey for New Years celebrations.

I'm Kelly, from Roosevelt Island, NYC, USA

I'm definitely in!

Deborah from Pennsylvania.

I'm in for some of it. I'm almost internet-less for the next 24 hours but should be around after that. I'll be unpacking boxes and hanging out with my kids so it'll be on and off.

Cushla from Wellington, NZ

Sounds like the perfect way to end the year!

Stephanie from Pennsylvania

Welcome! Looks like we'll have a nice crowd stopping by over the next few days.

Thanks Caroline. It's another image thanks to Google ;)

Ellie, I didn't say I wouldn't be crazy at all. . . just not as much. But I welcome your crazy, and Monica's too. Takes the pressure off a bit if there are a couple of us to spread the requisite amount around.

I'm in for some time. I have three books to go for my 75 book challenge, and had no reading time today.
I'm off work the rest of the week. Have some chores and family activities, but expect to squeak them in.

I'll definitely be a part-timer, but count me in as well. Roni in San Diego, Pacific standard time.

I'm, sure I'll be reading part of that time, so count me in!

I'll be reading in Bethesda MD

I'll join in from late on Thursday night till afternoon/early evening New Year - we'll be going to friends for at least some of New Year's Eve though might see the New Year in on our way home.

PS - I'm from Morristown, TN, but I'll be reading from Amory, MS.

I'm in! Thanks for setting this up, Katie! I'm hoping to finish at least one more book and get a start on a few for 2012. We're hosting a New Year's Eve party, but I should have some time for reading between preparations.

Amy from Iowa

You're welcome!

I'm definitely in starting on Dec 31. I have to work on Dec 28-30, and I may be able to get some reading done after work on Dec 29 and 30.

Darryl from Atlanta

Sure! Count me in. I'm trying to finish up a few Dickens books by the end of the year, anyways.

-Scott in Dalian, China

Oops... I didn't leave my location or real name... LOL... that's me being overenthusiastic and waaaay too hyped up on sugary Christmas treats...

- Faith, from Ontario, Canada

Y'all ready to go? I've actually been reading half the day already - start time is 9pm here - and have finished a fun YA novel, Lia's Guide to Winning the Lottery, about a 16 year-old girl who wins an £8 million lottery jackpot. I'll probably be starting with Direct Red by Gabriel Weston, an autobiographical account of the trials and tribulations of life as a hospital surgeon. Fascinating so far, quite short, and I've already welled up once...

Not sure how late I'm going to read tonight because I'm in the family house and we have guests arriving tomorrow - but my sister's going to be up late again doing law coursework, and I've got a headache brewing which is always a good excuse for a late-night mug of coffee and a chocolate chip muffin 'to help my painkillers start working'. I might watch dribs and drabs of You've Got Mail too, it makes me want to read and read, and it's been a while since I last watched it. See you at the starting line everyone!

Hey everyone! Only half an hour until go time. Once we start, post your updates here (and anywhere else you'd like to). Those of you who have been reading already, let us know what you've read so far today, like Ellie did.

As I said in the opening post, I will be tossing out some meme-ish questions for you to answer, or ignore, up to you. Here's the first:

Did you plan what you will be reading during the read-a-thon? Make a list/stack to choose from? Or are you just winging it?

I have a stack of books on the 'read soon' pile that I will be choosing from. . . mostly ER books and shorter works. A couple Christmas presents on there as well.

I will be back for go time after lunch and a quick TV episode. See you soon!

Hi, all! Foggidawn in Ohio, here. I'll try to remember to join in on this readathon (I know I'll do some reading; it's remembering to post about it that's the problem). I'm trying to finish off the last bit of an audiobook (The True Meaning of Smekday), just started reading Mastiff by Tamora Pierce, and have a couple more books I'd like to finish off before the year ends, so we'll see how far I get.

Hope your eyes are ready, it's read-a-thon time!

Hi Katie! I haven't really planned what I'll be reading over the next couple of days, but I DID make a long list of possible read-a-thon choices to peruse every time I finish a book. I thought it'd save time scouring my whole book collection for the perfect next read!

I'd definitely like to finish Direct Red (the surgeon's autobiography), then possibly one of my YA review books that will be hitting the shelves in the next couple of weeks. Maybe The Brides of Rollrock Island by Margo Lanagan... After that maybe The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, which I really wanted to read pretty much in one go to get the full effect of the sparse prose. It's for a TBR Pile blog challenge that I'm sadly going to fail, oops - but at least I won't fail quite so badly if I get another title read! After THAT anything goes, though I might direct my attention towards my neglected library books at some point. Okay, maybe I do have a plan after all!

Good luck everyone!

I am here to answer the question and then I will try to read for about 30 minutes. I have dinner tonight with my dad, and sisters family for Christmas.

Did you plan what you will be reading during the read-a-thon? Make a list/stack to choose from? Or are you just winging it? I usually don't plan what to read during a read-a-thon. I usually read whatever I am currently reading. I just started reading All I did was Shoot My Man by Walter Mosley. I also have a few others ready to read too just I case I finish my book. I have about 5 library books out and my January Library Book Club book to read too.

Happy Reading All!! Check in later!!

Ellie! That sounds like a pretty good plan. . . more of one than I have. Think I'll be starting with an ER book, Switched by Amanda Hocking. Otherwise I have a couple already started on that I can work through: Punk Rock Etiquette, Under Western Eyes, and Death in Grand Canyon.

Happy Reading to everyone - I won't be able to start for a couple of hours yet so will catch up later on in my afternoon.

I've got a list of books I'm trying to finish before the end of the month/year so I'm hopefully going to make some progress with:

The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart
The Diary of a Provincial Lady by E. M. Delafiled
Lady Susan/The Watsons/Sanditon by Jane Austen
Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey

Needless to say that's quite an ambitious list but I'd like to get a 2/3 read and I'm halfway through the Jane Austen already.

As it's just gone 9pm here and I am really tired, I am about to head to bed with a hot drink and The Diary of a Provincial Lady (and maybe a chocolate macaroon too...)

41: I was just about to pull my copy of The Diary of a Provincial Lady off of my shelf - how funny!

I'm half done with work today, just one more client coming over (the same client that I lied to 3 weeks ago and followed through with the lie by leaving my house since she doesn't leave in any kind of a timely fashion), and she asked if she could come over earlier. While I'm picking up the house and planning on what in the world I'm eating for dinner, I'll be listening to a library book, Then Again by Diane Keaton.

Did you plan what you will be reading during the read-a-thon? Make a list/stack to choose from? Or are you just winging it?

I have a loose plan. There's the aforementioned library audio, plus there's (sadly still) 3 ER books to read and review, one of which requires reading 2 other books first. Then there are the 2 different book club books that I need to read, and a couple of shorter holiday titles that I meant to get to earlier. But really, as long as I finish the audio and at least 1 ER book, I'll be happy. Plus, there is the temptation of all of the other books I own and have recently received/purchased, and my recent urge to clear out my shelves, so - who knows what will happen?!?

p.s. Will post my first update after the client leaves tonight.

Running a bit late for starting but I will be picking up the books soon:)

Did you plan what you will be reading during the read-a-thon? Make a list/stack to choose from? Or are you just winging it?

I've got a small stack of books.

Two I've already started - I've got one story left in Ursula Le Guin's SeaRoad so will definitely be finishing that book and I've started reading Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South but I'm taking that slowly as I want to count it towards my 12 in 12:)

Apart from that I've got Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close out from the library and a family visit yesterday ended up with me borrowing British Myths and Legends - a three volume Folio Society box set which I will be reading slowly.

If I feel like it I might also make an attempt at completing my 11 in 11 by reading Plato's Timaeus and Critias (counting it as 2 works) and Lucretius's On the Nature of the Universe ... we'll see:)

Happy reading everyone.

I'm in Minnesota.

I always have an on-going list of the next ten or so books I'll be reading.

Currently reading Storm Glass by Maria V. Snyder.

Then:

The Broken Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin
The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson
2nd Chance by James Patterson
Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck
Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson

I doubt I'd get any further than that. Will probably just get to 2nd Chance.

Hello all! My only plan is to get as much read of Before They Are Hanged as I can, so I can finish it before the new year. Making dinner soon, so won't get much read until bedtime. Lately though, I'm falling asleep quite soon once my head hits the pillow. Maybe tonight I'll get lucky though, and be able to read for an hour or so!

Er, well... I was reading for several hours, and then fell asleep just as the Read-a-Thon was supposed to begin. And now I have to go out for the evening... oops! LOL. Oh well. Anyway, during the time I WAS reading, I finished Keep the Change by Steve Dublanica and A King's Ransom by Jude Watson, and was working on How to Build a Dinosaur by James Horner when I fell asleep.

As for what else I have planned during the Read-a-Thon... I don't! After finishing these three (the only ones I had planned), I'll be winging it.

I'm starting a bit late as I was out running errands and stocking up on groceries, then stashing them away. I won't start reading for half an hour or so. First, I want to finish The Housekeeper and the Professor. After that, I will probably work on an LTER book, Iago, or an Amazon Vine book, The Flight of Gemma Hardy. I doubt that I'll finish both of those as I've got some housecleaning and errands to do and should get a start on my Spring syllabi. That said, I have no plans for New Year's Eve, so you never know!

I was hoping to make it 100 books read this year but will likely top out at 95 or 96.

Cariola, I received the ER Iago as well. Looking forward to it. But first I have to finish the current selection!

Did you plan what you will be reading during the read-a-thon? Make a list/stack to choose from? Or are you just winging it? - I actually just picked up the book I had out to read next since I finished a book last night.

Books Read: Engaging the Culture, Changing the World by Philip W. Eaton
Pages Read: 91
Time Read: 75 minutes

>47 Cariola: You need to go get a few picture books so you can hit 100!

Hi readathoner's, I'm Lynda from Ohio and ready to begin! I'll start with Matterhorn then take a break to finish up King Lear and possibly begin Cannery Row or The Awakening.
I sort of have a plan and that's to finish up my December TIOLI read and begin the January TIOLI's. Have fun, everybody!!

Ooops, an hour and a half in and I haven't read a page! I HAVE watched a chunk of You've Got Mail though, and had a large mug of tea, a choc chip muffin and some painkillers to try and knock this stupid 'haven't quite got a cold but almost there' sinus headache on the, er, head. I'll try and read a bit more tonight, but if the tablets knock me out I might have to resume with renewed fervour in the morning instead. *FAIL*

Welcome Morphy and Lynda!

Ellie, for headaches I recommend a heaping dose of Calvin and Hobbes :)

I've been reading about 75 minutes and have made it 60 pages into Switched.

50> If I could count the gazillion student papers I had to read, I'd be way over 100! Can I count TLS or NYRB? I could fit those in. Also read the year-end editions of People and Entertainment Weekly in flight.

Still nowt, and still headachy. I've rubbed menthol headache stick across my forehead and cheeks, but while my head now feels better, I can't actually see because my eyes are streaming from the fumes. *DOUBLEFAIL*
*sigh* Thwarted again.

I don't have a formal plan but a general idea of what's on tap. I am currently reading an ER book - A Thinking Man's Bully - which is just okay, and I have Leviathan going on audio. I should finish the former tonight and will likely then move on to another December TIOLI book.

I started the Readathon promptly at 4:00 EST, read for about an hour and then took a nice long nap. I love being on vacation :-)

I'm readathonning here in Wellington, NZ. It's just after lunchtime (leftover barbeque food) and the weather's about to pack up, after a week of stunning summery days.

I have a simple reading plan for the next few days: to keep going on North and South for the Group Read. Nothing else! (Calm - nice to see you reading the same book!) I'll be lucky to finish it in December - I'm on chapter 14 and I think there are 52 of them. My reading is very bitsy but that's normal - it is hard to find uninterrupted reading time with 2 kids around.

Heather - Diary of a Provincial Lady is the perfect book to read in bed with hot chocolate. Hope you are sound asleep by now.

It's 4:30 here in San Diego. We've been out running errands (Costco and bank) on a gorgeous 73 degree day. I don't have any firm plans, but would like to finish my reread of Little Women and my read of The History of Salt, both of which are about halfway done, and get started on The Night Circus. Hope to start reading in the next hour.

I've been catching up a bit on my own and other threads, and forgot that the readathon was starting. I'm off to bed now (I've been telling myself that for the last couple of hours) and will read a bit of North and South before I fall asleep.

I've been reading in little bits since the Read-a-thon started. With the kids home on Christmas vacation, my reading is sporadic until they go to bed.

My plan is to finish a book that I'm reading for work - Being the Boss. I also want to make some progress on a long overdue ER book, We Wanted to Be Writers. For my fun read, I'm in the middle of The Lost Hero, the first book in the Heroes of Olympus series. I got the second one in the series for Christmas, so I figured I'd better get going. It's excellent so far (about 200 pages in). The book that I'm reading aloud to my kids at bedtime is The Christmas Genie, so I'll likely read a few chapters from that book during the Read-a-thon. That's my plan for now anyway - who knows what tomorrow will bring.

I'm now 128 pages into Switched. Had some potato soup with icky bacon chunks in it (I only like bacon solitary) and watched another episode of Darker Than Black, which finished disc 3 (of 4) of season 1.

I've been reading off and on for about 2 hours and managed to read about 60 pages of Dont expect magic which ironically is about magic which I did not know about. It's a very interesting book so far, it's not my typical read so it's definitely different for me. My plan for the read-a-thon is to hopefully finish dont expect magic and all she ever wanted since they are due back at the library this week.

I've put aside The Sense of an Ending, The First World War: A Very Short Introduction, The Devil's Picnic and River of Smoke for the read-athon. But there's a good chance, I might veer off and pick something else from my TBR Tower in the middle. ;-)

Reading : The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes
Time : 3 hours
Pages read : 95

Stopping for dinner now ... even though it's really difficult to put this book down. It's a slim volume but the beauty in the phrases make you want to lie in a hammock under the shade of a big leafy tree, iced tea at hand, and just slow down.

Did you plan what you will be reading during the read-a-thon? Make a list/stack to choose from? Or are you just winging it?

I have 3 books that I'm trying to finish before year end so not just an hour tonight before bed but most of the day tomorrow, Friday, and Saturday!

Here's the books I'm reading:

A Death in Vienna: A Novel (Mortalis) by Frank Tallis
Dark Angel by Mary Balogh
The Orchid Affair by Lauren Willig

Hello Read-a-thon Friends:

I've been listening to Ender's Game for about a half-hour and still going. I will go to sleep soon though.

Did you plan what you will be reading during the read-a-thon? Make a list/stack to choose from? Or are you just winging it?
I'm reading The Family by Mario Puzo and listening to Ender's Game. Not really planned, but just what I am already working on. I'll be surprised if I finish either of them though.

Page 192 and counting! If I stay all wakeful-like, I could very well finish it before sleeping :)

I've been listening to Then Again, read by the author. It's not a typical set-up for a biography/autobiography, but it's touching and charming so far. The lingering client left (wahoo!), I finished the last of the curry chicken, had a glass of wine, the last piece of apple cake, and am just having a cup of Eater's Digest tea (dumb to have dinner so late) and some water.

Currently reading/listening to: Then Again by Diane Keaton
Time reading: almost 2 hours
Pages: 0

I'm hoping I can finish up this disc and then get a bit more read in North & South so I can maybe participate in the group read before I fall asleep tonight. Then again, this new little headache that's developing might put a damper on much getting accomplished tonight.

You go Katie!! I just got back from my dinner with my family. I only read for about 15 minutes before leaving for dinner. I kept getting text messages and then wanted to verify the time. The dinner was excellent. Just the company makes it wonderful. Plus I love seeing my nieces and nephew enjoying the books I give them.

I don't know if I will read anything more before going to bed. I have to work tomorrow but hope to read a little at work since my boss is off and most of the staff takes off for the holiday.

I am reading All I did was Shoot my Man by Walter Mosley. So far so good. I believe I am only on Chapter 6.

Happy Reading All!!

Aha, just found this! Will drop in and read from tomorrow onward. Not tonight, as I'm tired and want to watch the final episodes of the final season of MI-5/Spooks...

Suzanne in Brooklyn

I've read for about three hours, on and off. I finished Being the Boss, a better than average management/leadership book. That was about 75 pages. And I read about 40 pages in We Wanted to Be Writers, which combines observations from Iowa Writers' Workshop grads from the mid-70s. It is a bit choppy, but still interesting. I also read a few chapters (15 pages) of The Christmas Genie to my boys.

I had a nice chicken pesto Alfredo for dinner, but I'm hungry again, so I'm off to look for a snack before going to sleep. G'night everyone.

I've read about 25 pages of Matterhorn and hope to read a few more before heading up to bed. Once upstairs I'll continue with King Lear.
Good night, all!

Oops - I forgot to post an update.

I finished Engaging the Culture, Changing the World by Philip W. Eaton. I had read 91 pages as of the last report. The book has a total of 206 pages, so I guess that means I read 115 pages. It was about 90 minutes for that portion.

I went to church tonight. Some old friends of mine were also home for Christmas so we visited a bit. I've also worked a little bit on a jigsaw puzzle (which is a family Christmas tradition around our house). We always kept one up between Christmas and New Year's. Some years we'd work about 4 or 5 of them in that time.

I'm going to start a new book before bed. I think it's going to be Sounds of Murder by Patricia Rockwell because it will fit Madeleine's TIOLI challenge.

I'm reading Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde in the Thursday Next series. Have not been able to settle down and read much yet, so it goes slowly.

Woohoo! Finished Switched! That's 296 pages done. It was interesting and enjoyable. The advanced reader's edition had some errors in it. . . normally not a problem, but after spending the last four months editing over 1000 pages. . . it stuck out a bit more than usual. Still, a fun fluff read with sequels coming out at the ends of February and April.

I think that will be all for me tonight. Sleep will prolly happen soon, maybe another episode or two of Darker Than Black.

Good night and happy reading!

Hello everyone! I am currently reading the seventeenth pocket from hargus montgomery that he was kind enough to send me from the librarything member give away program in michigan where it is freezing cold outside. happy reading everyone!

This evening I listened to about an hour and a half of The London Train and also read about 45 pages in The Housekeeper and the Professor.

Love the picture.
I've been reading today but didn't find out about the readathon until just now. I finished Pack of Two: The Intricate Bond Between People and Dogs by Caroline Knapp. Tomorrow afternoon I'll start logging in with my next read A Small Furry Prayer: Dog Rescue and the Meaning of Life by Steven Kotler. I'll also be listening to World and Town by Gish Jen.

I've done a little reading this afternoon and hope to get more done this evening.
Did you plan what you will be reading during the read-a-thon? Make a list/stack to choose from? Or are you just winging it?
I'm reading from a short stack of books I'd like to finish by year's end, but not worried if I don't make it. They are mostly those i listed earlier this month for various TIOLI challenges. My main priority is to finish an ER children's book, The Freedom Maze, a sort of Southern US timeslip novel where a young girl finds herself back in time on a plantation working alongside the household slaves.
Also on my list is The Concert Ticket by Olga Grushin, I'm about 100 pages in and enjoying it but haven't given it any dedicated reading time yet. The other book I'd like to read is The Last Werewolf but it does fit a January TIOLI challenge so I'm not too panicked about that one.
Well back to the books.

I'm back! That headache finally did me in last night - the painkillers weren't doing much except making me tired, and there was nothing left to throw at it except a good night's sleep... Today I'm so far headache free (stupid cold, grrrr), rested, breakfasted, and I've finished watching You've Got Mail (*sighs happily and wishes her Joe Fox would wander into the bookshop sometime soon*) so now I'm good to go, a mere 12 HOURS late. Ooops.

Sooooo, I'm starting with Direct Red, the surgeon's autobiography. Hopefully I'll get a good few hours in today, depending on when our guests arrive. Onwards!

Right it is a grey and cloudy morning here and I'm back:)

Last night I managed to finish Searoad - well the 69 pages I had left.

This morning I have managed to read the third chapter of North and South (11 pages) and the introduction to Timaeus (20 pages) - neither of them seem to be the kind of book to read before the coffee has had time to work:)

So I think I'll check out some threads, do a bit of housework and get back to the books when I'm a little more awake.

Total time reading - approx 2 hours
Total pages read - 100

Okay, I'm not going to be tracking my reading hours because they're bound to be a bit sporadic over the three days, but me and Domino (large black and white cat) have curled up together for a bit and read 29 pages... Not a whirlwind of a start, but Direct Red is so beautifully written, with such precision, that I don't want to read too fast really. I'll be having a cuppa and reading a bit more, then I'm off for a nice long hot shower...

This is a great idea (only saw it now, have been offline for a few days). I'll join in at some point, maybe tonight for some hours, and then on the 31st I will probably be reading into the New Year CET.

- Nathalie, from Merano/ Italy

I've sat up fairly late and finished my ER book, The Freedom Maze, so I can stop feeling guilty about dithering for so long over it. Quite a good timeslip novel for middlegrade readers.
Now remembered that I want to read a second Anne McCaffrey book for the TIOLI challenge, so will take Black horses for the King up to bed with me and read for a few minutes.

Hello All! Great reading going on while I was asleep. I won't be picking up my book anytime soon. I have to go to work but I am hoping that we get out early today so that I can start really reading. I didn't make any progress after I went upstairs to bed. My one cat curled up with me and I just fell asleep with Blokus (an orange tabby).

There are a lot of books listed above I know nothing about. If I have time I may have to take a gander at them later.

Happy Reading!

I continued listening to Ender's Game for a bit last night and read a mere 13 pages of The Family before falling asleep. Not sure how much reading I'll be getting done today. We'll see though. . .

Good morning, readathoner's!

I finished King Lear on my Kindle last night and I hope to sneak in a couple of hours of Matterhorn before the household wakes up. Til later................

Good morning readers! Slurping chocolate tea and trying to wake up. I got 85 or so pages read last night before bed so am happy with that, as I'm not all that fast a reader.

Once my eyes are fully open, I'll hit the book again!

Chocolate tea? What a fascinating thought - how does that work, exactly? Sounds yummy!

It's not far off 1pm here in England so I'm sitting here with a mozzarella and tomato pizza and a mug of coffee, plus sweets from the retro sweet shop at the local retail outlet, reading away. I've read another 33 pages of Direct Red, boosting me up to 62 pages, which isn't too bad. Hopefully I'll get in about another hour or so, then I might watch Never Been Kissed on telly. I used to love that movie when I was at school... Then after that, more reading until our guests arrive, whenever that may be. After THAT the read-a-thon will be a great excuse to get away from the chatter for a bit, perfect!

#88 - it's a flavored tea I order from Harney and Sons. My second favorite tea. My first is their vanilla.

http://tinyurl.com/crp9vwg

Well since I was last here I have managed maybe half an hours worth of reading.

12 pages of North and South and 13 pages of Timaeus.

So far time spent reading 2 and 1/2 hours

pages read 125.

I have managed to get the fire going; clean the kitchen and (as of 7 LT time) read skim all the 75ers threads - for 2011 at least:)

As Ellie said it's nearly 1pm here so I think I'll get something to eat and read a bit more.

Back later and happy reading everyone.

I've been reading North and South - hoping to finish this one before the end of the month. Not sure how many pages as I'm reading it on my phone's Kindle app, but since last night I've read 13% of the book and am now at 65% completed.

It's helpful that my phone e-reader measures the progress through the book in percentages. That (rather than number of pages or chapters read) is very much how I usually measure my progress in paper books, though I think in fractions rather than percentages. Does anyone else look at the thickness of the pages already read and those still to come, and think to themselves "I've read one third of this book already, that's good going!", or "Oh, no! I'm 3/4 through this book and I don't want it to end!"?. Or is it just me?

Good morning everyone! I read about 50 pages last night before falling asleep so now I'm a little over halfway done with Dont Expect Magic so hopefully I'll finish it this afternoon. I'll be reading off and on for most of the day so I'll try to stop in and update everyone on the progress! Happy reading!

86> Lynda, what did you think of King Lear? I teach Shakespeare, and in my humble opinion, it's his greatest play--maybe the greatest play ever written (though my students usually disagree). Last night I watched a series of short interviews, "Why Shakespeare?" James Shapiro has a new book coming out that focuses on King Lear.

I can't believe that the first touchstone author listed for King Lear is NOT William Shakespeare!

#87 > I don't usually drink tea (or coffee), I was just wondering how the Chocolate Tea tastes. I love chocolate so thinking this maybe something I might like.

#91 > I do that all the time. On another site (Goodreads) when I enter my progress it tells me how much percentage wise I have read of the book. I love that. I also look at the pages as I am reading an will sometimes sigh, like I am only 1/3 of the way done and not enjoying the book, or wow this is really moving along.

I did an hour last night 12AM EST to 1:AM EST.
About three chapters of Dark Angel.

#93: I can't believe that the first touchstone author listed for King Lear is NOT William Shakespeare!

That's what I thought when I read it this month!
(But something must be wrong with the touchstones lately, there are more errors than before imo. The same goes for North and South and strangely The Green Henry leads to "Call of the Wild")
Note as a new year's resolution: learn how to fix touchstones

I did about 20 minutes before bed last night. Began second book of readathon, Sounds of Murder by Patricia Rockwell. I read 29 pages.

Good morning everyone! Keep up the awesome reading!

I'll be off to work shortly, then having a late lunch/early dinner with a friend that's in town. Should be back here and reading around 6 tonight. Then I told a couple different friends I'd have a drink or two with them later tonight while they're in town. Busy day!

I fell asleep last night after dinner and didn't get any reading done. :-( Still, I'll grab some time today to finish The Sense of an Ending. happy reading day, folks.

I finished A Thinking Man's Bully by Michael Adelberg last night. This is one of the better ER books I've received, though it won't make my list of top reads for the year. I also listened to about 30 minutes of Leviathan last night, as well.

Not sure what I'll pick up next...

Checking in (5 pm CET). I'm going to listen to Memento Mori by Muriel Spark.

Heating up some frozen rolls (they taste very good, like real French bread, not the airy, hard crusted stuff that passes as such here) and will have those with butter & cherry jam for a late breakfast. Tired & headachey (a bit). So trying to plan a quiet day.

So far, 26 pages of The Last Lie by Stephen White. I'll be alternating between that & Rock the Casbah by Robin Wright, the latter being one of my final 11 in 11 books, until I finish one. Then I have a stack on the floor to pick from.

My own personal readathon tracker:

Books read from: The Last Lie by Stephen White.
Books completed: None
Pages read in the most recent period: 26
Total pages read: 26

I'm not sure how long I've read for today because I fell asleep for a bit (no reflection on the books I've been reading) but I've read about 200 pages of The Diary of a Provincial Lady and another 50 pages of Lady Susan/The Watsons/Sanditon which as taken me to the end of The Watsons.

Yay, finished How to Build a Dinosaur! Fascinating stuff... hmm, wonder what to grab next...

I've finished my first book in this read-athon over a leisurely breakfast of toast, marmalade, eggs and sage & garlic pork sausages.

Book read : The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes
Total no. of pages : 162
Total reading time : 5 hours
My review can be found here

The next book I'm starting later today will be The First World War : A Very Short Introduction.

Now I'm off to do some grocery shopping.

Breakfast time here too - it's 6.30 and I've just finished my marmite toast and have made some coffee. I'm up to Chapter 18 of North and South and really enjoying it.

Genny, I am forever working out how much of a book I have left (in percentages) so quite like the Kindle % indicator. On my version of North and south though there is a whopping great history of Great Britain attached, as if the book needed any more pages, so I can't tell how far I've got with the percent thing. I think it's 52 chapters though so am using that to measure progress.

Genny - I'm forever looking at the top of my book trying to gauge roughly how much I've read. It's an automatic reflex every time I go to put it down. A quarter is good, a third is better, half is great, three quarters is wonderful, and the pages speed up ever quicker as I get near the end!

Caro - mmmm, that sounds delicious! It's nearly dinner time here - home made cottage pie, roasted parsnips, carrots and lots of gravy - so I'm just trying to bide my time and ignore my rumbly stomach a bit longer!

Our guests have now arrived - my auntie and her hubbie - so I'm not sure how much reading I'm going to get done between now and the post-dinner lull. We usually end up sitting round the table for quite a while chatting after we're done eating, though I can sometimes escape for a few minutes once the plates are cleared...

Anyway, in the meantime I've read a tiny bit more of Direct Red, including one of the most heartbreaking pages I've come across in a book ever. I've read another 21 pages, taking my total up to 83 pages. Which is pathetic, really, but I might get in a couple of hours this evening and tomorrow I'll aim for a full day of reading before we go out for dinner! *sigh*

Not much reading going on here - I've managed one more chapter of North and South - so only 14 pages! Also read the first page of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - looks like it is going to be interesting so maybe when I next pick up a book it will be that:)

Time read: 2hrs 50 mins
Pages read: 140

I have made cawl and a pie filling but in the end decided not to bother with pastry just have it with mash potato and steamed vegetables. But that's the end of the Christmas bird:)

Back later - hopefully I'll do some more reading before bedtime:)

Finished Storm Glass (488 pages) by Maria V. Snyder and have moved on to The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson.

Hello! I managed to listen to about two hours' worth of The Twelve Caesars at the office and another half hour or so of Ender's Game. I'm going to keep listening to Ender's Game while I begin browning the meat for the chili I'm making for tonight's dinner.

I've listened to 30 more minutes of Leviathan and read the first 40 pages of Felicia's Journey by William Trevor. Both are good but I've been restless all day and not able to concentrate a lot...

Well they let us out of work early so I am now home and going to put some turkey in the crock pot for dinner, get the dog settled and curl up with my ER book All I Did Was Shoot my Man by Walter Mosley.

Dunno what I'm going to do for lunch or dinner, as there's no food in the house and I don't feel like making a shopping trip. Still tired & headachey, plus I've got an intermittent stream of work that makes it tricky to leave for any length of time.

Finishing up The Last Lie, which has improved in recent chapters.

Books read from: The Last Lie by Stephen White.
Books completed: None
Pages read in the most recent period: 96
Total pages read: 122

I just finished listening to the 2nd half of Memento Mori (what a great book!) which took me almost 4 hours, as I had to replay several passages.
It's 9:15 pm here and I am now going to bed early to read some more pages of Nils Holgersson by Selma Lagerlöf. I am planning to check in again some time tomorrow in the afternoon.

Happy Reading to everyone!

Hello all! Finally checking in. Today is my first day off since the 23rd. I slept late (7:10am), then read in bed for 90 mins- 2 hrs until I finished reading Book Lust to Go by Nancy Pearl. Then I went back to sleep for a few more hours. So, now I'm awake, have showered, gone grocery shopping and made chocolate chip walnut cookies. I have only one more book on my 2011 reading list: Chakra Balancing: A Guide to Healing and Awakening your Energy Body. If I happen to finish that book I can always add the latest ER win; Paris My Sweet.

I haven't gotten in as much reading as I planned since I got distracted doing work stuff. I still did manage to finish Don't Expect Magic by Kathy Mccullough, which ended up being pretty good considering I never read YA novels anymore. I don't know how much more reading I'll be able to do tonight but I'd like to make a good dent in All She Ever Wanted by Barbara Freethy.

Hope to join you starting tomorrow . . . if things calm down.

Well, we started dinner at about 6:30, it's now nearly 10pm and I'm finally back upstairs with a mince pie and Madagascan Vanilla Custard. I did sneak upstairs for a bit after dinner when my stomach was feeling a bit uncomfortable, and had 15 minutes curled up on my bed with a very affectionate cat and my book.

Hopefully I'll finish Direct Red pretty soon - it's marvellous, life-affirming and heartbreaking - and then I'll probably be picking up one of my YA review books. At least after all this dinner and conversation, time has slipped away so quickly that I'll probably have no trouble staying awake for a couple of extra hours to read some more!

I was busier this morning than I though I'd be but managed to get in 2 hours of listening to audio books: 1 1/2 CD of World and Town and 1/2 CD of The Leftovers which seems to be a take off on the Left Behind books in which some sort of "rapture" has occurred but christians, jews, atheists, moslems, homosexuals and just random people have disappeared. It's making some of the christians very angry. Now, finally, I get to sit and read A Small Furry Prayer.

As it turned out I was out of the house for a majority of the day but somehow managed to read 15 more pages of Matterhorn and began The Awakening.

Having a cup of tea and the last slice of french silk pie then it's back to the books :)

ETA: BTW Deborah, I liked King Lear for its message but I think this is one I should reread some day in tutored reads.

>119 Citizenjoyce: Is The Leftovers any good? I was thinking of buying it soon, it has such an intriguing premise...

So far this readathon I've read about a hundred pages of Before They Are Hanged but was interrupted by several visitors. Hopefully I can read more later!

I managed to get in about another hour of listening to Ender's Game. Just got home from a long afternoon with my sick kidd-o. Doc's appointment that included surprise nebulizer treatment (and yes it makes noise!) then trip to Babies 'R Us for big boy potty + Thomas the Tank Engine pillow pet (reward for said noisy-nebulizer), then pharmacy where they did not have all his medicine only two of the THREE prescriptions he is now on! :(

Tired; still have to write my mini-column sometime in the next few hours.

Food: pulled pork sandwich. OK; edible.

Books read from: The Last Lie by Stephen White and Rock the Casbah by Robin Wright
Books completed: 1 - The Last Lie
Pages read in the most recent period: 67 of the former; 19 pages in the latter: total 86 pages
Total pages read: 208

Oh no Brit! Hope the kidd-o feels better soon. And I adore the Ender's Game series.

I just got back from a Chinese buffet. Now I get to read a bit more before going out again. Also got a call earlier saying I don't need to go into my internship in the morning, which means I get to sleep in and read before going to work *squee* (I never get to sleep in. . . )

I read about 30 more minutes/20 pages of We Wanted to Be Writers last night before bed. I'm getting into its rhythm of brief comments by lots of different people and am starting to enjoy it more.

Then I listened to Every Last One for about 30 minutes on my way to work this morning. I pulled into the parking garage just at a major plot point. Quindlen had been hinting that something was coming, but wow, I wasn't ready for it. Luckily I bought the actual book at a library book sale, so I read for about 1 hour/50 pages when I got home.

Total time read: 5 hours
Total pages read: 200

About 45 more minutes and 57 more pages of Sounds of Murder. I've been distracted with other things today--genealogical research, completing a puzzle, playing with the cat, working on authorities and proofreading a periodical index, etc. I'll read more before bed if I can keep my eyes open.

Changed my mind about my next book and I'll keep The First World War for another time.

Book completed : The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes

Reading now : The Shadow Woman
Total no. of pages : 25
Total reading time : 30mins

Time to stop for a quick dinner. Then back to reading. :-)

I've been busy most of this morning but managed about 80 minutes of Absolution Gap, my current audiobook while at the gym and driving home. I don't expect to finish this by year's end as I'm not been getting to the gym as much over the holiday period.
I've also managed to read another 20 or so pages of The Concert Ticket by Olga Grushin. I'm settling in now for a couple of hours of reading.

We made a family trip to the National Aquarium in Baltimore today, so I got about an hour of reading in on the Metro- both directions to/from the Owings Mills parking station.

Fell asleep in about 0.3 seconds last night on the couch and woke up with a migraine this morning. Yay. However, after watching 2 discs of the first season of Gilmore Girls and shamefully eating an entire frozen pizza, I managed to read Souvenir of Canada. And make a batch of raspberry scones.

Reading now: the December Real Simple magazine
Books finished: 1, Souvenir of Canada
Pages read: 144
Time reading: 3 hours (2 hrs of that audiobooks)

Okay, off to finish an episode of the Gilmore Girls and the magazine. Up next? No idea!

I read all but the last essay in Prose & Poetry by William Control (no touchstone). I will finish it tonight or tomorrow morning. Off to visit with some friends over a couple drinks! Check back later.

Keep it up everyone! You're all doing great :)

I finished the last book on my 2011 reading list. Up next may be Paris, My Sweet, or,( thanks to Laura'a mention of her magazine) the most recent issues of Bookmarks and Shambhala Sun which I keep forgetting to read.

Total books read: 2: Book Lust to Go and Chakra Balancing
Time reading 5 1/2 hours
On the menu: very bad nutrition today. For dinner I ate a Lipton rice side dish. I've been snacking on Goldfish crackers. By the time I go to bed tonight I will probably have eaten about a dozen of the choc chip walnut cookies I baked earlier. Beverage: water.

I'm a little over halfway through Mastiff by Tamora Pierce -- up to page 310 at the moment. I read some last night, some on breaks at work today, and more tonight . . . and plan to go to bed soon and read until I fall asleep.

As for food, the only thing that sounded good to me tonight was a bowl of ramen noodle soup. I hope I am not getting sick! I also had a can of cranberry Sierra Mist.

Ellie, I've listened to only 1/2 CD of The Leftovers, but it has grabbed me. I think it's going to be a good one.
And speaking of being grabbed, A Small Furry Prayer, which has the stupidest, Hallmarkiest title imaginable, is turning out the be great. Steven Kotler and his girlfriend Joy Nicholson abandon LA and decide to open a dog sanctuary in Chimayo New Mexico. The book has everything I love: animals, rescue, discussions on life and death, New Mexico. What a perfect book to end my year. I've read 67 pages so far and, after I feed my rumbling tummy, can't wait to dive back in.

OK, I think that since 9 pm on Wednesday night (3 pm Central time in the US) I've read about 100 pages. Now we're home I hope to get in some more substantial reading tomorrow and during the day on Saturday, before we go out to celebrate New Year (just to a friend's house)

My current books are:

David Downing, Silesian Station
Emile Zola, L'Assommoir
Amitav Ghosh, Sea of Poppies

Jennifer Egan, Look At Me
Shannon Hale, Austenland
Liza Cody, Ballad of a Dead Nobody

Philip Larkin, Letters to Monica
Alison Uttley, The Country Child

I hope to finish the first and last books on this list at least, perhaps the Cody. I'm very unlikely now to finish Egan or Hale, and probably won't finish the other 3 either! I haven't finished a book since before we went away, and left Uttley and Larkin here (otherwise I might have finished Uttley).

Book completed : The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes

Reading now : The Shadow Woman
Total no. of pages : 47
Total reading time : 2 hours

I'd love to stay up and continue reading, but I'm exhausted and starting to nod off, so I'm going to stop here and go to bed early tonight.

Did some more reading; had a nap. Still alternating between being headachey and being dopey due to meds. (I feel your migraine pain, Laura...)

Started reading Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison for my 11 in 11 challenge; wow, within the first few chapters there is a surreal scene of brutality-as-entertainment and then some incest. All with a rather hallucinatory tone. I can see why this has become a classic, but it's going to be a difficult book to read... I had to turn to a mystery for light relief! Hope to finish Rock the Casbah when my Kindle has finished charging itself.

Books read from this period: Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison; The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman
Books read from during the readathon: The Last Lie by Stephen White; Rock the Casbah by Robin Wright
Books completed: 1 - The Last Lie
Pages read in the most recent period: 70 of Ellison; 26 of Lippman pages: total 96 pages
Total pages read: 314

Ok, I read for another couple of hours, including 20 pages of The Christmas Genie,which I'm reading aloud to my boys, 50 pages of We Wanted to be Writers, and 25 pages of Every Last One. Every Last One keeps pulling me back in, but it is too sad to read too much at a time. I finished off with 25 pages of The Lost Hero to clear my brain for bed.

Total hours: 7
Total pages:320

I got a little extra reading done today because my boys were outside for almost two hours playing with friends. I think that the temps were in the mid-50s, in Iowa in December. I can't believe it!

I just finished The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens. Not much of a mystery-- it was obvious before the murder was even committed who would do it, why, and who would be blamed. But a good, exciting read, nonetheless. Too bad Dickens didn't get the opportunity to finish it.

Getting ready for bed, so this will be my last report of the day. I'm keeping track of pages read but not hours spent reading, except for audiobooks.

Books read from today: The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa and The London Train (audio) by Tessa Hadley
Books completed: The London Train
Pages/listening time today: 60 pages; 3 hours 29 minutes (audio)
Total pages/listening time: 105 pages; 3 hours 29 minutes

The menu: I made Chinese Chicken Hot Pot in the slow cooker but fell asleep while it was cooking. I may have a cup before going to bed.

I will finish The Housekeeper and the Professor either in bed or tomorrow morning, as I have less than 20 pages left. My next audiobook will be Death in Winter by William Trevor; not sure yet about a print book.

Finished Sounds of Murder by Patricia Rockwell. I read 81 pages in 70 minutes since last report.

That makes 2 completions for the Readathon.

Bedtime here--I finally got into a book and read

The Haunting of Granite Falls by Eva Ibbotson (216 pp.)

Time was probably about an hour and a half. The day was too nice, mid-70s and we took the dog for a walk at Lake Murray and then down to the bay to eat seafood for a late lunch.

Cariola, I loved The Housekeeper and the Professor. It's so touching and delicate.
While making a sweet potato - bok choy stew for dinner I listened to another 1/2 CD of The Leftovers. Then I listened to an interview with the author http://www.npr.org/2011/08/25/139761867/after-the-rapture-who-are-the-leftovers
in which it seems that everything I think the book is about now is wrong. For one thing, I don't think we find out the cause of the disappearances, for another thing there won't be as much humor as skeptics like myself would expect. So, I guess I'll see how I like it as it progresses.
I read another 67 pages of A Small Furry Prayer. It's going into the roots of altruism and the benefits of homoseuality to society Stranger still, the more "advanced" a species seems to be, the more prevalent its preference for same-sex coupling. Homosexuality, Roughgarden now thinks, is actually the telltale sign of advanced animal communities, writing in her book Evolution's Rainbow: "The more complex and sophisticated a social system is, the more likely it is to have homosexuality intermixed with heterosexuality." The things you find out when you're just trying to read a book about rescuing dogs.
That'll be it for posting today. I'll probably read more in bed.

Well it's morning here, again. Didn't manage to get much reading done yesterday evening - only 13 pages of Timaeus:( - took me maybe 20 minutes or so.
Once I got into bed I read for an hour and managed 75 pages of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

I have read another 43 pages of EL&IC this morning

Total time read - 3hr 50 mins (approx)

Total pages read - 371

I'll probably just be dipping in and out of the books today as I seem to do my best reading in bed:) Back later.

>131 LauraBrook: Laura - I LOVE the Gilmore Girls! You're right, it does work a treat for migraines, especially washed down with pizza and something caffeinated... I'm not one of those people who can just quietly when I have any level of headache - I have to watch something while my medication kicks in, to take my mind off it. It might make things slightly more painful temporarily, but for me it's much better than lying groaning in bed!

Afternoon all! I woke up again this morning with yet ANOTHER sinus headache (*sobs*) but settled down with my book again for a while with a mug of tea and some ibuprofen. It was only AFTER my cup of coffee an hour later that I, er, fell back to sleep again (yay caffeine!)... Anyway, I'm now up, and I've finished Direct Red (wonderful) and started Virals by Kathy Reichs, since I've been sent the second book, Seizure, for review and haven't even read the first one they sent me yet! Oooops. So far it's not grabbing me, but I'm only a couple of chapters in so I'm sure it'll speed up soon. I've read another 65 pages since my last update anyway, bringing me to a fairly useless total of 148 pages.

Ah well. Dinner tonight is booked for seven, and my auntie and her hubbie have gone out shopping for a bit and for some lunch, so at least I can crack on with my book hostess-free for a while! I've retrieved my last couple of slices of yesterday's pizza from the fridge, made a huge mug of fortifying coffee, and stolen a chocolate from the jar on the dinner table, so I'm good to go! :)

Well it is morning here. I just got back from taking the puppy for a walk. I didn't read too much last night. My back started hurting and I just couldn't get comfortable. Taking the walk this morning helped a little. I did put a SalonPas Pad on an hopefully that will ease the pain.

I am going to eat some cereal with some wheat toast for breakfast. I may even try to make some fresh squeezed orange juice for myself. Once breakfast is over I am going to try to read for a little bit and then I have to run out to Target for something.

I am still reading my ER book All I did was Shoot my Man by Walter Mosley. It is interesting just a little different than what I am used to reading. The woman that shot her man is released from prison because the con man that set her up has gone straight and wants to right a wrong is how this story seems to be written.

I am on page 75 out of 304. I think if I really concentrate on reading today I may be able to finish this book today. I only need to read 2 more books to reach 75. I am hoping to be able to do that.

Happy reading all!!

I have been spending the last 2 hours in the office aimlessly reading: some chapters of Nils Holgersson, a bit of Gargantua and Pantagruel and some paragraphs of Notre Dame de Paris (of which I didn't understand a single sentence, so maybe I should read it in a translation). I did my shopping, will later do some preparations for tomorrow, had a coffee, but for now I am back with LT and Nils Holgersson.

OK, the guests are gone, the apt is semi-clean, and I settled in to read God's Bits of Wood, an LT recommendation this morning. Various errands later today, and I need to catch up with my LT reviews and year-end analysis, but I hope to spend today and some of the next three days doing a lot of reading.

Thanks for all the migraine support, Ellie and Suz! Thankfully it seems to have disappeared today, so here's hoping that I can get some decent reading in. The only thing I have to do is go to the grocery store to get a few things and then I'll be back here for the rest of the day - yay!

Last night after finishing up that disc of the Gilmore Girls I read about half of Down and Out in Manhattan and then the December issue of O. (I'll be reading a bunch of December magazines for the rest of the weekend, FYI.)

Reading now: Down and Out in Manhattan
Finished this hour: 0
Total finished: 1, Souvenir of Canada
Pages read: 107
Total pages: 255
Total time reading: 3 hours (2 hrs of that audiobooks)

A little more Then Again while I'm getting ready to head out. How is it possible that it's nearly 40 degrees in Wisconsin? Craziness!

Ended up spending most of last night drinking and playing cards with my husband and mother-in-law :-) Am up to page 104 in Felicia's Journey - it's very grim and very good but definitely not a fast read. I have about 2.5 hours left of my current audio. I could probably finish it and the book today if I can remain focused...

I've read another 50 pages of Virals since my last post, which isn't too shabby. That's taken me neatly up to the end of Part 1, and upped my reading total to 198 pages. I've just made a yummy white hot chocolate and I reckon it's time to start downing the arsenal of anxiety and stomach tablets that will take me out for dinner tonight. I hate going out for dinner, and the more people are going, the worse it gets. :(

And I'll read a bit more, of course, though I'm getting a bit sleepy and there's a big black and white cat curled up on my bed just asking for me to join her for a nap... I'll try and resist a bit longer! *yawn*

I know that I'm in a tiny minority, but I really didn't care for The Housekeeper amd the Professor. I enjoyed the relationships between the mathmetician, his housekeeper, and her son, but there was just too much math and baseball in it for me! I found myself skipping over a lot of passages. Nice themes but most of them clichés. I had to force myself to finish it.

Last night I got back to a book I had barely begun, The Lost Tiki Palaces of Detroit by Michael Zadoorian. Most of these short stories don't end happily, but, as someone originally from the Detroit area, I'm enjoying the feel of them.

Books completed: The London Train and The Housekeeper and the Professor
Total pages/listening time: 119 pages; 3 hours 29 minutes

I'm doing a coffee-only breakfast; might have a tangerine in a little while. I plan to set up something in the crockpot for dinner, then head out to the gym, where I should get a good start on my next audiobook, Death in Winter by William Trevor

I'm at page 198 in Something Rotten- mostly in small bits between other tasks. Hope for some concentrated reading this afternoon while the boys go out for a while.

>153 Cariola: Nice to see someone reading The Housekeeper and the Professor. I thought that was a really good one.

Stayed out quite late last night, oops! Finished up another book this morning. So that makes two: Switched by Amanda Hocking and Prose and Poems by William Control.

I was going to hop in the shower after this post, but apparently someone else had a similar thought *le sigh. I might watch an episode or two of Darker Than Black before I start my next book. . . which I haven't decided on yet. Something short, in any case, so I can finish it before I go out tomorrow. Maybe some manga? That'll boost my sad numbers.

Whoo, started The Scorch Trials as I fell asleep last night, and just spent the last 2 hours reading (and finishing) the book. In all, a very satisfying conclusion to the trilogy.

Well, I don't think I'll be starting a book before I leave for work. Oh well. I'll start back up when I get home. Until then. . . .

Meme-ish question number 2!

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?

I have met my original goal of reading at least one ER book and finishing at least two total books. So I've added to my goal to finish one more, whether it be a book I've already started, a new one, or some manga--which the first and last are most likely.

I am here to answer the question and to post a short update (yeah right.)

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?

I really don't know if I am going to complete to books before this read a thon is over. That is the only goal I have given to myself.

I have read for about 30 minutes. I just keep finding something else to do. I will be heading out shortly for Target to buy a few things and than I plan to come home and lock myself in the house to read for the rest of the day.

I just posted a review and interview on my blog for the book The Undertaker by William Brown. I would love it if you all would check it out. It is my first time doing an author interview. Here is the link

http://bookandmoviechat.blogspot.com/2011/12/undertaker-by-william-brown-review-...

Be back later to see how everyone is doing.

After writing post #148 I didn't read a single line in my book and instead made dessert for tomorrow and visited threads on LT. Now I have finally settled down on my couch with some hot apple wine and am determined to read at least 3 chapters of Nils Holgersson.

I hadn't set a goal so far, but now I'd really like to get through the 2nd volume of Arabian Nights: Tales from a Thousand and One Nights before the year ends.

I'm really late to this because I got the dates wrong (oops) but I'm Kathy, reading in Nova Scotia. Currently determined to finish Persuasion (page 189, read 30 pages in the last hour!) and then I'll survey the shelves for a final read of 2011.

I'll probably also be reading bits of X-men when my eyes try to close. I have a cat on my feet making it impossible to go for snacks and she emits sleepy vibes!

Ellie - I'll be interested to see what you make of Virals. I was a bit disappointed and I don't know whether I just wasn't in the right mood or whether it wasn't that great a book.

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?

Well, I'm halfway through The Diary of a Provincial Lady but then I realised that The Last Enchantment was a shared read for December's TIOLI challenge and decided to prioritise that one instead so at this rate I probably won't finish either of them!

Also got distracted by catching up on the threads today.

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy The Professor and the Housekeeper, Cariola. I like math, so maybe that's one of the reasons why I enjoyed the book so much. I also really liked the way the author dealt with the delicate relationships between the characters. I hope your next read is a more enjoyable one for you

I have a sick husband to look after today and will only be able to read when he's sleeping.

I did manage about a half hour of The Shadow Woman and despite the interruptions, I'm enjoying this Scandicrime novel thus far.

I am closing in on the end of Felicia's Journey and Leviathan. I'd like to finish both in the next couple of hours...

Persuasion is finished! All my goals for the year are achieved. Now going to read The Uncommon Reader, interspersed with more X-Men :-)

After a long day of work and going for a run, I now have time to relax and read All She Ever Wanted. I've only read the first 2 chapters and I'm sucked in already so far its been amazing. Glad to finally found a book that captured me right from the beginning its been awhile since that has happened!

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?

Ack! Over halfway through!? I feel like I have hardly been able to participate at all! I have about 13 minutes left on Ender's Game which I was going to finish until the phone rang, then my sick punk got up. :( I read about 20 pages of The Family last night.

Hmm. . . so, in answer to the question, no I don't think I'll finish any of my goals.

I haven't been reading that much to be honest, sidetracked by family stuff and have been entranced by several hours of Simon Schama's The Power of Art on dvd, must get hold of the book that complements this series.

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?
No, I'm not on track, but not worried either. I've finished the ER book, will finish the Anne McCaffrey and will be further on with the other 2-3 books rather than finish any one of them.
So have about 20mins of reading left in Black horses for the king which is a YA Arthurian tale and quite interesting.

Wow, when I look back at my reading in the last 12 to 18 hours, it's been all over the place!! The key to meeting goals is not to set them terribly high in the first place, so I'm OK on mine, which was just to do some year-end reading. Finished one more of my 11 in 11 books, will certainly finish another and probably a third. Other than that, we'll see... I'm torn between reading some shared TIOLI reads, or finishing books that won't fit into a January TIOLI category, or just things that have to go back to the library soon.

Books read from this period: Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison; The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman; Poison Flower by Thomas Perry; Rock the Casbah by Robin Wright; Crowded with Genius by James Buchan; The Painted Lady by Maeve Haran
Other books read from during the readathon: The Last Lie by Stephen White
Books completed: 2 - The Last Lie and Rock the Casbah
Pages read in the most recent period: 46 of Ellison; 30 of Lippman; 51 of Perry; 43 of Wright; 23 of Buchan; 53 of Haran: total pages: 246
Total pages read: 560

I read an hour last night, 1/2 hr today at lunch and 1/2 hr on the home and finished Dark Angel.

I had a lovely few hours of uninterrupted reading time while my sick husband slept.

Book completed : The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes

Reading now : The Shadow Woman
No. of pages read in this period: 136
Time read in this period: 3 hours
Total no. of pages : 181
Total reading time : 5 hours

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?

Wow, are we halfway through already? How time flies! Although I had placed certain books aside for the read-a-thon, I've already swapped out one for another, so that's one goal I'm not going to be accomplishing during this session. I may be able to finish one other book by the end of the read-a-thon though, and I'll be happy if I do. All in all, I'm having a lovely time (when I'm not running around making tea or fetching blankets for my sick hubster, and doing chores around the house.

Need to stop here for a spell to check on the broth and put together a light dinner which hopefully my patient will eat.

Alright, grocery shopping is done, dinner is planned, prosecco purchased, dishes washed, lots of tea drunk, all with Diane Keaton talking in the background. Just getting ready to read a little from the Manhattan book before I start making dinner.

Reading now: Down and Out in Manhattan and Then Again
Finished this hour: 0
Total finished: 1, Souvenir of Canada
Pages read: 107
Total pages: 255
Total time reading: 6 hours (4 hrs of that audiobooks)

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?

I've made half of my goal - I have finished one book, so all I have to do is finish one of the books that I need to review - but I think I may change my goal a little bit. I'd like to read another book from start to finish, if I can swing it. The only thing I have planned for the next 24 hours is a visit from my parents to cut the cats nails and drink some coffee, so if I can step away from the computer it might be doable!

I haven't done any reading yet today. Ran about on some errands, made some phone calls, worked on a lovely dinner that is simmering in the slow cooker--but I'm ready to settle in for the evening (if I don't get distracted by something good on TV).

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?


My only real goal was to finish the two books that I had been kind of dragging through, and I'm done with them both. So for the rest of the read-a-thon, I will just read whatever hits my fancy.

I am SO close to having read 100 books in 2011, but I don't see myself finishing five more books in the next day. Maybe I will pick up some short poetry chapbooks tonight . . .

Caroline, here's hoping your husband feels better for the new year.
Cariola, I don't much like math, but I loved it in The Housekeeper and the Professor. Also, before this year I wasn't all that excited by baseball, but again, loved it in the book, and am loving it the more my grandson plays.
Half way through the readathon I'm half way through A Small Furry Prayer, and since my goal was to finish it, I think I'll be right on target. This morning I listened to another CD of The Leftovers which was pretty disappointing. He's getting into the Woody Allen realm of older men being "seduced" by under age girls, which I avoid in my reading. I'll give it another CD and see if he can back away from his gonads a little. I also listened to another CD of World and Town which just gets more complicated and draws me further in to the world of this Chinese-American woman, her Cambodian refugee neighbors and the fundamentalist church that seems to be taking advantage of them. Now, no more listening, back to reading.

I'm here - lunchtime in New Zealand... and pouring with rain again!! I'm still going on North and South, enjoying it a lot, and am happy with progress - 12 chapters since yesterday morning, 22 to go...

Deborah, sorry you didn't enjoy the Housekeeper and Professor more. I loved it but I love maths so that helped. Hope your next book's better!

Kathy - It was a slow start, but I'm about 100 pages in and quite enjoying it at the moment. I know what you mean about 'the wrong moment' - if I'm in the wrong mood for a book I'll end up bored, or annoyed, or impatient, or irritated, and even though I know it's not the book's fault I'll end up feeling a bad vibe around it every time I think about it.

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?

I don't think I'm doing too badly, considering how busy life has been the past couple of days with our guests here. I think I've probably read about 200 pages (I'll do an update with the exact total so far in the morning), watched Sky High, You've Got Mail AND Cloverfield (tonight, with my not-at-all-horror-film-fans family who all loved it), woken up on two consecutive mornings with a headache, entered the first thirty or so competitions in the current giveaway hop on the blogosphere (free books, woohoo!), had a three-hour family dinner last night with our guests AND gone out for another long dinner tonight.

I guess I didn't really have any particular goals this time. I've finished Direct Red, so I'll write a review for that soon. I think by the end of tomorrow (the read-a-thon ends 9pm our time so I'll just carry on until bedtime) I'd like to have finished Virals and maybe read The Diving-bell and the Butterfly as well, or started one of my library books. As much reading as possible, basically!

I read for about an hour today - 50 pages of Shel Silverstein's Every Thing On It and 25 pages of Every Last One, which is still sad, but starting to get more hopeful. I had to stop every few pages in the Silverstein book to read a poem or two to my second grader, who was reading his own Shel Silverstein book.

So, I've read a total of 8 hours and 395 pages. I've finished one book, Being the Boss, which got me to 140 total books for the year. That's what I read last year, so I'm happy to wrap up there. So, now I'm spreading my time between several books: Every Thing On It, Every Last One, We Wanted to Be Writers, and The Lost Hero, with the goal to move along in each of them and have several books to start 2012 off right!

Today was a big fail as far as reading was concerned. Spent too much time planning my 2012 thread and not enough time to pick up a book. Hopefully, I'll get in a little before the eyelids slam shut for the night.

I read for around five hours today in total and finished Persuasion, The Uncommon Readef (loved it to bits) and five issues of X-Men. Now I'm starting a library book and I doubt that I'll actually get anything else finished, but I do plan to get some more reading time in tomorrow.

Ellie - I think that I was looking for more in Virals than is actually there, so it irritated me. Another time or in a different mood, I might have felt differently. I may also have been comparing it too much to her Bones books and these are completely different things.

I finished Silesian Station by David Downing and The Country Child by Alison Uttley, for the first author you read this year challenge - like A Traveller in Time this was a childhood favourite of mine, though it's very different. She also wrote lots of other books but although I keep my Sam Pig books, and think one was my dad's own, I don't feel the same way about them.

I've also started Stettin Station. Tonight I've been distracted by watching TV, checking out the latest additions to the Kindle sale (one wishlist book for 99p, two I'd paid a lot more for on Kindle) and putting some dead tree books into the books to rehome pile, as I have a Kindle version now.

Some great reading going on everyone. Well after my trip to Target and the mall I came home and buckled myself down and read. I listened to Dirty Dancing and Grease while I finished my book. I finished reading All I did was Shoot my Man by Walter Mosley. I will be writing my review after this post and then heading to bed with what book I don't know. I have a few Neil Gaiman books to read now I just need to decide which one to pick up. I would like to finish it tomorrow so that I can reach my goal of 75 books this year.

I did take some breaks in between my reading and downloaded some more books to my Kindle Fire. Maybe I will find a short one to read on there tonight.

Some of the books I might read are:

Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult; which is for our January read for my library book club. This will be my first book by Jodi
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling; which I have been reading for a few months. I keep putting it aside for my ER books and book club reads.
Stardust by Neil Gaiman
Marvel 1602 by Neil Gaiman Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
Coraline by Neil Gaiman
The Graveyard book by Neil Gaiman

Just to name a few.

Happy Reading all!! Happy New Year!!

I've read 181 pages (plus a few introductory pages) of Emily Dickinson and the Art of Belief by Roger Lundin today. I should easily be able to complete it tomorrow. Time spent reading - about 2.5 hours.

Ooof. Was very sleepy, so took a nap -- and woke up with a headache. Grrrr.

Books read from this period: The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman
Other books read from during the readathon: Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison; Poison Flower by Thomas Perry; Crowded with Genius by James Buchan; The Painted Lady by Maeve Haran
Books completed during the readathon: The Last Lie by Stephen White; Rock the Casbah by Robin Wright
Pages read in the most recent period: 145
Total pages read: 705

Finished volume 1 of 1/2 Prince. So that's three books started and finished!

Now, I think it's sleepy time. I stayed out late last night and didn't get to sleep as much as I wanted this morning. My poor eyelids feel stiff and droopy. I'll pop in before I go to work tomorrow. This might be it for me, since I work up to the end time tomorrow. I might sneak in some reading before I go out to NYE parties though.

Happy reading all!

Another update... It's quiet enough to read at night! I'm hoping I can finish one more book before I wrap up and get some sleep.

Books read from this period: The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman and Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Other books read from during the readathon: Poison Flower by Thomas Perry; Crowded with Genius by James Buchan; The Painted Lady by Maeve Haran
Books completed during the readathon: The Last Lie by Stephen White; Rock the Casbah by Robin Wright
Pages read in the most recent period: 48 in Lippman; 88 of Ellison: 136 pages total
Total pages read: 841

I finished A Small Furry Prayer. What a great book. Here's a quote that sums it up: And no matter where you look nor whose testimony you hear, you'll find none who have hunted the meaning of life in the world of animals and returned wanting. I have to say a big yup to that one. Now for my final animal book and final book of the year, I'm on to Alex & Me by Irene M. Pepperberg.

I read some more chapters of both "Nils Holgersson" and "Arabian Nights" last night and started the day with "Nils Holgersson" again. It's such a lovely book! And it's a long book as well - the Kindle doesn't give me page numbers, but it has more than 10,000 'locations' which means at least 850 pages. I hope to get to 50% before midnight.
I'll soon be off to do some shopping and will return in the afternoon.

Mornin'! Well, this permanent-headache-and-water-up-my-nose feeling might be rubbish, but it's doing wonders at propelling me out of bed in the morning when I can't bear lying down any more! It's 9:25 here and I'm already two ibuprofen, a mug of tea, a mug of coffee, a mug of chai tea and a chocolate-chip muffin down, doing well... :P

My auntie and her hubbie leave in half an hour - I'm about ready, they're great fun but if I hear about her gym obsession or see her iPhone appear one more time, I might go crazy - then I'll be able to go back to my book UNINTERRUPTED for a while. I might watch a movie this afternoon, Pride and Prejudice is on after lunch I think, but until then it's just me, Virals and some more of that giveaway blog hop.

Since my last page update I've read another 39 pages, taking me up to 237 pages. Onwards!

OK, gotta get some sleep... I've been reading Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, which is darkly hypnotic.

Books read from this period: Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Other books read from during the readathon: The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman; Poison Flower by Thomas Perry; Crowded with Genius by James Buchan; The Painted Lady by Maeve Haran
Books completed during the readathon: The Last Lie by Stephen White; Rock the Casbah by Robin Wright
Pages read in the most recent period: 120
Total pages read: 961

Well yesterday was a complete fail as far as reading was concerned. I managed to read 9 pages of Timaeus!

Things got a bit better when I took the books to the bedroom - though I only managed to read from Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - 56 pages last night and another 90 this morning.

Total time read - 6 hr 20 mins(approx)

Total pages read - 526

Now that we're over halfway through, are you on track to meet any goals you set? Have you developed a goal as the read-a-thon progressed?

Well I didn't really have any goals for this readathon - apart from actually getting some reading done outside my usual in bed reading ... but I haven't done very well at that:(

I would still like to finish both the Timaeus and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close before midnight - we'll see - maybe I will manage to get some reading done today, after a complete lack of focus yesterday.

Argh. People! People keep showing up to visit! Cutting into my reading time! Will I get to finish Before They Are Hanged before midnight! Keep tuned, I'm busy reading!

Good Morning Fellow Read-a-thoners!

So, I misread my iPod and turns out I actually just over an hour left to listen on Ender's Game. I would like to think that I will finish it today, but probably not because we have house-guests here for the New Year.

This may be my last post so thank you to Katie for setting this up! And good luck to everyone! Happy New Year!

got in about an hour last night and another so far this morning. 52 more pages in Something Rotten. Not much on the mandatory schedule today, so might make my 75 books. My bathroom reader of short bits is nearly done, and I'l need one more.

I've managed to finish Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - amazing book and read another 29 pages of Timaeus. Looks like I'm on track to finish it today. Time for something to eat and then I'll get back to it. See you all later.

Total time read - 8 hr 20 mins (approx)

Total pages read - 619

Good morning everyone (or afternoon/evening for those further away)! You're all doing wonderfully :)

Brit-- You're welcome!

I thought I might've been able to read a bit this morning before work. . . but sleep seemed to win that battle very decisively. Oh well, still reached my goal, which makes me extremely happy to sneak those three books in. Anywho, I work up until the technical end of the read-a-thon. People are welcome to stay, track reading and keep posting for the rest of 2011. I still might get another volume of Half Prince done after work and before parties.

Happy almost New Year! Keep up the awesome reading :)

Good morning all! The Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close book looks interesting. Now LT says I probably won't like it. I will see if they have it at one of my local libraries. If they do I will pick up a copy next year.

I have eaten my breakfast and took the puppy for a walk. Now I am just waiting for my visitor to stop by. I just hope she doesn't stay long. She is trying to get me to see jewelry called Premier Designs. I just don't know if I really want to do it.

I started last night before going to be to read Marvel 1602 by Neil Gaiman. This will be my first Graphic Novel. This will also fit into my one 11 in 11 category that I have no books listed in yet. My goal for that challenge was to read a least one book for each category. So I may as well get this done today and I will have reached 75 books and at least read one book for each of my categories in 11 in 11 challenge

I am up to part 2 in the Marvel 1602 book. I will read until my guest shows up.

Happy Reading all and Happy New Year!!

Finished Something Rotten and the Artful Nuance - need to get dressed, go to the post office and think about dinner plans while I choose the next book.

I finished Felicia's Journey last night and Leviathan this morning. I thought that would be it for the year, but I have Lady Susan on my Kindle which is a short, epistolary novella by Jane Austen. I should be able to get through that before midnight here :-)

I finished a book! I listened to two more discs of Then Again, and then quickly read the rest of Down and Out in Manhattan before picking up (and getting sucked into) my latest ER read Paris, My Sweet. Oh, and I read the December issues of Martha Stewart Living and Vogue (but I'm not counting them in my page count).

Reading now: Paris, My Sweet and Then Again
Finished this hour: 1
Total finished: 2, Down and Out in Manhattan and Souvenir of Canada
Pages read: 257
Total pages: 512
Total time reading: 8 1/2 hours (6 hrs of that audiobooks)

Books completed : The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes
The Shadow Woman - Ake Edwardson

Reading now : A Family Matter

I'm about to take a housecleaning break and read at least one more story in The Lost Tiki Palaces of Detroit.

Books finished: The London Train and The Housekeeper and the Professor
Pages read: 131
Audiobook: 3 hours 29 minutes

The menu: coffee cake, mixed fruit, mudslide coffee with milk.

Hi all, I'm still chugging along on Matterhorn and so far it is a very well written book! I'll continue to read off and on as the day progresses but this post will probably be it for 2011! Wish you all a happy and safe new year! Cheers!! and thanks Katie for putting this readathon together.

Love the menu, Cariola .... that's given me a craving for a nice chocolate cake with raspberries.

Well I finally finished Timaeus and will now be taking a break from the books. I doubt if I will be reading any more before the official end of the readathon as I still need to clean up my 2011 thread - write some book thoughts for a few books, etc. But, before I do that, I have some braised red cabbage, baked potato and vegetarian sausages to eat.

Total time read - 9 hrs (approx)

Total pages read - 649

Thanks for organising the readathon Katie.

I've just finished The Last Enchantment which will probably be my last book of the year. So that'sone book finished but I made good progress with another two and I think that means I've read 850 pages over the last few days.

Happy New Year everyone! And thank you for organising Katie.

I finished reading Mastiff. which I started right around the beginning of the readathon, so that's 581 pages for me, plus about a hundred more in another (shorter) book, which I'll probably finish this evening.

I put in four hours last night and finished Hunting Party by Elizabeth Moon at 364 pages. So I ended at two books and 580 pages, about 6 hours of reading time.

Thanks for organizing the readathon, Katie!

I got more reading done than expected. My guest forgot to come so I was able to read until about noon time. I then took my puppy for a walk and to the dog park. I just go back and I plan to read for the next hour or so.

I am making dinner because I have plans to go out to see some fireworks with a friend and her grandson and nephew. My dinner is going to be ham and some mashed potatoes.

I will continue to read tonight while I wait for the new year to begin. Hopefully I will be able to finish my book before then.

I had my first part of dinner and a glass of prosecco and will now continue reading into the new year - which starts in 2hrs 53 in my place. This is my last post for today, so I wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

And thanks to Katie for setting up the read-a-thon!!

I got in another 95 pages of The Lost Tiki Palaces of Detroit and should finish it later today. It's a really wonderful short story collection.

Books finished: The London Train and The Housekeeper and the Professor
Pages read: 226
Audiobook: 3 hours 29 minutes

I've been doing laundry while reading and took a break to make some Cajun Spiced Pecans in the crockpot. Soon I'll be starting up a crockpot Wassail for New Year's Eve. (Can you tell that I got a new crockpot book for Christmas?)

It's 12:21 pm here, so almost 1/2 hour past the official end of the readathon. I listened to another 1/2 CD of The Leftovers while making breakfast: french toast with vanilla Greek yogurt and cherry jam, coffee with milk. Then I read about 1/2 of what will be my last book for the year Alex & Me, yet another great animal book. Irene Pepperberg talks about having to overcome 2 major obstacles in obtaining funding for her research on animal communication - the prejudice against women scientists (she began in the 1970's, but we know such prejudice continues) and the refusal to see animals as thinking beings rather than robotic mimics (which prejudice also continues). I'm glad I picked the book. As soon as I finish I'll be off to Costco to buy dog food and bird seed for the communicative animals in my life.
Thanks for the readathon, Katie, I wouldn't have been able to finish these last books without it.
Happy New Year to all.
Oh, I might have to buy some prosecco too. I keep hearing about it on cooking shows, and I don't think I've ever tasted it.

Yay! I did finish Before They Were Hanged with time to spare! Probably not too much reading for the rest of the day year. Happy New Year everyone!

Well, not much reading today. I've been busy in the kitchen making taco dip, Jack Daniels meatballs, Rolo cookies, and Oreo balls for our New Years' Eve gathering.

But I did read for about an hour last night, another fifty pages of We Wanted to be Writers, and about 30 minutes this morning (25 pages of Every Last One). I also set up my thread on the 2012 group.

My totals for the readathon:

9.5 hours read
470 pages read
One book finished: Being the Boss
Read from five others: Every Thing On It, Every Last One, We Wanted to Be Writers, The Lost Hero, and The Christmas Genie

Happy New Year, everyone!

Mmmm..... Jack Daniels meatballs sound good, Amy.

I've finished my third book for this read-athon. I don't think I'll have time to start on my 4th because we're heading out for a New Year's Eve party in a couple of hours' time.

Here is where I ended up :

Books read : The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes
The Shadow Woman - Ake Edwardson
A Family Matter - Will Eisner

Total no. of pages : 575
Total time read : 10.5 hours

Happy New Year everyone!!!

Hmm, well, thought I probably had plans for this evening, but it seems that I may not after all. Serves me right for assuming anything! Well, at least I'll be able to keep reading some of these books & finish a couple more that each require a few hours of my attention between now and midnight. Finished The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman.

Books read from this period: Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison; The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman; Poison Flower by Thomas Perry
Other books read from during the readathon: Crowded with Genius by James Buchan; The Painted Lady by Maeve Haran
Books completed during the readathon: The Last Lie by Stephen White; Rock the Casbah by Robin Wright; The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman
Pages read in the most recent period: 116 of Ellison; 83 of Lippman; 88 of Perry for a total of 286
Total pages read: 1,147

I'll definitely finish the Ellison novel and probably the Thomas Perry thriller by midnight; I'm hoping I can wrap up the excellent history of Edinburgh in the 18th century as well...

You're welcome!

Thanks everyone for joining me in this read-a-thon. It was exactly what I needed to push through a couple more books for the year. I had fun and hope you all did too :)

Just one last thing, and it'll probably help us with these next year too. Final Meme-ish question:

Do you prefer long, relaxed read-a-thons or short, read-til-you-drop ones? Or do you like a mix of both?

When I have a day or two off work, I prefer the short all out ones. But as that rarely happens, these work rather nicely to keep me reading. Basically, mixed is good for me :)

I'm still here, even though the thon has officially ended. My parents stopped over for a visit and we watched part of French & Saunders - Back With A Vengeance. But now, I've got Bridesmaids on and I'll be trying to get through 2 more books tonight if I can, fingers crossed.

Good luck! I might get a few more pages of Half Prince read, but I doubt it. I probably won't be back until tomorrow. . . Happy New Year!

I will keep going until midnight!

Do you prefer long, relaxed read-a-thons or short, read-til-you-drop ones? Or do you like a mix of both?

This long read-athon has been fun and a relaxing one for me, allowing me time to do other things as well. There was no pressure for me to finish a book or two. But there's also something a little exciting about the short, read-til-you-drop read-athons and I've enjoyed the frenzied concentration on those. I can only participate in the short ones when I know I have nothing planned that will take me away from the reading.

So I like a mix of the two.

Thanks for putting this together, Katie.

Happy New Year one and all! I'm looking forward to more read-athons in 2012 with you.

I much prefer the long no-pressure readathons. something always comes up in my life to get in the way and I don't really need to feel bad when I can't read the way I wanted to.

I read 137 pages in about 2 hours to complete Emily Dickinson and the Art of Belief. That was 3 completions for the challenge. I've been trying to get online to post most of the day. The Internet was down at my Dad's list almost all day, so I only had my iPhone which is rather awkward for typing longer posts and for locating the right talk thread to which I needed to post.

Do you prefer long, relaxed read-a-thons or short, read-til-you-drop ones? Or do you like a mix of both?

They both have their good points. Although I am actually likely to get more reading done in the short ones as I drop everything else to focus on the books and am less easily distracted. The long and relaxed ones are fun as well.

Do you prefer long, relaxed read-a-thons or short, read-til-you-drop ones? Or do you like a mix of both?
I like both too. The longer ones are good for coming and going with all our different time zones and allow time off for running errands and family issues. The short ones are great at the end of the month when focus is needed to squeeze in the last TIOLI reads.

Thanks to Katie for hosting this marathon reading spree.

Well, I read another 53 pages of Virals before midnight last night, taking my read-a-thon total tally up to 290 pages. That's most of Direct Red and about half of Virals, which has the added bonus of being a long-overdue review book. Which isn't that bad really, when you think we had guests here, and I wasn't feeling too great, and last night was my sister's last night so I spent several hours with her having dinner, watching Pirates of the Caribbean 3 and playing with the cats...

Do you prefer long, relaxed read-a-thons or short, read-til-you-drop ones? Or do you like a mix of both?
I think maybe a mix of both. If I'm awake, alert, and I've got nothing on, I find that I tend to get really absorbed and read about 2-3 books during a 24-hour read-a-thon, which does wonders for my general reading motivation. But now that I've shifted my sleep habits to an earlier bedtime and earlier start, it's getting harder to stay awake late so a more relaxed read-a-thon makes me feel less guilty about getting a good night's sleep! I think I'd have read a lot more over the last couple of days and had a more successful tally if we hadn't had our noisy house guests, and if I hadn't been feeling weary with this headachy cold ('cold' always sounds so benign until you get one, doesn't it?). Though my book's been a welcome respite from both at times!

Happy New Year everyone - and thank you so much, Katie, for organising this read-a-thon!

I think the longer one was good for this time of the year which is rather hectic. With my normal schedule, the longer ones usually work a bit better, but if I'm truly free when a short one comes around, I tend to get more reading done. I do get tired of the rather redundant hourly posts though. They cut into my reading time. I've begun posting only when I need to take a break.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!! I am here to post about my reading from last year/night. I went out at 4pm to see some fireworks and didn't get home till about 9:30 pm. I had one book I wanted to finish to make it to 75 and I did just that.

I finished Marvel 1602 by Neil Gaiman. My first graphic novel and my first book by Neil Gaiman. I really enjoyed it. I then started on Stardust by Neil Gaiman for the new year.

Citizenjoyce the book Alex and Me looks interesting. I may have to look for that book at the library to read. I love books about animals and I do believe that animals are able to think and I also feel that they understand us more then we realize.

Do you prefer long, relaxed read-a-thons or short, read-til-you-drop ones? Or do you like a mix of both?

I prefer the long ones because I have a better chance of having time to read during that time. I cannot read for 24 hours without sleep. For the short ones I would only drop in for maybe and hour or so and then feel like I didn't accomplish anything.

Katie thanks for hosting this wonderful read-a-thon! It was fantastic and just what I needed to finish my 75 books this year.

Finish A Death in Vienna just past midnight!
First of the new year!

Yea, Cheli! I'm almost done. If I'd stayed up a bit longer, taken a break to work of logic puzzle, and then resumed reading, I could have done the same thing. I expected Straw Hats and Bicycles to be longer than it was. It was one of those that could be read in about an hour and a half though. I got to about 70% of the way through (Kindle) and decided to stop. It was midnight where I live, but not where I was. I'll probably finish it before I head to church this morning if I get off LibraryThing and start reading!

Do you prefer long, relaxed read-a-thons or short, read-til-you-drop ones? Or do you like a mix of both?

I like both, but as others have mentioned, I feel guilty if I don't accomplish as much as I had hoped for the shorter, more intense ones.

Books finished: The London Train, The Housekeeper and the Professor, and The Lost Tiki Palaces of Detroit
Pages read total: 284
Audiobook: 3 hours 29 minutes

Thanks Katie--it has been fun!

Happy New Year, everyone!

You're welcome :)

Thanks for answering. That will definitely help me in deciding when/how long to make some of the read-a-thons next year.

I finished the last 2 before midnight last night!

Books finished: 4 - Then Again by Diane Keaton, Paris, My Sweet by Amy Thomas, Souvenir of Canada by Douglas Coupland, and Down and Out in Manhattan by Irene Magers
Pages read: 797
Time reading: 15 hrs (8 hrs of audiobook)

Do you prefer long, relaxed read-a-thons or short, read-til-you-drop ones? Or do you like a mix of both?

I like a mix of both, but I the long and relaxed ones seem to be more enjoyable and realistic for me. If I have enough advanced notice I can usually do the short and intense ones, but longer is better overall.

Thanks so much to Katie for hosting!

Has anyone been keeping up with Readathons this year? I've been pretty busy with work, but I haven't noticed any Readathon posts. Tried to find the old thread but had no luck.

Here's the thread but I must say that I don't think the last Easter/passover readathon was announced there

http://www.librarything.com/topic/129339

Thanks, calm. I'm almost done with the semester and would like to host a readathon sometime after my grades are submitted on May 10.

#235: I'm almost done too! And thinking I needed a book binge ;)

Oh, good, at least there will be two of us! I have an ARC of Bring Up the Bodies wending its way towards me, so that would be a wonderful way to start it.

We'll be RVing through the mountains beginning 17 May but I should have some reading time too. I'm in!

I'll post a "who's interested" message after the upcoming weekend; I can't host or participate until after May 10. I'm never sure if it's better for folks on the weekend or the weekdays, so I may go for a time slot than spans both--something like 3:00 EST Thursday to 3:00 Sunday (72 hours)

If there is sufficient interest, I plan to host a long weekend "drop in" readathon from 10:00 EDT Friday to 10:00 EDT Monday. Here's the original link. If enough people let me know by Thursday night that they'd like to participate, I'll post a signup thread. Hope you're all up for it!

Has anyone started a 2012 Readathon thread? If not, I'll hit the "Continue" link and start a new one. I couldn't find it in doing a search.

This year's readathon thread is here:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/129339