Friday, June 5, 2009

48 hour book challenge


Ooh, a perfect weekend? Some sunshine, a little escape and sinking into some good books. This weekend, I'm participating in the 48 Hour Book Challenge. The basic goal is to see how much time I can devote to reading over 48 hours.

Yes, of course I have to fit this in amongst hosting a sleepover, fixing breakfast for nine, and hosting a music recital at our house. But for as much of the weekend as I can, I am going to ESCAPE and READ!

Periodically, I'll update this entry to quickly note what I'm reading. But I'll wait until Sunday night to write in more detail. Cheers - here's to some lovely time away from everything else!

Friday night - read from 10:00 - 10:30 - The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate. Fell asleep much too early. Oh, my daughter's sleepover party and library inventory wiped me out.

Saturday - read from 10:00 - 1:00 - continued with The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate, but found it a bit slow. Then I started One of Those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies by Sonya Sones, which is much better pacing for my mood right now. It's full of teen attitude and sarcasm. Of course, my plan for a full escape kind of fell to the wayside as I handle 3 kids doing fuse beads in the house... More reading soon.

read from 2:00 - 4:00 - finished One of Those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies and decided that it was definitely, definitely too YA for my 10 year old. Then picked up The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate again. Off to the library with my eldest daughter, then dinner & family dinner.

read from 10:00pm - midnight - finished The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate. Liked it better at the end. Especially liked the sense of wonder at discovering new things, at the sense that the future will bring unexpected

Sunday morning - glorious morning - everyone slept in! I was able to read from 8:00 - 9:00. Picked up a fun younger novel that I'd been wanting to get to: The Prince of Underwhere, by Bruce Hale. Now off for our crazy day. Hopefully I can squeeze in some more reading before my 10pm deadline.

Sunday evening - finished The Prince of Underwhere, by Bruce Hale. Enjoyed it, in a sort of 3rd grade way. Not my favorite thing, but enjoyable. Torn between digging into my next book (Gone, by Michael Grant) or catching up on some blogging. The good news is that this weekend has made me itch for more reading time. It's also made me realize that when I'm trying to read a lot, I definitely like a strong plot to pull me through. I know that characterization is important, but I like good conflict and motive to draw me into a story.

7 comments:

  1. Oh, my goodness, what fond memories are brought to mind by your current schedule. I hope you get to read some more. I am having a great time collecting "takes" on various books I have been considering for my reading list.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you Rasco, yes it's crazy juggling. Wondering if walking to the library with my 10 year old counts in my 48hbc time? I'm enjoying the spirit of 48hbc, even if I know I just get the tip of the iceberg in terms of time I can commit. Thanks for the smiles!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I am fitting extra reading time into family stuff too, and loving every bookish minute! Hope you enjoy your Sunday. Looking forward to hearing what your read and what you liked...

    ReplyDelete
  4. Mary Ann, you asked on my blog if I would recommend OUT OF THE DUST for a 10 year old...of course like you probably are, I am hesitant not knowing the child but given what else you have said about the child, I have a feeling Hesse's book would be an enjoyable one!

    ReplyDelete
  5. only 3 stars for Evolution of Calpurnia? I thought that was a possible Newbery contender? Glad to get a reader's take on it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Go go go! I'm going to try to fit in Calpurnia tonight, but I guess we shall see how it goes...

    ReplyDelete