The marathon weekend of reading is over. And I am so glad that I participated. First of all, I was reminded of summers when I was younger where it seemed like all I did was sit around and read. I remember my mom asking me to empty the dishwasher or set the table and me yelling, “Just one more page!” Which, if any of you did the same, was more like 3 or 4 more pages. I also remember trips to the library to get more books and library summer reading clubs. The summer after 3rd grade I was determined to read more books than anyone else in my age group and win the grand prize which as a trip to be on the local Saturday morning children’s show. Three hundred something books later and I had done just that.
While it seemed decadent to spend so much time just reading, I also managed to get most of my other chores and tasks done. What I DIDN’T do was watch tv or wander aimlessly online or things like that. I also didn’t pick up my knitting at all. (I could have while listening to audiobooks, but since only one was allowed, I saced it for working on chores.) I DID connect with many other fellow participants online, a few on their blogs and many more on twitter.
More than just connecting though, there was a sense of community, of all of us doing the same thing individually and yet together somehow. People participated from all over the world even–I met someone from Singapore who was taking part. Many librarians, but many others as well. And a couple of my twitter friends who weren’t participating were still interested in what was going on. The whole challenge inspired a school librarian friend to set up a summer reading challenge for her students incorporating some social media activities.
What I didn’t manage to do was give up a lot of sleep in the name of reading. I tried, but the first night my husband talked me into coming to bed, the second night I lasted only maybe an hour longer. If I have the chance to do this again next year, I am definitely adding more coffee to my list. But even with that, I discovered how much time I really have to read if I just decide that’s what I want to do.
I found it easier to keep track of my time than I would have thought, although I only guessed on my time spent blogging and connecting online. I think it would be fun to get a timer that counts up, and then you could see the minutes add up as you read.
Final Stats: 5 whole books read, 2 partial books read: The Sweetheart of Prosper County by Jill S. Alexander, Breathless by Jessica Warman, Envy by Anna Godebersen, Forest Born by Shannon Hale, The School for Dangerous Girls by Eliot Schrefer, Mozart’s Ghost by Julia Cameron, Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty by Jody German. 1933 pages read. 16 blogs updates, including this one, and too many tweets to count. Total time spent on the challenge is 24 hours and 15 minutes. Check out other participants’ summary posts on Mother Reader.
