Read-a-Thon Follow Up

I got more reading done yesterday than I thought I would.  I started two hours late.  I took a two hour nap.  I quit reading 7 hours early.  So…for a 24 hour read-a-thon, I really only read for 13 hours – and for most of those 13 hours, my kids were up and asking me to do things for them (“What do you mean ‘lunch’?!  Mommy is reading!”).  I really don’t know how many hours I truly read, but I still managed to get some decent pages in.

This is what I read:

The Cute Girl Network - MK Reed, Greg Means, Joe Flood

192 pages

Review copy provided by First Second Books

I kind of (totally) hate the name of this comic, and my four stars are only mine (I really don’t know that it would resonate much with anyone else), but the story told here is much like mine with my husband (and that has a mostly-happily-ever-after, so…).

It’s cute.

Girl moves to town, meets silly and sweet boy that doesn’t treat her like an accessory to boost his cred, enjoys dating him, but finds out that he’s got a gaggle of angry exes who think he screwed them over. Said angry exes are all part of “The Network,” which exists for the sole purpose of making sure no girl ever dates anyone again? No, but really, they all get together and dish on what poor schlubs did that might have caused their breakups so “fair warning” to the new girl.

Whatever. Because people don’t ever grow up, right?

Anyway, this was pretty sweet and (as I said), the story was kind of a funhouse mirror held up to my own courtship, so I enjoyed the hour I spent reading it.

‘ware swearing and fornicating.

Once Upon a Crime – Michael Buckley

272 pages

I’m still a little angry because the cover of this book kind of gives away the end of the book – or, if not the end, then the climax.  Based on that, it was super easy to figure out who did what to whom.  [shrug]  As I’ve said about these books before, they’re definitely for kids but still fun for adults.  My 13y/o is totally done with the series and is kind of annoyed with me for not having finished, so that’s something I’ll have to work on catching up with soon.

Daphne, Sabrina, Granny, Mr Canis and the former sheriff of Ferryport Landing head to NYC to visit the faeries and see if they can help heal [REDACTED].  While there, [REDACTED] is murdered and the Grimm family is tasked with finding the murderer.

Like I mentioned, the cover gave much away but even if it hadn’t, I still turned to 13y/o and said “So it was [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] that did it, right?”  But he was not really paying attention since I was talking about this instead of Doctor Who and just gave me that “I know, but I’m not telling” look that he excels at.

This was cute, but I liked the previous book a lot more.  It was very weird to have something not set in Ferryport Landing at ALL, and I kind of missed it.  NYC was nice to visit, but I’m glad we’re not staying there for long.

Maximum Minimum Wage – Bob Fingerman

360 pages

Review copy provided by Image Comics

I read a few issues of Minimum Wage many moons ago cos my friend R was a fan.  This is pretty cool, the entire run not only consolidated in one book BUT ALSO revamped and reworked art, including the original art.  Lots of really cool extras (all the original cover art, a script for another book that was never drawn or published) and an introduction written by Robert Kirkman.

Minimum Wage follows freelance artist Rob (he doesn’t do much work he’s proud of, mostly porno comics and send ups for a fictional version of Cracked) and his girlfriend Sylvia (a lapsed Catholic Italian hairdresser who still hangs out with this girl she used to sleep with) and , their all-too-real Brooklyn lives.

Fear of marriage, pregnancy scares, inability to find decent work, spying pervy kids, it’s a pretty accurate slice of life, just taken to 11.

Think Seinfeld, but with more swearing and other explicit content.

This was really great, and I’ll be asking for the HC for my birthday.

The Terrors of Rock and Roll – Susan Smith

144 pages

This series is as cute as I remember it being when I was a kid (thank goodness for RIF, or I’d have never been able to feed my reading habit during the summer).

I was a bit annoyed that we’re expected to believe that these 7th graders have jobs at fast food places and stuff, but I guess we’re supposed to suspend our disbelief when dealing with a family of monsters and their babysitter.

I would have KILLED for $6/hour when I was 12!

I think maybe that gave me unrealistic expectations about what I would actually be paid. Hm.

I also managed to get in ~70 pages on Martin Millar’s Lonely Werewolf Girl, which I was reading BEFORE the read-a-thon, and am hoping to finish either today or tomorrow.

How did you guys all do?  Read anything you loved?

Oops, I forgot about the Read-a-Thon

Update #2

Wow, I’m totally the worst at updating today, aren’t I?  Since I last updated, I finished Maximum Minimum Wage, which was 385 pages, so I’m only at a little over 500 pages for the day.  BUT I took a hardcore nap that lasted for a little over two hours and I regret nothing.

I’m about to go make another cup of coffee, now that the kids are in bed, I can actually get some decent (read: quiet) reading time in.

HOORAY FOR BEDTIME!

About to go read that Sisters Grimm book below and revel in the current quiet state of my house.

Update #1

I finished my first book (Susan Smith’s The Terrors of Rock and Roll [a Samantha Slade, Monster Sitter book]) a little over an hour ago, I think, but haven’t had any time to read my new book since then.  I did have lunch, but the 2y/o ate half of it, so…[shrug]

I think I might be too tired to actually get anything much done today.

Finished:

Currently Reading:

and

~o~

I was so traumatized last night by having to watch Chamber of Secrets sober that I totally forgot the Read-a-Thon was today.

Either that, or the fumes from my shattered bottle of wine went straight to my head.

No matter, I’m reading now (starting with a childhood favourite) and will update throughout the day.

Happy reading!

I have coffee, and I’m ready to go…as soon as I figure out what that noise was over there.

Readathon Updates, Day 2

Update!

This is the only update.  I was told that my updates yesterday were the saddest thing on the internet!  That wasn’t my intention, but damn.  Is that an accomplishment?  I can’t tell.

Anyway, I’m really close to being done with the Hines.  I only have 11% (like, 40 pages) left, so I should be finishing tonight, yay!

At least I finished two books that I’ve been reading forever, and decided not to bother with a few more.

To do away with the sad, I’ll post this (which I stole from Ro).

~o~

I’m SO LAZY.  I haven’t done much reading today.  Maybe 70 pages, or so?  But that’s okay because I think I’m going to finish this book today, and maybe just put some of these unfinished books on a DNF list.

INORITE?

But seriously.  I enjoyed the beginning of Year Zero, but it’s kind of stupid once they leave earth.  I’m not a fan of a lot of the authors left in that zombie antho, so there’s not much point in finishing it.  I might skim it later.

As far as Crown of the Blood goes, I’ve decided to put it on hold for now and go back to it in the new year.  I’ve put it off for too long now, and can no longer remember anything that happened before I left off.

Readathon Updates, Day 1

Update #3

So, I took a FOUR HOUR NAP.  Except I kept waking up every time the heater would come on because it briefly turns my bedroom a billion degrees, then settles down to a decent temperature but then COMES BACK ON AGAIN.  I’m not even joking when I say that we always forget about our crappy heater until it starts to get cold and then we ask each other “What is that SOUND?  Is it raining?  Is there a hurricane?” until we remember that it’s just the LOUD ASS HEATER that we have.

I’m sick, I’m entitled to complain about everything.

I read 30 pages before I fell asleep, and like 2 more since then.  So.  There you have it.

Update #2

I have only managed to read another 40 pages or so in the last 2 hours since I updated.  And I haven’t even been effing around on the internet!  No, I think I dozed off a few times and was awakened by the two younger boys squabbling over who gets to play with some stupid toy.

I’m taking my reader to bed with me and hoping to get an actual nap.  Here’s a picture of sleepy/sick/sad sj (but my hood is up because I haven’t yet brushed my hair today – don’t judge):

I’ll be back after I get up from my nap to let you know how many pages I read before I fell asleep.  <3

Update #1

So, yeah.  I haven’t done a whole lot of reading.  I did finally finish Shadow and Claw and wrote something about it (kind of, but not really) here.

I’ve read 3% of The Snow Queen’s Shadow, which I’m just not into.  I don’t understand, I liked the other three in the series well enough.  Maybe it’s cos I’ve never been a huge fan of the Snow White tale?  I don’t know.  Plus, my kids are all over the place and Baby Girl is a whiny butt, which doesn’t lend itself to reading time.

[sigh]

If I can’t get into this within the next 50 pages, or so – I’m just gonna DNF it.

~o~

So, I posted the list of things I hope to finish during O’s readathon in yesterday’s post.  As of this moment, I have read 3% of the Wolfe.  And I’d really rather be finishing my Buffy Season 8 re-read.  But I’ve got to finish these books before the year is over so I WILL FINISH THEM.  Or, something something, I don’t know.

I’m sick, cut me some slack.

I’ll keep you posted throughout the day on my progress.  <3

Weekend Readathon!

I signed up a few weeks ago at O’s blog to participate in her post-NaNoWriMo Readathon, which is also celebrating the beginning of winter and those glorious hours we get to spend inside, curled up with a blanket and a book.

And I thought to myself, yesterday as I was on the final leg – I think a readathon is in order. The 1st and 2nd of December is on a weekend, so that makes it perfect. In fact, it doesn’t get more perfect – it’s the “wind down from NaNoWriMo / celebrate meeting goals / catch up on 2012 challenges / relax time / work hard time / the quiet time before the Christmas panic sets in time / welcome the winter months / however you want to frame it” time.

I think this is a brilliant idea.  While a good portion of the weekend will be spent packing and doing other moving related things, I’m planning on using this time to finish up the books I’ve started but not yet finished.

This is kind of a tall order, and I realize I’m not likely to finish them ALL, but I’m going to give it a shot, and won’t let myself start anything new until I’ve finished these.

What books do I still have to finish?

12% left in Shadow and Claw (books 1 and 2 of The Book of the New Sun) – Gene Wolfe

53% left in Year Zero (started during the LAST readathon!) – Rob Reid

56% left in The Living Dead (a zombie anthology I started in October but got kind of bored with) – edited by John Joseph Adams

74% left in The Crown of the Blood (I was actually enjoying this one, but it wasn’t appropriate for my mindset at the time) – Gav Thorpe

87% left in The Snow Queen’s Shadow (I loved the first 3 books, but wasn’t in the mood for this when I started it) - Jim C Hines

So, as you can see – I have a ton of things I can finish this weekend.  I know I probably won’t even make a dent, but I can work on these over the next week or so and hope to give myself some time to read things I’m interested in over the holidays.

What are your weekend plans?  Have any books you’re anxious to start/finish?