Merry Wanderer of the Night:
rrreadathon

Well I made it through twenty hours of Dreadlock Girl's Readathon. I was happy with that, I think I could have made it all 24 hours if my boyfriend wouldn't have been snoring. The readathon made this past week a lot more successful than it would have been otherwise since I've mostly been working on papers lately. I should actually be working on papers right now, but I just woke up so I'm trying to ease myself in. Once I get to Wednesday though I will be D-O-N-E!!! Then I will be reading a lot, which will be nice.

On Monday I posted a review of Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? by Thomas Kohnstamm. It wasn't a very favorable review because I thought the book was ridiculous trash, so if you like reading that sort of thing or if you just like reading reviews then you should check that one out. I do wonder if it's something I'm not getting because I'm not really a partier or a guy?

Wednesday I did my first children's book review of Boris and Bella by Carolyn Crimi. I loved this book and couldn't resist posting about it even though I normally do not write about children's books. I think I might start posting about them more often though as I read several in the course of a week. This will probably be a change I will make more around January because I'm almost done with tutoring for this semester.

This leads me into my next post, which is the epitome of all my challenge posts: the 2010 Reading Resolutions Challenge hosted by Jenny Loves to Read. In this post I list all of the challenges I will be participating in next year as well as some changes I would like to make in my reading habits or on my blog.

Yesterday I read and finished three books which I will be reviewing this week. The books are Are You There God? It's me Margaret by Judy Blume, Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor by Stephanie Barron, and Shirley Volume One by Kaoru Mori. I started In a Gilded Cage by Rhys Bowen which I should be finishing this week and will hopefully have reviewed by next weekend. Today I am finishing Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen and will most likely review that book on Monday. Lots of good stuff coming up this week so be sure to come back!

Finally I would like to send some shout outs and thank yous. Thanks to Dreadlock Girl for hosting the readathon and to I Heart Monster, Beth Fish Reads, Seriously Reading, Ronnica at Book Nook Club, Reads4Pleasure, Chick Loves Lit, and Tif Talks Books for hosting some great memes and/or giveaways during the readathon. And a special thanks goes out to Perpetual Spiral who was my main partner in crime during the readathon. Happy Reading!

Yes friends, the festivities are beginning to wind down and so am I. Boyfriend has fallen asleep and I have homework to do to tomorrow. Perhaps if I was alone and didn't have school I could make it to the end, actually I'm pretty sure I could. For the past few hours I've been reading In a Gilded Cage by Rhys Bowen. It's about a female detective named Molly Murphy. She is working on a few cases and it is right amidst the suffrage movement. She has a serious boyfriend, but she is deciding if marriage and children are really right for her. she thinks her career is more important. It's been a good book to end on; quick and interesting.

I want to give big thanks to Dreadlock Girl for hosting this readathon and doing an awesome job! I also want to thank everyone who has stopped by my blog. If you're interested in hearing more about any of the books I've been reading today then come back this week as I will be posting reviews of all the books in the coming days. Tomorrow is Sunday Salon and I will be finishing Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey and well probably finish up In a Gilded Cage early this week. There have been lots of snacks, lots of books, and lots of good conversation. Why can't we do this every weekend?!?! Oh... right... sleep.

My final stats:
Books Read: In a Gilded Cage, Shirley Volume One, Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor and Are You There God? It's Me Margaret
Pages Read: 100
Total Books Finished: 3.4
Total Pages Read: 728
Total Time Spent Reading: 14 hours/20 hours
Memes Completed: I Heart Monster's Compliments
and Reads4Pleasure's Hero/Heroine Vs. Dick Dastard, Tif Talks Books' Book Libs, Chick Loves Lit From Where I'm Reading, and my own meme, Favorite Classics.

This was definitely my most productive sprint, although I did read a graphic novel which helped move things along. How much longer can I stay up?!?! Only time will tell. I don't think I'll make it all night though. I'm considering a twenty minute nap at some point in the semi-near future, but if you don't hear from me assume that my bookshelf collapsed on top of me. DO NOT WORRY! I will be fine, I'm used to being under a pile of books.

Updated Stats:
Books Read: Shirley Volume One, Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor and Are You There God? It's Me Margaret
Pages Read: 236
Total Books Finished: 3
Total Pages Read: 628
Total Time Spent Reading: 12 hours
Memes Completed: I Heart Monster's Compliments
and Reads4Pleasure's Hero/Heroine Vs. Dick Dastard, Tif Talks Books' Book Libs, Chick Loves Lit From Where I'm Reading, and my own meme, Favorite Classics.

Congrats to all of you who are still up! Keep it up!

Tif Talks Books meme is Book Libs, which is like Mad Libs Except with your books. I totally love this idea because I was addicted to Mad Libs when I was a kid!

Once upon a time in the land of Scargrave Manor, there lived Miss Austen and the Lieutenant happily ever after. Is that not how the story always goes?!? On the night before the wedding, Miss Austen was sleeping peacefully when all of a sudden there was a noise. She jumped out of bed to awaken the Lieutenant.

As both stood there, looking at the snow in their front room, they felt gratitude. How could it be? Was it true? To be face to face with snow was not possible. What were they to do?

With quick thinking, Miss Austen and the Lieutenant exchanged a knowing glance and struggled.

From there, we may never know what happened in this story. It could be penniless. Or, it could be lonely. It truly is a mystery! However what we do know is this . . . . Thanks an awful lot.

Thanks to everyone who joined in on my meme, I saw some great quotes up there! I was hoping I would be done with Jane and the Unpleasantness of Scargrave Manor by now, but I've got about forty-five pages left. After this I'm going to read Shirley Volume One by Karou Mori, which is a graphic novel about young maids in Victorian England. I wanted to read more of Emma by Karou Mori, which also takes place in Victorian England, but I only have volume three and I haven't read volume two yet. I'm kicking myself for that one, but maybe I'll be able to snatch it next week.

Here is my Chick Loves Lit meme: I am mostly reading in my bed today, although when I was at work I was sitting at the front desk.

Name of the book you're currently reading: Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor.

Wanting Most: A cleaner desk.

Something you like to do besides read: Watch Friends Season Dvds.

Fact about yourself: I love going to Iowa's theatre productions and I keep all of the programs.

Activity you would be doing today if it weren't for the read-a-thon: Writing papers and doing homework.

Updated Stats:
Books Read: Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor and Are You There God? It's Me Margaret
Pages Read: 85
Total Books Finished: 1
Total Pages Read: 392
Total Time Spent Reading: 10 hours
Memes Completed: I Heart Monster's Compliments
and Reads4Pleasure's Hero/Heroine Vs. Dick Dastard and my own meme, Favorite Classics.

For those of you who don't normally read my blog I'll let you in on a little secret: I love classic novels (and really I love Victorian literature). My challenge for you is to think of your favorite classic novel, grab it (or you can look it up online), and find a quote from the novel that makes you love it. If your novel is borderline classic that is fine, this is just a chance for us to share quotes from novels we love and talk about why we love them. You can include some context for the quote if you would like so people can understand why it is so important. If you don't have a quote from the book you can also find a quote from the author, or you can do both!

My favorite classic novel, and actually my favorite novel, is Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. I could talk about this novel for hours, but instead I will just make my post because I know you all have reading to do. I chose three short quotes because, well, because I am bad at making decisions.

It is in vain to say human beings ought to be satisfied with tranquility: they must have action; and they will make if if they cannot find it. -Jane

To live, for me, Jane, is to stand on a crater-crust which may crack and spue fire any day. -Rochester

I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an independent will, which I now exert to leave you.-Jane

These are three of my favorite quotes from the novel and I picked them out as favorites during different times I read the book. The final quote is the first quote I loved in the novel, I found it the first time I read it when I was seventeen. The first quote I found during my second time reading the novel when I was eighteen. The second quote I found just this year when I read the novel as a 19 year old. I explain this only to show the reason I love Jane Eyre: it's a novel that grows with you. Each time I read it I find something new and I find myself becoming annoyed with Jane in different places and sympathizing with her for different reasons.

Finally I'll include a quote from Charlotte herself:

"I'm just going to write because I cannot help it."
You can post this in a comment to this post or in a link to your blog. Happy Reading!

There were more distractions than I had originally planned on. I decided to take a shower, and then boyfriend said it was dinner time, plus I took a pretty big break when I got back from work. In any case, I'm over halfway done with Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor (which is an incredibly long title by the way). Right now I'm in the middle of the trial. For those of you who are wondering, the Jane in the book is actually Jane Austen and she is somewhat of a detective. Her friend's husband dies right after their wedding and Jane is trying to figure out who murdered him, or if someone murdered him. It's a pretty good read, although it is rather difficult for me to imagine Jane Austen reaching up into a dead woman's bloody dress to check if their is a note in her bodice.

In about an hour I'll be hosting a meme here, so be sure to check back!

Here are my stats:
Books Read: Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor and Are You There God? It's Me Margaret
Pages Read: 64
Total Books Finished: 1
Total Pages Read: 307
Total Time Spent Reading: 8 hours
Memes Completed: I Heart Monster's Compliments
and Reads4Pleasure's Hero/Heroine Vs. Dick Dastard

Phew! Work is over now and I am back in my room. I'm one third of the way through Jane and the Unpleasantness of Scargrave Manor. Hopefully I can read it a little more quickly now that I won't have people nagging me for keys and pool cues. Can't they see I'm reading?!?!

Anyway...

I think I am going to take a mini break and make some s'mores and cheer on some other readathoners.

Here are my stats:
Books Read: Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor and Are You There God? It's Me Margaret
Pages Read: 94
Total Books Finished: 1
Total Pages Read: 243
Total Time Spent Reading: 6.5 hours
Memes Completed: I Heart Monster's Compliments

Four hours have gone by and I have finished one book! It's very exciting. I'm glad I started off with Are You There God? It's Me Margaret because it was an easy read and got me on track. I'm at work for the next four hours, but I work at a front desk so I'll still be reading away. The next book on my list is Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor by Stephanie Barron. Hopefully it will be a pretty quick read, it's about 300 pages. Thanks to everyone who has been checking in on me and I hope you all are having successful readathons!

So here are my stats:
Books Read: Are You There God? It's Me Margaret
Pages Read: 77
Total Books Finished: 1
Total Pages Read: 149
Total Time Spent Reading: 2.5 hours
Memes Completed: I Heart Monster's Compliments

Tif Talks Books has an amazingly beautiful layout and header. It looks like she recently got an award for her blog's presentation and I am not surprised.

In Spring It Is the Dawn obviously has a great blog title. She is in Japan (although she is Canadian) right now and a lot of her blog is Japanese inspired. I have never seen so much of Japan on one blog, it's definitely a good one to check out!

BiblioAddict's blog has snow! It just started snowing here in Iowa so that definitely got me in the cozy reading spirit.

25 Hour Books has an awesome post every Tuesday about literary tattoos. What a cool idea!

Sasha and the Silverfish has an adorable layout and I just love her blog. She has a good assortment of books. Be sure to take a look at her feed button, it has an octopus!

Thanks to I Heart Monster for hosting this meme.

Well I'm two hours in to the readathon. I didn't start reading until about an hour ago because I had a bit of a problem getting out of bed. I'm sure no one can relate to that! I had some pop tarts and Vitamin Water for breakfast, that was good. The first book in my readathon is Are You There God? It's Me Margaret by Judy Blume, which I'm reading for Booking Mama's Shelf Discovery Challenge. I didn't think I'd read it before, but now that I have gotten into it I think I have read it. I recognize the story. I obviously relate to Margaret with the whole growing up teenager business (I can sure remember those days) but I'm surprised that the person I'm really relating to is her teacher, Mr. Benedict. The first day he shows up and it's his first job so he is scared of the kids. I can really relate to that as a tutor and also just as someone who is young and scared about the real world.

So here are my stats:
Books Read: Are You There God? It's Me Margaret
Pages Read: 72
Total Books Finished: 0
Total Pages Read: 72
Total Time Spent Reading: 1 hour

I'm also going to do I Heart Monster's meme right now. Happy reading!