Hour 13:

Mid-Event Survey:

1. What are you reading right now?
I just finished Det är så logiskt alla fattar utom du by Lisa Bjärbo, a swedish YA novel with a title that loosely translates to It's so logical everybody gets it except you. The title is a reference to a popular swedish song. ATM I'm trying to figure out what to read next. It'll probably be a historical romance or an anthology of some kind.
2. How many books have you read so far?
Two.
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon?
I'd really like to read Neil Gaiman's American Gods, but I doubt I'll be alert enough for it.
4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day?
Apart from informing my family ahead and put dinner duties on somebody else, no.
5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?
Not really, no. I find the interruptions quite soothing actually. Keeps me grounded.
6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?
How much more concentration it takes for me to read in english rather than swedish when I'm tired. I'm used to them being interchangeable when reading.
7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
Not really, I think I've found a method that works well for me.
8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year?
Not very much, maybe add some more books in swedish.
9. Are you getting tired yet?
YES!
10. Do you have any tips for other Readers or Cheerleaders, something you think is working well for you that others may not have discovered?
It's always easier to read in your native language, despite how fluent you might consider yourself in another. Also, good lightning is key. It keeps the melatonin levels in your body in awake-mode (when it's dark our bodies is chemically wired to sleep).
Oh, and short, easy, quick reading books is always good. It makes you feel accomplished when closing the covers. For the same reason I find physical books better for readathon than ebooks. Just seeing the finished book gives an amount of satisfaction.

Now I will return to reading.

Hour 9:

I've just finished my first readathon book Goliath by Scott Westerfeld. I loved it!

My entry for the book sentence challenge:

Devilish American gods flip this zombie in the night garden.

It didn't have to make sense, right? Also, all these books were taken form my readathon pile. Just FYI.

Now I just have to choose what to read next. I really want to sink my teeth into Neil Gaiman's American Gods, but I think I just might take a break with something that doesn't take up much brain effort.

Mini-challenge 2:

A book puzzle challenge (or rebus, as we call them in Swedish):

Mini-challenge 1:

A beastie from Scott Westerfeld's Leviathan universe. I'm currently reading Goliath.

Introduction meme

1) Where are you reading from today?
Gothenburg, Sweden

2) Three random facts about me…
I'm a vegetarian
I collect vintage umbrellas (and clothes, and books, and all old stuff you can think of...)
My hair is 80 cm long (that's...um, about 32" for you americans with illogical measurements)

3) How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?
21. I always aim for the best, and one never know which reading mood one will be in. If I'm good I'll probably make it through four or so.

4) Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?
Finishing the stack of half-read books on my bedside table.

5) If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, any advice for people doing this for the first time?
I wouldn't call myself a veteran, but this is my second readathon. My best tip is to stock up on anthologies and short light-reading novels for hour 18 when your eyes are bleeding. Also, good lightening is key to keep your body awake.

Last minute prep

 I'm ready. I've got time-stamped snacks, as to not eat it all at once, I've got proper music and, of course, I've got books. The current stack is as follows:

• American Gods by Neil Gaiman
• Blood Lite (anthology)
• Chime by Franny Billingsley
• A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin
• Det är så logiskt alla fattar utom du by Lisa Bjärbo
• Glimmerglass by Jenna Black
• Goliath by Scott Westerfeld
• In for a Penny by Rose Lerner
• In the Night Garden by Catherynne M.Valente
• Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
• Kapitulera omedelbart eller dö by Sanna Näsling
• Miss Wonderful by Loretta Chasetta 
• Mordet i Eiffeltornet  by Claude Izner 
• Norrtullsligan by Elin Wägner
• Osäkerhetsrelationen by Helena Granström
• Pawn of Prophecy by David Eddings
• The Poison Eaters and Other Stories by Holly Black
• Ronja Rövardotter by Astrid Lindgren
• Språkens Historia: En upptäcktsresa i tid och rum by Tore Janson
• Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella
• Vacations from Hell (anthology)

No, I will not read them all, but you never know what you're in the mood for. And I def won't read Infinite Jest unless I get a power surge atkin to that of a super hero (one can always hope, though). Now I'm off to read!

Introduction

I never was a diary type of person. I love the idea of a diary, I love to write and I love notebooks. Thus I always start out with the best of intentions: I will keep writing and I will not be bored after a month or two. Unfortunately that never works out in the end. I will get bored and I will stop writing. I suppose my life simply isn't exciting enough to maintain my interest of documenting it. I mean, how many days can you take of the same thing; I got out of bed, I went to school, I went home, I ate, I read, I went to sleep?

As such I have a whole pile of half written diaries sitting on a shelf. The same goes for blogs. I have a number of blogs with ten or so entries, then I quit.
So instead of making readathon posts in a blog that hasn't been used in forever, I now start a blog with the sole purpose of making readathon posts twice a year. Who knows, one day I may even import my old posts from readathons past.
I will be using goodreads this year, which is something I have not done in the past, so that's new and exciting. I've already added a widget in the sidebar to keep track of which books I plan to read, but I probably will make another update post before the start of the readathon in which I list the books I'm planning to read and such.

That's it for now. I'll leave you with a picture.