I just signed up for the Read-a-thon which is being held again this weekend. You can read all about it over on Dewey’s blog, and the sign-up page is here (and if you click on the image, you will get to the Read-a-thon FAQ, just in case you don’t know what it’s all about).

I really enjoyed this last time, so I’m looking forward to it a lot, especially since I haven’t really been reading a lot lately. Maybe this will get me back in the saddle, so to speak. Because I haven’t read much lately, I am going to set my goals a lot lower this time around.

Last weekend I visited my grandfather’s house with the rest of my family and ended up coming back home with a bunch of old murder mysteries, mainly British ones. You see, my greatgrandmother was a great reader in general, and of murder mysteries in particular, so there were a bunch of those old books in my grandfather’s bookshelf. He’s moving from a big house to a small apartment, so he really wanted to get rid of stuff. Me? I was only too happy to oblige. ;D

Those murder mysteries are going to be my chief Read-a-thon fare, I feel relatively sure about.

I am kind of late with this. I blame internetlessness. I might not have time to post my list today (I’m blogging from work and I have limited time. Very limited). I will attempt to come in early tomorrow before work and post the rest then.

1. Did you discover a new author?
Libba Bray

2. Where was the most unusual place you found yourself reading?
I read where I usually read — in bed, on the balcony or the sofa.

3. Did you read more than usual?
Yes and no. More than the average month, but about the same as the last few months.

4. Did you give up anything in order to read more?
I spent a little less time on the internet.

5. If you won the Amazon voucher what would you spend it on?
Probably the sequel to A Great and Terrible Beauty.

6. Would you like to see a 2009 Book Blowout?
Definitely!

My goal was to read 20 books during July and I ended up reading 31.

• Doctor Who: The Nightmare of Black Island – Mike Tucker
• Doctor Who: The Art of Destruction – Stephen Cole
• Doctor Who: The Price of Paradise – Colin Brake
• The Underdog – Markus Zusak
• Tro, hopp och burnout – Johan Unenge
• Torchwood: Something in the Water – Trevor Baxendale
• VadÃ¥ feminist – Lisa GÃ¥lmark
• Torchwood: Trace Memory – David Llewellyn
• Homofamiljer – Sara Stenholm och Cecilia Strömberg
• Making Money – Terry Pratchett
• Castle Rackrent – Maria Edgeworth
• Moab is My Washpot – Stephen Fry
• Torchwood: The Twilight Streets – Gary Russell
• Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World – Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero
• Betong, fjäril, betong – Ingrid Olsson
• Torchwood: Border Princes – Dan Abnett
• Torchwood: Another Life – Peter Anghelides
• Torchwood: Slow Decay – Andy Lane
• Vegan Freak – Bob Torres & Jenna Torres
• Skinny Bitch – Rory Freedman & Kim Barnouin
• Vegan Virgin Valentine – Carolyn Mackler
• Emily of New Moon – LM Montgomery
• Emily Climbs – LM Montgomery
• Emily’s Quest – LM Montgomery
• The Blue Castle – LM Montgomery
• A Great and Terrible Beauty – Libba Bray
• From the Inside Out – Morty Diamond (ed.)
• The History Boys – Alan Bennett
• Life on the Refrigerator Door – Alice Kuipers
• The Commitments – Roddy Doyle
• Historier om ett brott – Lena Lennerhed

My internet has broken down and I haven’t had a chance to get it fixed yet, thus the lack of updates.

I just thought you might want to know.

Since I can’t really do much else right now (I’m logging in, very briefly, from work to type this. Internetlessness has freed up lots of time for reading, though. Twenty-two books this month so far and still going at it!), I had an idea that I would ask the same question that I asked back in November:

Who reads this blog?

Even if you never, ever comment and plan on never, ever commenting again, won’t you make an exception just this once, so I get a little picture of who reads this. I’m curious sometimes, y’know.

 

I am made of epic fail. This is a fact that most people know about me, but perhaps Kim L and Banquo know it more than most. See, back in April there was that quotation contest I held. Let me remind you—April. Do you think I sent out the prizes back then? Exactly. I didn’t. But today I finally did, so I’m a little less epic fail right now. (Kim L, Banquo: let me know if you haven’t received your gift certificates. I sent them to the e-mail addresses you used to comment here, so they should have got there safely, but if not, I need to try to fix that.)

In other, somewhat related news, I won the Read-a-thon post-event survey prize drawing, which is a subscription to Bookmarks magazine. I was pleasantly surprised to learn this.

I will have a post with June stats up at some point soon, maybe by the end of the weekend. I have yet to post reviews for a few books I read in June and I want to get those done first, but I have no time for it until the weekend, basically. (This is yet another reason for the epic fail.)

Still on a Doctor Who kick, which will soon also be a Torchwood kick (I’m about half-way through my last Ten+Rose book, and so shall have to turn to Torchwood for my Who-verse fixes. Well, until Saturday, that is).

Mrs S at Blue Archipelago is hosting a new reading challenge I just couldn’t resist joining. It’s called the July Book Blowout and the goal is to read as many books as you can during the month of July.

Since I’m going to be working full-time this month, I won’t set my goal very high. I’m aiming for 20 books by the end of the month (I’ve read one already—only nineteen to go!).

To kick off the challenge, Mrs S has posted a mini-challenge to get everyone acquainted.

1. Describe yourself in one sentence
A shy and quiet book geek with a Doctor Who fixation and a penchant for the slashridden.

2. What book will you start the challenge with?
Well, I already finished my first (Doctor Who: The Nightmare of Black Island by Mike Tucker), but next up is Doctor Who: The Art of Destruction by Stephen Cole. Yes, I’m on a Who kick currently. What of it? ;D

3. Where is your favourite place to read?
Bed!

4. What is your favourite book of all time?
Just the one? Oh, you are cruel! ;D Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, probably.

5. Remind us all of your challenge target
Twenty, which is kind of low for me, but then I’m back to work now, so I won’t have that much time for reading.