Dewey's 24-hour Readathon!

Completed!

The Dewey 24-hour Readathon was everything I hoped it would be. =) The most surprising thing was how fast the time went by! But, still I could only hold out until midnight, so I read until hour 19, and then fell asleep. Next time I hope to make it the full 24. If you'd like to participate in the future, you can check the website here for details. They are held in April and October!

Learn about the challenge here.
Took place: April 10, 2010 (starting at 6 am MST).

To see my final stats, click here. To view all my updates from the readathon click here.

Classics Challenge

Join the challenge here.
Ends: October 31, 2010.
Challenge Level: Snack.
Challenge: Read 4 classics. Bonus - Read another book you think will be a classic in the future.

1. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
2. Villete by Charlotte Bronte
3. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
4. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
5. TBA

Reliquiae Challenge

Success! The Reliquiae Challenge completed! And it was so much fun. I had a great time, and now my horizons have been broadened by vampires, ghosts, and goblins!


Read about the challenge here.
Ends: January 15, 2010.
Challenge level: Bite on the neck.

1. Sunshine by Robin McKinley - 10.13.09
2. The Hollow Kingdom by Clare Dunkle - 1.15.10
3. A Curse Dark as Gold by Elizabeth Bunce - 1.12.10

DystopYA Challenge

The DystopYA Challenge has ended! Unfortunately, I didn't make it to three, but I finished two and they were both delightful. I'll have to get to Hunger Games later this year. In the middle of our move, I went to our new library to get it and found that I was 500th on the list . . . so yeah, that didn't happen. But I WILL get to it this year--I'm determined. =)


Join the challenge here.
Ends: December 31, 2009
Challenge: Read 3 dystopic young adult novels.

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
2. The Giver by Lois Lowry - 12.31.09
3. How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff - 11.15.09

Book Awards III Challenge

Completed! A little late, but oh well. I was all pumped to knock it out December 1, and then so many things got in the way. Better late than never, I guess. I'll have to do better on my other challenges.

This was my first challenge, and I have to say that it was a successful one and a great one to introduce me to the challenge world. I thoroughly enjoyed every single book I picked for this challenge. I definitely would like to participate again in the future.

To see all of the reviews for this challenge, click here. Or, you can click on them individually as listed below.


Read the post here.
Ended: December 1, 2009.


1. How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff (Printz Award) - 11.15.09
2. The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley (Newberry Medal) - 7.26.09
3. The Hours by Michael Cunningham (Pulitzer Prize) - 11.29.09
4. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson (Faulkner Award)- 12.7.09
5. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood (Booker Prize) - 11.27.09

Progressive Dinner Party: Creamy Artichoke Dip

I love the idea of a "virtual" party! So, when My Friend Amy posted about putting together a Progressive Christmas Dinner, I jumped at the chance to participate. She says:

The holidays are for celebrating and what better way to celebrate than with food? Unfortunately, we all live so far apart that we can't get together but that shouldn't stop us from celebrating in style!

Couldn't be more true . . .

So here's my contribution to the dinner! This dip can be enjoyed with crackers or some crusty bread slices (my favorite). Enjoy!


(If you want it spicier, add a little bit of Tabasco sauce.) This one's a crowd pleaser! Hope you like it!

Check out Book Club Girl for her Stilton Watercress Spread and also Angel's Kisses for her Cinnamon Apples with Red Hot Candies and Sugar.

For other great recipes, check out the Book Blog Social Club for all entries!

Happy Cooking!


This is not my original recipe, by the way. Just one I like. =)

Thankfully Reading Wrap-up

Thankfully Reading Weekend is quickly coming to a close! I was not as productive as I wanted to me with my time, BUT I still think I made a pretty good showing. =) Two out of three ain't bad. I have one more day to finish my Book Awards challenge, so I hope I can make it!

I finished up The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood and The Hours by Michael Cunningham. Great reads, both of them. Although I think I enjoyed The Hours just a bit better. I've gotten some 20 pages into Gilead, and I hope I'll be able to knock it out in the next day or so. Wish me luck! Click here to see my reviews.

Considering I also ate an exorbitant amount of turkey, fit in some family time, and watched a couple movies; overall, I call that a successful weekend! Thanks Book Blog Social Club! It was fun to read what everyone else read, too. And thanks to everyone for comments!

Women Unbound Challenge

Join the challenge here.
Ends: November 30, 2010.
Level: Philogynist.
Challenge: Read 2 books dealing with women's studies, at least 1 has to be nonfiction.

1. The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath 1950-1962 by Sylvia Plath
2. Villette by Charlotte Bronte

Thankfully Reading Begins!

I've started my Thankfully Reading Weekend! I actually started a little early, and I've already finished my first book--although, I was almost done with it anyway. =) I'm hoping to knockout two more before Monday to finish off the Book Awards III Challenge (which I procrastinated a little too long). So here goes! I'm hoping to post my Blind Assassin review later today. Here are my other choices:

Support Your Library Challenge

Join the challenge here.
Ends: December 31, 2010
Challenge level: Just My Size
Challenge: To check out (and read) 50 books from my local library.

I am lucky enough to have an awesome library extremely close to my place of residence. We'll be moving soon, and I've already begun scoping out my next book-borrowing options. And they seem promising. I hope I won't cry when we move. I love that dang library . . . like a dog loves to run.

So, here's my way of committing to learn to love that new library as much as the old one. =)

1. The Hollow Kingdom by Clare Dunkle - 1.15.10
2. A Curse Dark as Gold by Elizabeth Bunce - 1.12.10
3. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
4. The Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale - 2.4.10
5. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls - 3.15.10
6. The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson - 3.19.10
7. Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn - 3.18.10
8. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi - 3.22.10
9. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - 4.3.10
10. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
11. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray - 4.1.10
12. Looking for Alaska by John Green
13. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold - 4.13.10
14. This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart
15. Dead Until Dark
16. Pride of Baghdad by Brian Vaughan - 4.3.10

To come:
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

Once Upon a Time Challenge

Join the challenge here.
Ends: December 31, 2010
Challenge: Read 5 fairy tale books (not Disney).

1. The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley (Robin Hood)
2. A Curse Dark as Gold by Elizabeth Bunce (Rumpelstiltskin) - 1.12.10
3. Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale (Maid Maleen) - 2.4.10
4. Song of the Sparrow by Lisa Ann Sandell (King Arthur)
5. TBA

Thankfully Reading Weekend

I love to sign up for challenges. It's a little bit of a bad habit, because I don't always pay attention to the deadlines, and I often get sidetracked by some other book that beckoned to be from the bookshelves that I get to check off NOWHERE on a challenge. Bad, bad book browsing. I get so excited by my booklist and then quickly veer off the path by some other shiny, new thing. I need to work on my two-year-old like attention span.

I've got some deadlines coming up soon, namely, Book Awards III and DystopYA, that I have not made a good faith effort to finish up by their prospective dates. So, when I heard about the Thankfully Reading Weekend that the ladies at Book Blog Social Club came up with, I thought it would be a great opportunity for me to make good on my commitments. And I was planning to hack away at these goals anyway, so why not do so with several others at the same time? =)

So, for this upcoming holiday weekend, I'm going to finish 3 books (The Blind Assassin, Gilead, and The Hours) for the Book Awards Challenge, and hopefully make some serious headway on DystopYA as well. If you'd also like to participate, sign up here.

Holiday Reading Challenge

Join the challenge here.
Ends: December 31, 2009
Challenge: Read between 1 and 5 "holiday" books.

1. The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry
2. A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote
. . . that's all so far

Critical Monkey Challenge

Join the challenge here.
Ends: July 2, 2010
Challenge level: Guilt.

1. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
2. Dark Force Rising by Timothy Zahn
3. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
4. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry