Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon: October 2017 - The Overstuffed Bookcase

Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon: October 2017

Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon is a readathon hosted over at 24hourreadathon.com, where readers challenge themselves to read for 24 hours. You can find out more info on their FAQ Page.

Hi everyone! My blog has been on hiatus basically all year, but I had to come back for Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon! I love this event so much!

I’ve decided to just do one all-encompassing post this time. So I’ll be using this post to share my opening meme, updates, mid-event survey, mini challenges, end of event meme, and any other info.

My TBR Pile

I actually don’t have a TBR pile this time. Crazy, right? I mean, I guess I could have made one, but it wouldn’t look very pretty, because most of what I’ll be reading is for school and I only have one textbook which is loose-leaf paper in a binder and then for my other classes, I read articles online or I print them out. I have a lot of homework each week and I wish I could just be reading fun stuff, but I have to get this homework done. BUT if I get it done and/or need a break from school stuff, I’ll be trying to finish This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers.

Opening Meme

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?
Washington state, USA

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

This is Not a Test. Since it’s the only book on my “pile” that’s not for school.

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

I always forget about the damn snacks! Maybe I’ll have to get into the Halloween candy…

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

My life has been super hectic this year. Lots of major changes (came out, got a divorce, in love, living my truth), and one fun thing is that I’m going back to school in hopes of being a librarian one day!

5) If you participated in the last readathon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first readathon, what are you most looking forward to?
I’ve participated in several readathons before this, but not the last one. My advice is always 1) Read small, quick books and 2) Try to make it so that you’re not stuck with one book that you have to read during readathon. Since I’ll mostly be reading for school, I’m not heeding my own advice this year. But maybe in April I’ll try to get ahead with my schoolwork so during readathon I’ll be able to read whatever I want!

Updates

Hours 1-6

Titles of Books Read During This Period: None
Thoughts on Current Read: N/A
Number of Books Read So Far: None
Pages Read During This Period: 0
Total Pages Read So Far: 0
Amount of Time Spent Reading During This Period: None
Total Amount of Time Spent Reading So Far: None
Notes: I started late, as usual. I got up around 8 and my girlfriend and I went to breakfast, then we ran some errands, and I didn’t get to the Opening Meme until 11:30 my time, which is the middle of Hour 7. I’m off to a great start today, yay. :/

Hours 7-12

Titles of Books Read During This Period: Chapter 6 of Exceptional Children (my school textbook), plus several other online readings for school
Thoughts on Current Read: Interesting stuff, but I wish I could be reading fiction instead of stuff for school.
Number of Books Read So Far: None finished
Pages Read During This Period: 24-ish (I read several pages in my textbook, plus other articles online)
Total Pages Read So Far: 24-ish
Amount of Time Spent Reading During This Period: About an hour (I’m a super slow reader, especially when it’s not fiction!)
Total Amount of Time Spent Reading So Far: About an hour
Notes: I spent time during these hours eating a late lunch, reading for my classes, taking two quizzes (got 100% on both of them!), and doing an assignment. I wanted to reward myself with a little fiction reading, but unfortunately, I still have more school reading and assignments to do.

Mid-Event Survey

1. What are you reading right now?
I’m about to start reading for my Intro to Library Organizational Systems class. We’re learning about the Library of Congress Classification System right now.
2. How many books have you read so far?
I haven’t finished any books…I finished a chapter for my Exceptional Child class (learning about special education), and I read several online articles for that class.
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?
I’m still really hoping I’ll get finished with my school work and that I’ll be able to get to This is Not a Test. I’m getting close to finishing it and I just want to be done with my school work, too.
4. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?
Yes, my girlfriend has demanded my time a few times today. I’ve given her some attention for a bit and then reminded her that I needed to get back to my schoolwork/readathon.
5. What surprises you most about the Readathon, so far?
I will always and forever be surprised and annoyed by how slowly I read. I read about 40 pages/hour when I’m reading a novel, but I’m learning that I read much much slower when it comes to my schoolwork. It’s very frustrating. Maybe I need to take a speed-reading class…

More Updates

Hours 13-18

Titles of Books Read During This Period: During these hours I didn’t read any books, but I read some articles for two of my classes.
Thoughts on Current Read: It was interesting to get to learn more about library careers (I’m studying to become a librarian).
Number of Books Read So Far: None finished
Pages Read During This Period: 35-ish (much of what I read was online articles)
Total Pages Read So Far: 59-ish
Amount of Time Spent Reading During This Period: About an hour and a half
Total Amount of Time Spent Reading So Far: About 2.5 hours
Notes: During these hours I read for two of my library classes, ate dinner, spent some time with my girlfriend, and wrote an assignment. I was able to get all of my schoolwork done (except for one assignment which I can’t access until tomorrow–online classes are weird sometimes), so now I can move on to my fiction books! Yay!

Hours 19-24

Titles of Books Read During This Period: This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers and Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz
Thoughts on Current Read: I really enjoyed This is Not a Test and I just started Aristotle and Dante but I’m enjoying it so far!
Number of Books Read So Far: 1 finished
Pages Read During This Period: 89
Total Pages Read So Far: 148
Amount of Time Spent Reading During This Period: an hour and a half
Total Amount of Time Spent Reading So Far: 4 hours
Notes: Since I finished my schoolwork in Hour 18, I was able to switch over to fiction finally! I finished This is Not a Test and started Aristotle and Dante. I didn’t get very far into Aristotle and Dante, because I was falling asleep. I made it to about 1:45 a.m. my time, which means I almost made it to Hour 22!

Mini Challenges

I didn’t participate in any this time! :(

Other Participants I’ve Visited

I didn’t visit any other blogs but I did go through the #readathon hashtag on Instagram and like a lot of photos!

Closing Survey

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?
Hours 20 and 21. I was getting tired!
2. Tell us ALLLLL the books you read!
Most of what I read was for school, but I also finished This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers and started Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz.
3. Which books would you recommend to other Read-a-thoners?
Short books, manga, graphic novels, quick reads.
4. What’s a really rad thing we could do during the next Read-a-thon that would make you smile?
Hmm, I’m not sure. I want to participate more next time. Hopefully I won’t have a bunch of homework then!
5. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? Would you be interested in volunteering to help organize and prep?
I will definitely participate again! I don’t know if I’ll be able to help in any way, because I’m not sure how busy I’ll be, but if I can, I will!