Dewey's Read-a-Thon: We're In (Plus Our Pile of Books)

Thanks for all the well wishes for The Girl!  She's back to her normal self, and thankfully, the husband and I are still feeling fine.  It's a good thing she recovered quickly because she's going to a Halloween dance for the 4th and 5th graders at her school tonight (she's an alien this year) AND we'll be heading to Serena's house in the morning for some readathon fun.

This is our second time participating in Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon, and I think we're better prepared this time around.  Last time, The Girl read a handful of young reader books (SpongeBob was the theme of the day), we finished Coraline together, and I started and finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.  I knew we wouldn't get through the entire stack of books we'd set aside, but I'd hoped to do a little more reading than we did.  Of course, Serena, The Girl, and I chatted a lot and participated in several mini-challenges, but this means we didn't get a whole lot of reading done.  However, I prefer the readathon gatherings to the solo readathon because I think I'd get bored really fast.  This time around, I plan to do more reading and distance myself from the computer a bit.  I don't know yet if I'll participate in any of the mini-challenges, and I'm not sure if I'll be posting multiple times.  I'll at least write a wrap-up post.

As for sleeping, that's a given.  Although The Girl is free to stay up late for the readathon, we have a church meeting on Sunday morning (we're making crafts for an upcoming fundraiser) so we have to be rested.  And The Girl has a ton of makeup homework and classwork to finish.  Last year, we fell asleep between 10 pm and 11 pm, and I woke up a couple of hours before the readathon ended to finish my book.  That's probably what will happen this time, too, and I'm okay with that.  It's all about having fun, right?

Anyway, the readathon starts at 8 am in our neck of the woods, and The Girl and I have already pulled out a stack of books.  Sorry I don't have any pictures (I'm doing a quick post before I leave work, and I'm not sure I'll be online tonight due to the Halloween dance), but here are our lists:

My pile:

~The Return by Victoria Hislop -- Finishing this book is my top priority, as my TLC Book Tour date is Monday.  I already would have finished it, but a sick kid and having to drive to work one day because the train was broken really cut into my reading time.

~Fire in the Hills by Donna Jo Napoli.  This is the sequel to Stones in Water, which Ms. Napoli told me about via e-mail.  I was frustrated that first book had an open ending, and she said I wasn't the only one who felt that way, hence the sequel.

~Stones From the River by Ursula Hegi.  This book was written after Floating in My Mother's Palm, but it's set before that book and features some of the same characters.

~Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford.  This is the November pick for my book club.

~And some kids books for when I need a break:  Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Diary of a Wimpy Kid:  Rodrick Rules, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid:  The Last Straw, all by Jeff Kinney, and Dork Diaries by Rachel Renee Russell.  The Girl loved these books, and I'm really enjoying Diary of a Wimpy Kid:  Dog Days, so why not?

The Girl's pile:

Maximum Ride:  The Manga, Vol 1 by James Patterson and NaRae Lee
Maximum Ride:  The Angel Experiment by James Patterson
Bone:  Out From Boneville by Jeff Smith
Bone:  Treasure Hunters by Jeff Smith (she's already reading this one from the school library, but has to finish it)
Goosebumps:  Welcome to Camp Nightmare by R.L. Stine
Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally) by Lisa Yee

Wish us luck!  And to all the other participants, have a great time!