Still, I suppose a hunger improperly satisfied is better than starving. - Teacher to Annie
You are often solitary, and sometimes lonely, I know. But you did not create yourself. No one does. - Dr. Anagnos to Annie
5.15.2013
4.28.2013
Screen Free Week
Tomorrow, April 29, 2013 marks the beginning of screen-free week. This week I will only be checking my work e-mail. What does screen-free week mean for me?
- No text messaging. Please call if you'd like to talk.
- No Twitter (This will be the hardest sacrifice for me)
- No blog reading. No blog posting.
- No Hulu (no tv shows/no movies)
- No personal e-mail
- Yes to phone calls
- Yes to letter writing
- Yes to reading
Dewey Read-a-Thon End of Event Meme
1. Which hour was most daunting for you?
I was getting tired and quite cranky at hour 18. By hour 20 I didn't just hit the wall, I crashed into it full force. I think I ended up reading 2 pages an hour for about 3 hours before I perked up again at hour 23
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?Gillian Flynn novels are high interest page turners. I would also suggest Caldecott, Newbery, Printz, and Coretta Scott King Award winning books for those hard hours.
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
No suggestions from this newbie. The read-a-thon was great!
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
I enjoyed the mini-challenges hours 1-12. After hour 12 I was too lazy focused on reading to participate.
I enjoyed the mini-challenges hours 1-12. After hour 12 I was too lazy focused on reading to participate.
5. How many books did you read?
I read four books
I read four books
6. What were the names of the books you read?
Diary of a Wimpy Kid #6 Cabin Fever by Jeff kinney
Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick
Drama by Raina Telgemeier
Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo
Diary of a Wimpy Kid #6 Cabin Fever by Jeff kinney
Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick
Drama by Raina Telgemeier
Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo
7. Which book did you enjoy most?
Although the subject matter was very difficult for me to read, I enjoyed Never Fall Down the most.
Although the subject matter was very difficult for me to read, I enjoyed Never Fall Down the most.
8. Which did you enjoy least?
I enjoyed Love and Other Perishable Items the least. I am really not into angsty, "unreciprocated love stories.
I enjoyed Love and Other Perishable Items the least. I am really not into angsty, "unreciprocated love stories.
9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?
I was not a cheerleader, but they rocked! Cheerleaders have skills I do not possess.
10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?
I am very likely to participate in the Read-a-Thon again. I will be a reader until I get it right. After I have mastered Read-a-Thon reading, I would like to come up with a good mini-challenge and try hosting for a few hours.
I was not a cheerleader, but they rocked! Cheerleaders have skills I do not possess.
10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?
I am very likely to participate in the Read-a-Thon again. I will be a reader until I get it right. After I have mastered Read-a-Thon reading, I would like to come up with a good mini-challenge and try hosting for a few hours.
4.27.2013
Dewey Read-a-Thon Mini-Challenges: Hours 13-24
Read-a-Thon: Hour 14 Mini-Challenge "Share a quote"
"This idea, it wrap around me like a warm blanket, it settle my shaking bone, it calm my heart, and I understand. All the time you fighting, you think only of how to survive. All the time you survive, you wonder why you don't die. But now my life can be something different. Now, in America, I don't have to fight. I don't have to survive. I can chose a new thing: to live."
Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick p. 208
Read-a-Thon Hour 16 Mini-Challenge Turn the Page
I would rather read than have my History of American Foreign Policy double lecture in the afternoon any day.
From Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo p.32
Read-a-Thon: Hour 17 Mini-Challenge "Six Word Celebration"
Your challenge is to creative a six-word celebration of Dewey's Read-a-Thon.
Dewey Read? Books Open 24 Hours
Dewey Read-a-Thon Mini-Challenges: Hours 1-12
Mini-Challenge Book Appetit
Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick. It is a novel based on the true story of a boy soldier's survival under the murderous regime of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.
Menu
rice (Tens of thousands of people died from starvation during the Khmer Rouge regime, despite the fact that they had been herded into work camps and forced to work digging ditches and growing rice)
fish stew (main character's favorite dish)
ice cream (main character sold ice cream pre-Khmer Rouge)
music " In my town, music is like air, always there."(p.3)
Cambodian love song
French love song
American rock 'n' roll (The Beatles, Elvis Presley, and Chubby Checker)
Hour 4 Mini-Challenge
- Take your current read or the one you just finished.
- ReTitle it with something clever
- Post to your blog, twitter, facebook, or goodreads with your snazzy new title!
I am reading Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick.
It is a novel based on the true story of a boy soldier's survival under the murderous regime of the Khmer Rouge.
I would rename the novel Rules to Live By: How to Survive a Murderous Regime
Hour 5 Mini-Challenge Self Portrait
Hour 8 Mini-Challenge "Book Sentence"
Create a sentence using only book titles.
Take a picture of the books stacked.
Hour 11 Mini-Challenge "Picture It"
Hour 12 Mid-Event Survey
1) How are you doing? Sleepy? Are your eyes tired?
I am very sleepy and my eyes are tired.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid #6 Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney
Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick
Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick. I have the feeling this book will stay with me for a lifetime.
4) What about your favorite snacks?
I didn't plan my snacks very well, but I am glad I have Ritz crackers and Granny Smith apples. I would do just about anything at this point for cinnamon bears or cinnamon jolly ranchers.
5) Have you found any new blogs through the readathon? If so, give them some love.
This is my second read-a-thon and I am so glad I discovered these mini-challenges. Through the challenges I have discovered:
I will be sure to stop by these blogs in the future (after screen-free week of course) Now it is time for Love and Other Perishable Items
Dewey Read-a-Thon Spring 2013
Introductory Questionnaire
1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?
I am in Colorado (United States)
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?
October 2012 was my first read-a-thon and I wasn't near a computer to complete mini-challenges and blog updates. Today I chose one of my favorite libraries as read-a-thon headquarters. Here I have good light, computer access, and a built-in source of additional reading material just in case I need to veer away from my planned reading.
2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?
I am looking forward to making a dent in my young adult reading, but I am most looking forward to reading A Wish and a Prayer by Beverly Jenkins.
I am looking forward to making a dent in my young adult reading, but I am most looking forward to reading A Wish and a Prayer by Beverly Jenkins.
3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?
I neglected to pick up my favorite cinnamon flavored snacks at the grocery store, but I do have a stash of Ritz crackers and Granny Smith apples (Yum!)
4) Tell us a little something about yourself!
I am a career educator, newly hired librarian, and a lifetime reader. A few of my favorite authors are James Baldwin, Langston Hughes, Octavia Butler, Tananarive Due, Alice Walker, and Toni Morrison. I also enjoy reading cozy mysteries, middle grade fiction and young adult titles.
I am a career educator, newly hired librarian, and a lifetime reader. A few of my favorite authors are James Baldwin, Langston Hughes, Octavia Butler, Tananarive Due, Alice Walker, and Toni Morrison. I also enjoy reading cozy mysteries, middle grade fiction and young adult titles.
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?
October 2012 was my first read-a-thon and I wasn't near a computer to complete mini-challenges and blog updates. Today I chose one of my favorite libraries as read-a-thon headquarters. Here I have good light, computer access, and a built-in source of additional reading material just in case I need to veer away from my planned reading.
4.05.2013
Truth in Fiction - Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz
One of the secrets of the universe was that our instincts were sometimes stronger than our minds.
Another secret of the universe: Sometimes pain was like a storm that came out of nowhere. The clearest summer morning could end in a downpour. Could end in lightning and thunder. p. 261
I decided that maybe we left each other alone too much. Leaving each other alone was killing us. p. 283
I came to understand that my father was a careful man. To be careful with people and with words was a rare and beautiful thing. p. 324
Scars. A sign that you had been hurt. A sign that you had healed. Had I been hurt? Had I healed? Maybe we just lived between hurting and healing. p. 335
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)