Hour 9

I'm a quarter of the way into Seduced by Moonlight by Laurell K. Hamilton. I switched from Nightshifted not because that is a bad book (so far I quite like it), but because I wanted some familiar characters.
Sequels are often easier to read for that reason: it's always exhausting to meet and get to know new people, IRL or otherwise.

I've not been very good at completing mini-challenges so far, but I think I'm going to attempt the challenge for hour 8 by taking a walk around the block. Nevermind that it's 10 in the evening here and probably close to freezing outside (yes, literally). If anything it'll wake me up.

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Hour 4

I've finished my first book, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. I've read it once before, but I can safely say I enjoyed it much more this time around.
A few years ago, when I read it for the first time, I remember thinking the language was a bit tricky (English not being my first language) but now I found it completely doable and being able to appreciate a lot more of the oh so numerous puns and language acrobatics.
I'm glad to see that my English is still improving, even after having left school.

Next up, Nightshifted by Cassie Alexander.

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Hour 3

The downside of the readathon is that after a while I tend to forget why I do it. The reason for doing it is of course that I enjoy it, that I love reading. But as the hours pass I become more and more stressed.
I can no longer relax in the simple joy of reading, I start to focus on how much (or rather, how little) I've read. I compare myself to other readathoners and I feel like I'm less for not having read as many books as they have, or as intelligent and deep books as they have, or [insert stupid reason here].

This is not a situation unique for the readathon, it's something I do all the time. Still, I'm doing the readathon because I like it, because I want to. I don't want the disparaging voice in my mind resulting in making something I love doing less enjoyable.

On a less serious note, here's my entry to the snack mini-challenge:

Hour 1

 The introduction meme:

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?
Gothenburg, Sweden.
2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?
Nightshifted by Cassie Alexander
3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?
The bar of 70% chocolate in my kitchen.
4) Tell us a little something about yourself!
My name is Shirin. I work in a bakery/coffeeshop (baked goods is the main part of my snack pile...). This spring I'll be staring uni. I'm quite the nerd.
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?
I'll try and stay awake longer. Also, remember that I enjoy reading and keep that as my focus.

...aaand go!

The hour is nigh. First out: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Books for a readathon

Nowadays the stacks of unread books are just about burying me alive. I have so many books I want to read. This dilemma is of course familiar to every passionate reader. Still, this year the sheer number of unread books in my flat seems higher than should be legally allowed.
Books ought to be read; it seems to me as if books have a right to be read. As if by buying a book I've made a covenant with it. Not with the author, mind you, I don't consider my self having any sort of obligation toward the author. Rather, by buying a book I've made a commitment to it, to the story itself, that ought not be broken for any reason.

As you can see, I take my stories seriously.

So, how to pick the books for the readathon? I know from experience that too intricate, complicated books are ruled out. The attention span one has after hours of reading is simply too short.
Reading shorter books helps with this too. Books in Swedish (my first language) is necessary for the later hours of the thon. Graphic novels are really good, because they don't take very long to read.

Here is a short list of some possible contenders:

• The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
• Fury by Elizabeth Miles
• The Killing Moon by N.K. Jemisin
• Fables, vol. 9: Sons of Empire by Bill Willingham
• Jack of Fables, vol. 1: The (Nearly) Great Escape by Bill Willingham
• Paper Towns by John Green
• Nightshifted by Cassie Alexander
• Seduced by Moonlight by Laurell K. Hamilton
• The Lost Duke of Wyndham by Julia Quinn

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New season, new readathon

...or something of the like.
Anyways, with less than a week left until the autumn readathon, maybe it's time to post something here again.
I have a ton of unread books lying around at the moment and for some reason I keep buying more (well, I know the reason: books are my weakness and I couldn't help myself from acquire more of them for all the little plastic toys in China). I am seriously considering a book buying embargo until the end of the year, though. Otherwise I will soon drown in unread books.

List of readathon books to follow.

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