48 Hour Book Challenge

Okay, I've started reading!  Well, listening.  On the approximate hour commute to work, I listened to The Search for Wondla.

= 1 hour

With the office's permission, my coworker and I are listening to Heart of a Samurai while we work at our desks.

*update*

Well, my coworker and I did as best as we could while planning storytimes, working on other summer programming, working our reference desk shifts, and having lunch.  I think we averaged about 3 hours listening to Heart of a Samurai, which isn't too bad!

+ 3 hours = 4 hours

Now that it's nearing the end of my work day, I'll listen to The Search for Wondla on the commute home for another hour--so I think I'm doing pretty well so far, considering I'm working a full day!

Tomorrow, Saturday, will also be tough because I'm working the reference desk all day.  I plan to make a sign that explains why I'm reading all day long at the desk--I'll try to post it here afterwards.

*update # 2*

Here I am on Saturday, and I'm disappointed to say I'm not doing super-great with my reading today.  Here's where I stand as of 11:50am:

Last night visiting various blogs = 1 hour

Commute to work this morning, listening to The Search for Wondla = 1 hour

Visiting more blogs today = 1 hour

Total so far = 7 hours

I'll try my best to read a lot here at work!  We've been pretty steady with patrons today, so we'll see how far I get with my reading.  I am starting the book Seven Sorcerers.  And here is the sign I made to put out at the reference desk:

This image is from http://www.motherreader.com/

*update # 3*

I must hang my head in shame, as the 48 Hour Book Challenge is over and I didn't do well at all.  :(  Here's where I stand:

Reading at work...probably only an hour and a half total with all of the interruptions, and that's being generous.

+ 1.5 hours = 8.5 hours

Then after work on Saturday, I drove from work to visit my parents (including picking up my brother from work, approximately 1 hour).  Then no reading there of course!  Then I drove my brother home before going home myself (another approximate hour)...so I can only add two more hours here:

+ 2 hours = 10.5 hours

And that's it, as I didn't read when I got home because it was already SO LATE.

I got a taste of just three books--and I didn't finish any of them!  I plan to, though, so watch for a review of each of these:

Thanks for all of the support, everyone!  I didn't beat my time from last year, but there's always next year!  (And hopefully I won't be working again those days!).

grand total for 2011 = 10.5 hours

48 Hour Book Challenge!

The time has arrived for the 48 Hour Book Challenge! It takes place June 3--5, and I plan to read/listen to as much as possible within these 48 hours. I participated last year and was only able to get up to 11.25 hours! AND I'm working again this weekend,so it's going to be tricky. I suppose all I can do is try!

Here's what I hope to tackle:

The Search for Wondla by Tony DiTerlizzi in audio book format

Living in isolation with a robot on what appears to be an alien world populated with bizarre life forms, a twelve-year-old human girl called Eva Nine sets out on a journey to find others like her. Features "augmented reality" pages, in which readers with a webcam can access additional information about Eva Nine's world.

Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus in audio book format

In 1841, rescued by an American whaler after a terrible shipwreck leaves him and his four companions castaways on a remote island, fourteen-year-old Manjiro, who dreams of becoming a samurai, learns new laws and customs as he becomes the first Japanese person to set foot in the United States.

Aliens on Vacation by Clete Barrett Smith

Unhappy at being sent to stay with his grandmother at the inn she operates, The Intergalactic Bed & Breakfast, Scrub discovers that each room is actually a portal to space and the inn's visitors are aliens who are vacationing on Earth.

Seven Sorcerers by Caro King

When eleven-year-old Nin Redfern wakes up one rainy Wednesday morning to discover that her younger brother has ceased to exist, she must venture into a magical land called the Drift where she grapples with bogeymen, tombfolk, mudmen, and the spirits of sorcerers to try and rescue him.

The Secret Zoo by Bryan Chick

Noah and his friends follow a trail of mysterious clues to uncover a secret behind the walls of the Clarksville City Zoo--a secret that must be protected at all costs.

Wish me luck--and good luck to anyone else reading for these 48 hours!

My (not-so-successful) 48-hour Reading Challenge Results

I tried to do as much reading and listening to books as possible for the challenge, but I didn't measure up very well next to others competing in this challenge. I broke down my reading time into what I read and when, but it's not very impressive. I suppose that it's okay for someone who had places to be for many of the 48 hours!

--Friday morning: 7:30-8:30--Read the [adult] book _House Rules_ by Jodi Picoult
--Friday morning during errands: 9:30-10:00--continued listening to _The Giant-Slayer_ by Iain Lawrence
--Friday afternoon during errands: 10:30-11:00; 12:00-1:00--continued listening to _The Giant-Slayer_ by Iain Lawrence
--1:15-3:15--continued listening to _The Giant-Slayer_ by Iain Lawrence
--Then, after all of my errands, I was cranky and didn't feel like doing anything but taking a nap! That's not very good for reading...so I lost a lot of time that way. After I woke up, I only read for another hour or so: 6:00-7:00--continued reading _House Rules_ by Jodi Picoult


Friday's total=6 hours


--Then, on Saturday, I had to work all day! On my long commute to work: 8:00-9:00--I finally finished _The Giant-Slayer_ by Iain Lawrence and then started right in on _Falling In_ by Frances O'Roark Dowell. (If I was already listening to an audio book and then I started another one, does that bypass the rule that I can only listen to one? I hope it does.)
--I tried to read while on the service desk, but that is much easier said than done; I kept getting interrupted or distracted by things going on in the department. I began _Redwall_ by Brian Jacques around 10:30 and only managed to read the first 10 chapters by 4:30. When I add all of the starting and stopping that took place throughout the day, I'd say that I only read maybe an hour and a half, total. Reading FAILURE!
--Breaktime at work: 12:15-1:00--I read a WWE magazine.
--On an errand and then to my parents' house: 5:15-6:30--I continued listening to _Falling In_ by Frances O'Roark Dowell.
--On the way home from my parents' house: 12:30-1:15--I continued listening to _Falling In_ by Frances O'Roark Dowell.

Saturday's total=5.25 hours

48-hour reading challenge total= 11.25 hours

Well...it's something to beat next year! Maybe I won't have errands for most of the day one day and have to work most of the day for the second day. Sigh.

The Great Reading Challenge!

The great reading challenge is going on now. I've been trying my best to read & listen to books as much as life will allow me. Yesterday consisted of a lot of errand-running (so I listened to an audio book in the car) and I read the adult book I have at home because I forgot the children's book at work that I was planning on reading. So, here's where I stand so far:

[Adult] Book: _House Rules_ by Jodi Picoult -still reading
Audio Book: _The Giant-Slayer_ by Iain Lawrence -finished
Audio Book: _Falling In_ by Frances O'Roark Dowell -still listening
Book: _Redwall_ by Brian Jacques -still reading

Not that great, but there are hours to go! I'll check in later.