Bout of Books 9.0: Goals and Updates

Bout of Books Read-a-thon 9.0: My Goals and Updates

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 6th and runs through Sunday, January 12th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 9.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

  
Time Devoted to Reading

I'll read every day.

My Goals

• Read 1500 pages
• Write 2 reviews
• Participate in a few challenges
• Participate in at least one #boutofbooks chat

Books to Read

• Finish my current read: Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando
• Forever (ARC) by Karen Ann Hopkins
• One book I won in a giveaway
• One book I received as a gift
• One book that has been on my shelf for a long time (at least 3 years)

Updates - All updates will be posted here.

Monday
Number of pages I've read today: 144
Total number of pages I've read: 144
Books Read: Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando

Reviews: 

Tuesday
Number of pages I've read today: 68
Total number of pages I've read: 212
Currently Reading: Water Tales by Alice Hoffman ( the book on my shelf for a long time)
 Books Read: Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando

Reviews: 

Wednesday
Number of pages I've read today: 0
Total number of pages I've read: 212
Currently Reading:  Water Tales by Alice Hoffman ( the book on my shelf for a long time)
Books Read: Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando

Reviews:   

Thursday

Number of pages I've read today: 80
Total number of pages I've read: 292
Currently Reading: Forever by Karen Ann Hopkins
Books: Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando, Water Tales by Alice Hoffman

Reviews: 

Friday
Number of pages I've read today: 8 (so far)
Total number of pages I've read: 300
Currently Reading: Remember When by T. Torrest
Books: Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando, Water Tales by Alice Hoffman

Reviews:

Saturday
Number of pages I've read today:
Total number of pages I've read:
Books:  

Reviews: 

Sunday
Number of pages I've read today:
Total number of pages I've read:
Books: 

Reviews: 

Well, I Declare: #BoutofBooks 7.0

It's time to gear up for another read-a-thon. I missed out on the Dewey's 24-Hour read-a-thon this weekend, and I haven't participated in an organized read-a-thon since December. So, it is definitely time!! 

Thanks to the lovely Amanda and Kelly, we have Bout of Books 7.0.

from Bout of Books

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 13th and runs through Sunday, May 19th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 7.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I refuse to list the books I "plan" to read because I hardly ever stick to that list plus I find it limiting. So the only goal I want to meet is to read at least 2000 pages and possibly get in a few rereads. There are some verse novels that deserve some attention BUT I'm not listing specific titles!! I'm also looking forward to participating in at least one twitter chat and meeting some new bloggers and readers.

If you are even remotely interested in participating, you should. It's one of the best read-a-thons around - no pressure and lots of fun!

I'll update here on my blog and on Twitter: @ActinUpwb

Bout of Books 6.0 Recap

Man this Bout of Books Read-a-thon flew by. It's funny how that happens when you are reading books that you enjoy. I'm pretty satisfied with the amount of reading (and listening) I did this week. Below are my original goals and what I actually ended up reading. I usually don't list specific books that I will read because, as you can see, I always veer away from the list. No big deal because as I always say, reading is reading (but I do need to get to those review books).  

My Original Goals:

Read and review: The Namesake by Steven Parlato

Read and review: And By the Way . . . by Denise Deegan

Finish Delirium by Lauren Oliver (Audiobook)

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver (Audiobook)

Read a few chapters of Pride and Prejudice

What I read:
Close Enough to Touch by Victoria Dahl (my book club selection)
Just One Day by Gayle Forman
Read 5 Chapters of Pride and Prejudice
Finished Delirium (audiobook) by Lauren Oliver
Started Pandemonium (audiobook) by Lauren Oliver
Started The Namesake by Steven Parlato (10 pages)

Near the end of the read-a-thon I decided that I had to read Gayle Forman's Just One Day. There was a one day read-a-thon and twitter chat - a not that I planned to participate in it, I couldn't handle any spoilers that I might would read on Twitter, so I decided to read it. I loved it so much and if it is on your shelf or if you even considered reading it, all I can say is You Must and very soon!!

I didn't participate in any challenges this go round, and on Saturday I was sidetracked from reading when I ended up reorganizing my bookshelves. That was pretty spur of the moment - I was trying to make room for some new books - and ended up making a mess, blah blah, blah - you all know how that goes.

I hope to stop by a lot of blogs and see what everyone else read this week. Thanks for your comments. And until next time, happy reading! 

Bout of Books 6.0

 

 

Official Blurb

(from Bout of Books website)

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 7th and runs through Sunday, January 13th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 6.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. -From the Bout of Books 6.0 team

I can never pass up the opportunity to participate in the Bout of Books read-a-thon. It's a great time to connect with other readers and bloggers and knock a few books off of the TBR pile. I did a lot of reading during the holidays and don't want to suffer from reader's burnout at the beginning of the new year, so I'm keeping my goals to a manageable minimum.

My Goals:

Read for Review:

The Namesake by Steven Parlato

And By the Way . . . by Denise Deegan

 

Finish Delirium by Lauren Oliver Audiobook

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver Audiobook

Read a few chapters of Pride and Prejudice

(because I will finish it some time)

If any of my readers are participating in the Bout of Books Read-a-thon, please let me know in the comments below. I'll make sure to stop by your blog and cheer you along!
 

Bout of Books 3.0

The Bout of Books Readathon is a great way to start off the new year. I hope that it will set the bar for my reading and reviewing goals for 2012. Amanda from On a Book Bender is hosting again and there will be some fun challenges along the way. It's not too late to sign up. You can do that here.

My Goals

• Read 1500 pages
• Read one e-book
• Read 2 books for challenges
• Read at least one book for review and write the review
• Participate in some challenges
• Have Fun!!

Updates - I will post all of my updates here. So that I don't feel bad about myself, I'm going to count the number of pages read instead of total of books.

1/9
Number of pages I’ve read today: 120
Total number of pages I’ve read: 120
Books: started Girl Meets Boy


1/10
Number of pages I’ve read today: 150
Total number of pages I’ve read: 270
Books: Girl Meets Boy, started The Wolf by Steven Herrick

1/11
Number of pages I’ve read today: 150
Total number of pages I’ve read: 420
Books: The Wolf


1/12
Number of pages I’ve read today: 0
Total number of pages I’ve read: 420
Books: had a lame day

1/13
Number of pages I’ve read today: 0
Total number of pages I’ve read: 420
Books: um, no comment

1/14
Number of pages I’ve read today: 286
Total number of pages I’ve read: 706
Books: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, started Cryer's Cross



1/15
Number of pages I've read today: 210
Total number of pages I've read: 916
Books: finished Cryer's Cross

Bout of Books Read-a-thon Recap

The Bout of Books 2.0 Read-a-thon ended on Sunday, but I just now have a chance to recap the event. The read-a-thon was a lot of fun for me. I was a co-host on Wednesday, where I  hosted the Book Spine Poetry Challenge and  a Twitter chat. I was pretty geared up for the Twitter chat all day and right as it started, there was  a "hiccup" with my account and I missed about the first 10 minutes. I tried to participate from my laptop, my i-Pad or my phone. Finally, it was all working right, but as the host, I was sweating it there for a minute (or 10). All in all, it was a good time and I got to meet some new bloggers and readers.

To keep read-a-thons fun, I try to not have too high of expectations for myself. This time around, I wanted to read more books than the last Bout of Books, participate in more challenges and connect with bloggers and readers. And I can congratulate myself because this is exactly what happened.

I'd listed some books I wanted to read. I didn't satisfy all categories (as you can see) but I did read 5 (my goal) and started a 6th.

• One book recommended to me - Song of the Sparrow by Lisa Ann Sandell (recommended by Nomes at inkcrush)
  
• One book gifted to me - none
• One book I won from a giveaway - Exposed by Kimberly Marcus
• One e-book - The Ex-Games by Jennifer Echols
• One book for review -none
• One book that will fulfill one of the year-long challenges I signed up for - Exposed by Kimberly Marcus

Other Books Read:

You by Charles Benoit

V: WaveSon.nets/Losing l'Una by Stephanie Strickland

started Beauty Queens by Libby Bray (204 pages)

I participated in a few challenges:

Haiku challenge at Smitten with Reading

I wrote a haiku for Libba Bray's Beauty Queens:

Miss Teen Dream beauties

Crash landed on an island

Who will win the crown

Match the Urban Fantasy Hero(ine) to their Faithful Sidekick Challenge hosted by Jen at Not Now . . . I'm Reading 

Witchcraft in Popular Fiction - Muse's Book Journal

I was randomly selected as the winner of the Witchcraft in Popular Fiction and I selected Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough for my prize. Yay!!

Another Bout of Books Read-a-thon is already in the works (the beginning stages, that is). Amanda is hard a work getting that set up. She has even setting up a new site specifically for future read-a-thons. 

Until then, happy reading!!

 

 

Bout of Books - Book Spine Poetry Winner

Thank you to all the entered the Book Spine Poetry Challenge for the Bout of Books Read-a-thon hosted by Amanda at On a Book Bender. There were 11 entries and the winner was randomly selected. Here is the winning Book Spine Poem:

submitted by Kelly at Reading the Paranormal. Kelly has won $20.00 in books from B&N.com!!

Congratulations Kelly!

Bout of Books Day 3 - Challenge and Giveaway

 Day 3

It's Day Three of the Bout of Books Read-a-thon and I'm so happy that you've stopped by. What's going on today:

Read-a-thon Recap link-up

Book Spine Poetry Challenge

Particihost Giveaway at penny-laine (this is a one day only contest so enter today)

Twitter Chat Tonight 8-9pm EST - use #boutofbooks

Recap
Day 2 wasn't the greatest for me. As I was running out the door, late for work (as always), I grabbed my phone and the nearest book and ran out the door. On my way to work I realized that I grabbed the book I had finished the night before. Now I didn't have a book to read during my lunch hour, not only was this a pretty lame as I announced on Titter, but as Reading Angel pointed out "That was a serious #boutofbooks fail!! And a general reading fail all together! I hate not having a book...lol" Thanks for that! I did find another book to read from my department's Reading Room, so not all was lost and the end of day 2, I have read 2 books and am starting my third (the book I that I meant to grab when running out the door!)

I'd like to know how everyone else is doing, so if you are updating, please fill out the form below and provide a direct blog/twitter link and I will stop by to comment and cheer you on!



Challenge
I know some of you are looking for my challenge and here it is:

Book Spine Poetry

create a poem using the spines of your books

e-book readers, don't fret, you can still enter

Guidelines

Must include at least 3 books/titles

submit an original poem (please do not copy from another site)

if you can, you may add extra words to the photo/poem

How to Enter:

Take a picture of your Book Spine Poem and post it to your blog or twitter, then leave a link in the comments here

OR

If you are not posting on a blog or twitter or are reading e-books, write your poem in the comments 

The Prize:

Book or books of Your Choice Valued up to $20.00 from the Book Depository or B&N.com

Contest Rules:

Must be 13 or older to enter

Must have signed up for the Bout of Books 2.0 Read-a-thon

(sign up here)

(the Master List will be checked)

One entry per person

Open to US and International

Ends Oct 30th 11:59 PM EST

One Winner will be selected randomly from all qualifying entries and announced on the blog.

Here is my Book Spine Poem

NOW Don't forget to stop by penny-laine and enter the

Halloween-Themed giveaway!!

Twitter Chat Tonight!! 8-9pm #boutofbooks

Bout of Books 2.0

 
The Bout of Books Read-a-thon starts tomorrow and I am pumped up!! This go-around I am a co-host for an entire day. So make sure to stop by my blog on Wednesday for the challenge or meet up with me (@ActinUpwb) for the Twitter chat at 8pm EST.

Here are some reminders from Amanda, read-a-thon organizer, at On a Book Bender:

Quick Reminders

• Sign up! I will leave sign-up open through Friday 10/28.
• You must be signed up and on the Master List to qualify for challenge prizes.  Co-hosts will check the list to verify.
• Check out the Bout of Books schedule
• Say hi to other Bout of Books readers.
• Find Bout of Books participants on Twitter (and yes, this time it DOES include me).
• See what everyone is tweeting.  Use #boutofbooks in your tweets.
• Look for a wrap up post (and survey; we want to know what worked or didn’t) here at On a Book Bender on Monday, 10/31
• If you choose to have a starting line post with goals, please PLEASE include how much you intend to read.  Not everyone can read the entire week, so it is helpful to know when (or how much) you can read.
• Submit a link to your starting line post at the end of this post.
• And most importantly: HAVE  FUN.

Time Devoted to Reading
Read some every day 

My Goals

• read more books than during the last Bout of Books read-a-thon - so at least 5 books
• comment/converse more with bloggers/readers
• participate in more challenges
• Have a good time!

Books To Read

This time I'm not listing specific titles that I plan to read because, like with everything, I like to keep my options open, but I do plan to read:

• One book recommended to me
• One book gifted to me
• One book I won from a giveaway
• One e-book
• One book for review
• One book that will fulfill one of the year-long challenges I signed up for 

I will update mainly on Twitter at @ActinUpwb and will complete a final read-a-thon update at the end of the week. I hope to meet some new readers and discover some new books along the way.

Bout of Books Read-a-thon

button by TaraSG

Amanda from On a Book Bender is hosting her second Bout of Books Read-a-thon. The read-a-thon begins October 24th and ends October 30th. I participated in the Bout of Books Read-a-thon and had such a great time, that I am one of the co-hosts this time! If you are interested in joining, YOU SHOULD. You can read as much (or as little) as you want for as long as you want, participate in some challenges and enter some giveaways, interact with other enthusiastic readers, but most of all - HAVE FUN!! Sign-ups begin today at On a Book Bender.

Just read the details and sign up HERE!! I hope that many of my readers will join in.
 

Read-a-thon co-hosts (with blog and Twitter links) and the tentative challenge schedule are as follows:

10/24: Shirley @ Creative Deeds (@creativedeeds) — Guess the Love Triangle Challenge

10/25: Darla @ D for Darla’s Definite Reads (@DforDarla) — Dream Cast: Book to Movie Challenge

10/26: Joli @ Actin’ Up with Books (@ActinUpwb) — Book Spine Poetry Challenge

10/27: Erin @ Let’s Evaluate — Guess the Cover Challenge

10/28: Jen @ Not Now…I’m Reading! (@NotNowImReading) — Match the UF sidekick with the hero/heroine challenge

10/29: Christi @ Smitten with Reading (@ChristiSnow) — Bout of Books Babble Challenge (creating a haiku)

10/30: Vivienne @ Muse Books (@musesong) — Witchcraft in Popular Fiction Challenge