Readathon: April 2016 Edition

Welcome, fellow Readathonners and random visitors alike! Murchie and I are all set to devote our day to Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon. This is my sixteenth 'thon and Murchie's fourteenth.

I'll update this master post every two or three hours, with the most recent update at the top.

Hour Eighteen

This'll be my last blog update because I'm sleepy as all hell and seriously incoherent with it. I'll still be checking in on social media until I fall asleep, but I wanna do so from the comfort of my oh-so cozy bed.

It's early, I know, both in terms of the overall Readathon and when you consider my track record, but I woke up a full two hours before the start time and never managed to do more than doze after that. Sigh. Sometimes insomnia keeps you up too late; sometimes it gets you up too early. Either one's about as fun as the other.

I'm still reading THE LIE TREE, but I took a brief break during my last session to chug down a few issues of UNCANNY X-MEN. I expect I'll continue to alternate between the two for as long as I'm awake; so, for anywhere from one to three hours. I probably won't finish THE LIE TREE and I definitely won't reach the final issue of UNCANNY X-MEN, but I'll get some good reading in.

I also paused at the start of Hour Fifteen to get tomorrow's Murchie Plus Books in order. Check back at 7am Central time for my excessively longwinded thoughts on spoilers, Batgirl cereal, and other related topics.

Currently Reading

• THE LIE TREE by Frances Hardinge

Previously Read

• BATGIRL VOLUME TWO: FAMILY BUSINESS by Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr
• SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• MIDNIGHTER VOLUME ONE: OUT by Steve Orlando, Aco, Stephen Mooney, Alex Morgan, and Hugo Petrus
• 1970s issues of UNCANNY X-MEN

Food and Drink Consumed

• a great many glasses water (I always lose track)
• two cups coffee
• one bowl Batgirl cereal
• one plate sour cream scrambled eggs
• dried mango
• mixed gummies
• four pieces garlic peppercorn toast
• two cups tea
• one small bowl triple berry sorbet
• two bowls dill pickle rice chips
• one bowl peanut butter chocolate crunch frozen yogurt

Albums Listened To

• Within A Mile of Home - Flogging Molly (x2)
• Funhouse - P!nk
• Lock, Stock, & Two Smoking Barrels OST
• A Mediterranean Odyssey - Loreena McKennitt

Other Activities

• mini challenge administration
• ablutions
• routine dog maintenance
• second breakfast
• extraordinary dog maintenance involving eye goop (ewwwwwwwwww)
• valiant attempt not to puke (successful)
• Murchie Plus Books prep

Mini Challenges Completed

• Intro Meme (see below)
• Mid-Event Survey (see below)
• Kickass Characters

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Hour Fifteen

I'm now about halfway through THE LIE TREE, and it's really frickin' good. Frances Hardinge's writing is like if Diana Wynne Jones's books got together with Elizabeth Knox's books and had a wonderfully creepy baby. I'm looking forward to the rest of it, and I'll have a full review for you in the nearish future.

Health-wise, I'm still utterly unable to contemplate the leftover red velvet cake in my fridge, but I think I might see my way through to a scoop of peanut butter chocolate crunch ice cream. Purely to test the waters, you understand.

I won't bother with my personal survey thing this time around because there's exactly one alteration on it: I drank a second cup of tea. Exciting, huh?

I'm going to take a wee reading break so's I can get tomorrow's Murchie Plus Books in order, then possibly start the second CROSS GAME omnibus before I return to Hardinge. I'll see what I feel like.

I've gotta find somewhere to stretch out my leg, too. I've been dealing with a muscle thing in my left calf, and sitting cross-legged with Murchie perched on it hasn't helped matters. Here's hoping I can snag some time in the recliner good and soon.

---

Mid-Event Survey

1. What are you reading right now? THE LIE TREE by Frances Hardinge

2. How many books have you read so far?

Three. I'm slow to begin with, and I've somehow become even slower today. Sigh.

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

Soon as I finish THE LIE TREE, I'm gonna start rereading THE RAVEN BOYS by Maggie Stiefvater for the third time.

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

The mini challenge was my biggest interruption, and it was the opposite of a bad one because everyone's entries were so much fun to read.

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

I'm an ancient Readathonner. Nothing and no one surprises me anymore.

Hour Twelve

I'm almost a hundred pages into THE LIE TREE and I think I'm gonna hunker down with it after all, perhaps with a pause at the 50% mark so I can read a comic or two.

I still feeling poor, so my snacks languish uneaten. It's a terrible tragedy, friends. A terrible, terrible tragedy. I was hungry enough to eat a goodly quantity of barley peppercorn toast, but the peanut butter chocolate crunch ice cream remains off the table.

I've also cancelled my plans to attend a family thing tonight. On the plus side, this gives me more time to curl up beside Murchie and read.

Currently Reading

• THE LIE TREE by Frances Hardinge

Previously Read

• BATGIRL VOLUME TWO: FAMILY BUSINESS by Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr
• SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• MIDNIGHTER VOLUME ONE: OUT by Steve Orlando, Aco, Stephen Mooney, Alex Morgan, and Hugo Petrus

Food and Drink Consumed

• a great many glasses water (I always lose track)
• two cups coffee
• one bowl Batgirl cereal
• one plate sour cream scrambled eggs
• dried mango
• mixed gummies
• four pieces garlic peppercorn toast
• one cup tea
• one small bowl triple berry sorbet

Albums Listened To

• Within A Mile of Home - Flogging Molly (x2)
• Funhouse - P!nk
• Lock, Stock, & Two Smoking Barrels OST
• A Mediterranean Odyssey - Loreena McKennitt

Other Activities

• mini challenge administration
• ablutions
• routine dog maintenance
• second breakfast
• extraordinary dog maintenance involving eye goop, which did not help with the nausea
• valiant attempt not to puke (successful)

Mini Challenges Completed

• Intro Meme
• Mid-Event Survey

Hour Nine

Last session, I hunkered down and read the first volume of MIDNIGHTER. It took me far longer than I wanted it to because I had some trouble with the visual syntax, but I ultimately enjoyed it very much.

I plan to start THE LIE TREE by Frances Hardinge next. I doubt I'll read it straight through before I break to tackle more comics or some short fiction, but it expires soon and I want to establish myself in the story so I'll have a hope of finishing it before it disappears from my Kobo.

And as I read, I'll try not to focus on how looooooooooooooooooong it's taking me. Y'all are out there blasting through five books in two hours, while I struggle to make it through fifty prose pages in one hour. It's the sort of thing that can get a body down on what's supposed to be a happy, book-filled day.

Currently Reading

• THE LIE TREE by Frances Hardinge

Previously Read

• BATGIRL VOLUME TWO: FAMILY BUSINESS by Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr
• SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• MIDNIGHTER VOLUME ONE: OUT by Steve Orlando, Aco, Stephen Mooney, Alex Morgan, and Hugo Petrus

Food and Drink Consumed

• a great many glasses water (I always lose track)
• two cups coffee
• one bowl Batgirl cereal
• one plate sour cream scrambled eggs
• dried mango
• mixed gummies

Albums Listened To

• Within A Mile of Home - Flogging Molly (x2)
• Funhouse - P!nk
• Lock, Stock, & Two Smoking Barrels OST

Other Activities

• mini challenge administration
• ablutions
• routine dog maintenance
• second breakfast
• extraordinary dog maintenance involving eye goop, which did not help with the nausea
• valiant attempt not to puke (successful)

Mini Challenges Completed

• Intro Meme

Hour Seven

I finally got a bit of reading done this session! SO SWEET is now off la TBR, and I'm poised to return to comics with the first volume of MIDNIGHTER.

I also read a great many mini challenge entries, as expected. Mini challenges are a ton of fun to run, but they do cut into one's reading time. I was either reading entries or obsessively checking to see if there were any fun new entries for me to read. I'm gonna take some time completely away from my computer during my next reading session.

I'm also gonna majorly cut down on the snacks. I thought I was eating good stuff--scrambled eggs and mangos and massive amounts of water--but I'm feeling nauseated. Not good. Also annoying, since I have tasty stuff laid in, including mixed berry sorbet, white cheddar rice cakes, and hot apple cider, with delicious salad fixings for proper meals. I sure hope I'm able to eat some of it in a couple hours.

In the meantime I'll read some books, drink even more water, and have a shower.

Currently Reading

• MIDNIGHTER VOLUME ONE: OUT by Steve Orlando, Aco, Stephen Mooney, Alex Morgan, and Hugo Petrus

Previously Read

• BATGIRL VOLUME TWO: FAMILY BUSINESS by Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr
• SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon

Food and Drink Consumed

• a great many glasses water (I always lose track)
• two cups coffee
• one bowl Batgirl cereal
• one plate sour cream scrambled eggs
• dried mango
• mixed gummies

Albums Listened To

• Within A Mile of Home - Flogging Molly (x2)
• Funhouse - P!nk

Other Activities

• mini challenge administration
• ablutions
• routine dog maintenance
• second breakfast
• extraordinary dog maintenance involving eye goop, which did not help with the nausea

Mini Challenges Completed

• Intro Meme

Hour Five

I didn't read an enormous amount during this session, partly because I found myself in urgent need of second breakfast and partly because Cass and I are running the Taco Road Trip Mini Challenge and I've been too busy grinning over everyone's awesome entries.

I love what I've read of Rebekah Weatherspoon's SO SWEET, though. Weatherspoon writes fun, sensible characters who have awesome chemistry with their love interests, and she always puts a huge focus on consent. Y'all need to check her out if you're on the hunt for diverse romance novellas. Her earlier books are rather expensive, but all her recent, self-published offerings are nice and affordable.

Currently Reading

• SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon

Previously Read

• FAMILY BUSINESS by Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr

Food and Drink Consumed

• four glasses water
• two cups coffee
• one bowl Batgirl cereal
• one plate sour cream scrambled eggs
• dried mango

Albums Listened To

• Within A Mile of Home - Flogging Molly

Other Activities

• mini challenge administration
• ablutions
• routine dog maintenance
• second breakfast

Mini Challenges Completed

• Intro Meme

Hour Three

I started strong with the second volume of Stewart, Fletcher, and Tarr's BATGIRL, which I read while I ate my uber-delicious Batgirl cereal. (They marketed it as Batman cereal, but we all know the truth. Also, my local Shoppers and Superstore have both been clearing it out over the last few weeks, so the non-gluten-intolerant Canadians among you should see if you can get some.)

Now I'm gonna dip into SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon as I gear up for the SUPER-AWESOME MINI CHALLENGE Cass and I are hosting in Hour Four. Y'all want to make sure you come back here then. There'll be tacos.

• SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon

Previously Read

• FAMILY BUSINESS by Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr

Food and Drink Consumed

• two glasses water
• two cups coffee
• one bowl Batgirl cereal

Albums Listened To

• none yet

Other Activities

• none yet

Mini Challenges Completed

• Intro Meme

Hour One

Hey, I'm awake! For real; I rushed to edit this post before it went live.

"Rushed" is maybe the wrong word. I woke up two hours before Hour One and tried my damnedest to fall back asleep, but I couldn't manage to do more than doze. I'm gonna pay for that later today.

But right now, I'm pumped. I plan to start the Readathon with the second volume of Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr's BATGIRL, probably followed by SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon. After that, who knows? I don't have a formal stack this year; just a bunch of ebooks and a pile of comics from the library. I'll dip into whichever one of the most appeals in the moment.

And of course, I'll also have coffee. Lots and lots of coffee.

Now, let's start things off with the Intro Meme and my usual personal tracking survey thing.

Intro Meme

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

Winnipeg, in the middle of Canada.

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

SO SWEET by Rebekah Weatherspoon. I loved her Fit Trilogy awfully much.

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

Peanut butter crunch ice cream!

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

I walk a lot and I have trouble thinking up Fun Facts about myself before eleven in the morning.

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

This is my sixteenth Readathon (unless I counted wrong) and I don't have a formal stack this time in deference to my I'll Read Whatever The Hell I Want philosophy for 2016. I'll go wherever my inclinations take me.

Personal Tracking Survey Thing

Currently Reading

• FAMILY BUSINESS by Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr

Previously Read

• nothing yet

Food and Drink Consumed

• one glass water
• one cup coffee
• one bowl Batman cereal (which we're pretending is Batgirl cereal on account of my current read)

Albums Listened To

• none yet

Other Activities

• none yet

Mini Challenges Completed

• none yet