Social Distancing Readathon #231 - August 23 - 25

Welcome to another readathon!

We generally run from Friday at 5 p.m. to Sunday at midnight in whatever time zone you choose, but feel free to start earlier on Friday and wrap up overnight Sunday/Monday, if that's what you want to do.

Here are some things to track throughout the weekend, if you choose:

Books read from:
Books finished:
Time reading:
Time posting:
Snacks:
Thoughts:
Non-book activities:

Total books finished:
Total read from:
Total time reading:

Who is participating -

1. SilverWolf (SilverWolf28) -- Tennessee, USA

Hi Silver!
I will do my best to join in this weekend. Have so many library books left to read, and I want to make some headway before I go on a work trip next week (I'll obviously bring books with me, but It is too heavy to bring along so I'll be focusing on that during the weekend.

I can see what I can do. Probably will not get a lot of reading done on Saturday, but I'll have time on Friday and Sunday.

I will be in this weekend, but will be traveling so won't get much reading done.

I'm in.
I'm hoping to do some cooking/baking this weekend but I'll be reading as well.
This is my last leisurely weekend for awhile; things start to get busy on Monday.
Just finished a quick re-read of Romancing Mr Bridgerton since I was watching season 3 of the tv series based on that title.
Now reading What Angels Fear, first in an historical Regency mystery series.
4 more library books await their turn on my phone . .

I'm in again - currently reading The Book that Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence. I should add that this is my first weekend of being officially retired, as I was able to sell my tax accounting practice last week!

In, and looking forward to reading Solito. Not sure if I'll get to anything else, but possibly listening to Master and Commander.

>6 ChrisG1: Hey! Congratulations!!!

I'm in, more or less. I've got landscapers coming to do some work for me tomorrow so I'll be supervising that.
I'll be finishing The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and reading James. It's enlightening to read both at the same time.

>6 ChrisG1: Congratulations on your retirement, Chris! So much time to do what you enjoy most. I've never been bored a day since I retired. Always something to do.

>6 ChrisG1:
I agree with what has been said - never a boring day when you are retired. In fact many of them are exhausting.

Friday start up

Books read from: Winter Soldier by Daniel Mason. For the Good of All, Do Not Destroy the Birds: Essays by Jennifer Moxley. Wandering Life: A Memoir by Donna Leon. I am finishing up listening to The Measure by Nikki Erlick and starting The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont .

Books finished: Winter Soldier by Daniel Mason. For the Good of All, Do Not Destroy the Birds: Essays by Jennifer Moxley. The Measure by Nikki Erlick

Book Thoughts: it was a week for finishing lots of books that were almost done at the end of last week, but not quite. I finished the very difficult historical novel Winter Soldier by Daniel Masonand several days after finishing it I am still thinking about it. I wonder and then I look up something about it. I suspect that this novel is going to stay with me for a long time. I also finished a book of literary criticism essays about poetry that I found interesting. The book was about poems about birds. Each essay used different lines from poems about birds as the starting point for the essays. I also finished listening to The Measure by Nikki Erlick. This one was a surprise and was a very good contemporary fiction novel. I can understand why it is causing a sensation in book clubs all across the country. There are so many current topics touched on in this novel that it is a great book discussion book, and a very interesting book to read or listen to. I haven't heard much about it here in LT but I should have been because it is a book that deserves some LT love.

Non-Book Activities: I packed another box of yarn and loaded the bricks into the van. I have made significant progress in the moving of stuff. I have a friend coming over tomorrow morning to help me load and pack the van so that I can leave Sunday morning for Kansas. I think this will be the last load before the movers come to get things.

Reading Time Today: 1 hours
Time Reading this weekend: 1 hours
Time listening: 1 hours
Time posting:
Food: Friday night chinese food with friends.

Total books finished since the Read-A-Thon Began: 450
Total Time Reading since the Social Distancing read-a-thon began: 1342 hours since I started doing the weekend Read-A-Thon in April of 2020.

I am afraid that I cannot take part this weekend nor next due to traveling. I hope everyone has a great reading weekend!

Saturday report

Books read from: Wandering Life: A Memoir by Donna Leon. Meet Me At The Bamboo Table: Everyday Meals Everywhere by A. V. Crofts. Soul of the Sky: Exploring the Human Side of Weather edited by C. Ralph Adler. I am starting to listen to The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont.

Books finished: Winter Soldier by Daniel Mason. For the Good of All, Do Not Destroy the Birds: Essays by Jennifer Moxley. The Measure by Nikki Erlick

Book Thoughts: I am finding Christie Affair a hard book to listen to. It is one of those novels with a dual story line and it jumps back and forth from the woman with whom Archie is having the affair to Agatha. The novel is narrated by the same person and the transitions between the two personae is rough. I went to the library today and got the hardcopy of the novel so that I can check to make sure who is telling the story when I get confused. This was a Jenna Bush Book Club selection and I usually like her books, however, I am not sure about this one. I haven't given up on it and am about 100 pages into the novel, but it isn't working as well as an audio book as it should. Soul of the Sky is proving to be interesting so I am glad I picked that one up.

Non-Book Activities: A friend came over today and helped me pack the van. I broke one of the glass tops for an end table and wasn't happy about that. It will mean hunting down somebody who can cut a new glass piece for me when I get moved. I have a full van and have room for my suitcase so I am happy about that.

Reading Time Today: 1 hours
Time Reading this weekend: 2 hours
Time listening: 1 hours
Time posting:
Food: I took my friend to Whataburger for a quick lunch after loading and then ate leftovers this evening.

Total books finished since the Read-A-Thon Began: 450
Total Time Reading since the Social Distancing read-a-thon began: 1343 hours since I started doing the weekend Read-A-Thon in April of 2020.

Friday and Saturday update:

Zero accomplished.

Hopefully, I can relax today and enjoy my lazy chair with a couple of books

Sunday update:
Books read from: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn James
Books finished: 1 Huckleberry
Time reading: 3 hours
Time posting: Monday 8:55am

Winding up the weekend..

Books:
Finished What Angels Fear. Very good. Oh dear, yet another series to pursue.
Now reading 15 Summers Later

Other activity:
Did not get to the cooking & baking yet.
Watched episodes of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, watered my pots, wrote postcards.

Sunny, 72F/22C.

Weekend summary:

Books read from: The Book that Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence
Books finished: none

Non-reading activity: Big gathering for my son's 40th birthday, with the birthday boy doing the cooking (he loves hosting).

>17 ChrisG1:
Best wishes on your retirement!

>18 nrmay: Thanks!

Weekend wrapup

Books read from: Meet Me At The Bamboo Table: Everyday Meals Everywhere by A. V. Crofts. Soul of the Sky: Exploring the Human Side of Weather edited by C. Ralph Adler. I am listened to The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont and started listening to Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers.

Books finished: The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont. Wandering Through Life: A Memoir by Donna Leon. Winter Soldier by Daniel Mason. For the Good of All, Do Not Destroy the Birds: Essays by Jennifer Moxley. The Measure by Nikki Erlick

Book Thoughts: The Christie Affair was a muddled mess of a book. It certainly was a confusing novel to listen to. I also don't understand why Goodreads would say this is one of the best historical fiction novels of the year.
It was one of those novels that jumped back and forth from one point-of-view to another and was narrated by one voice. This made it very hard to distinguish when the point-of-view jumps happened. It might have worked better if two different people had narrated it, but since they didn't this novel is getting a very harsh review from me. I don't recommend it at all. I started listening to Record of a Space Born Few and low and behold, I am having the same problem with it. Multiple point-of-view and one narrator. Not working. I am three quarters of the way through the book and wondering what the plot is? Soul of the Sky is proving to be interesting so I am glad I picked that one up.

Non-Book Activities: I am in Kansas - again. I have a full van load of stuff to unload this week and on Monday (Labor Day) I will be heading back to Alabama. Nobody has come to get their furniture so I will have to get that out of the house today. It was a good trip and went smoothly.

Reading Time Today: 1 hours
Time Reading this weekend: 3 hours
Time listening: 10 hours
Time posting:
Food: mostly liquid in the form of two stops at Starbucks along the way, and one at Sonic.

Total books finished since the Read-A-Thon Began: 452
Total Time Reading since the Social Distancing read-a-thon began: 13 h56ours since I started doing the weekend Read-A-

Here's the Labor Day readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/363002