Thanksgiving Readathon - Social Distancing #244 - November 28 - December 2

Welcome to the Thanksgiving readathon!

Tell us what you're doing for Thanksgiving this year. Share you're favorite recipe if you want.

We'll run from now (Thursday) through Sunday or Monday, however long you want.

Here are some things to track, 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

Sorry for the late start, I'd planned to put it up on Wednesday, but I got distracted baking pies.

I'll be joining. We don't have Thanksgiving, of course, but I'm planning on getting as much reading as possible done during the weekend. However, I need to get some darning and mending done, and Sunday is the first of Advent so I need to do some cleaning and get the Advent decorations up (Christmas curtains, lights, star...). No other plans though, so hopefully I'll have time for everything. I will join in from tomorrow afternoon (on my way back home from work).

Happy Thanksgiving Silver and everyone! My husband is making an apple pie at this very moment. 🥧

I’ll be reading around the family activities. And unpacking, of course.
Current book is The Paris Apartment.

We have Thanksgiving I at my sister’s today and Thanksgiving II on Sunday when my niece and her family can be here. Porchetta today and turkey on Sun.

Raining, 59F/15C.

I'm going to participate! I need a readathon.

OK, I'm in since I'm off until Monday. I'm trying to finish Catch-22 but I keep getting distracted by cooking, cleaning, taking care of the dog, and watcing YouTube videos.

I'm in - probably won't read much today, since we're hosting the whole family. Currently reading Sword and Scimitar by Raymond Ibrahim, and Living in Wonder by Rod Dreher.

I am in too, especially since we are not having Thanksgiving right now given the current condition of my kitchen.

Happy Thanksgiving to all those who celebrate the day! Happy reading to everyone!

I am in as well because I have a cold and am not going anywhere for Thanksgiving. I stayed in and watched TV this morning and read.

I'm in. Joining from New Zealand where we don't do Thanksgiving. It's already Friday afternoon and I've been reading Calypso Dreaming which I almost put aside but decided to keep going with.

Thanksgiving Day - start of long weekend reading

Books read from: Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer. Secret Life of Dust by Hannah Holmes. I started Fortune's Rocks by Anita Shreve and started listening to Matrix by Lauren Groff.

Books finished: Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer.

Book Thoughts: I really got into Under the Banner of Heaven and thought it was a really a well done example of narrative nonfiction. A large portion of the book was a study of religious fundamentalism and in some ways reminded me of History of God by Karen Armstrong. My book on dust is also interesting and it provided me with a couple of long leisurely hours of reading this morning.

Non-Book Activities: I unpacked some boxes today and had one mess to clean up. It got down into the low 20's last night and a bottle of lotion froze in my box that had my bedspread in it. The bedspread is cotton so I threw it into the washer with a pod of Cascade with Dawn in it (to take out the oil from the lotion) and I think it came out clean and no oil spot. It is drying right now so I will see when I put it on the bed. I found my box of electronic gadgets for my desk so will get those out and set things up tomorrow.

Reading Time Today: 2 hours
Time Reading this weekend: 2 hours
Time listening:
Time posting:
Food: I had a Subway sandwich for lunch and will have Stouffer's frozen lasagna for supper in a few minutes.

Total books finished since the Read-A-Thon Began: 473
Total Time Reading since the Social Distancing read-a-thon began: 1441 hours since I started doing the weekend Read-A-Thon starting in April of 2020.

Thursday Night Update

Books read from: Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny (audiobook), Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi, The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick, Lies, Damned Lies, and History by Jodi Taylor, and Written in My Own Heart’s Blood by Diana Gabaldon
Books finished: 3, Bury Your Dead, Americanah, and The Man in the High Castle
Time reading: ~2.9 hours + listening to audiobook

Total books finished: 3
Total read from: 5
Total time reading: ~2.9 hours + listening to audiobook

Media read from:

Warmth of Other Suns, by Isabel Wilkerson 48 minutes
Carpe Jugulum, by Terry Pratchett 47 minutes
Mr Ballen Podcast 61 minutes
The Week: Wrecking Crew 38 minutes

Media finished: none

Time reading: 194 minutes

I listened to the podcast while cooking our feast.

Friday report

Books read from: Secret Life of Dust by Hannah Holmes. Fortune's Rocks by Anita Shreve, Refiner's Fire by Donna Leon, and am listening to Matrix by Lauren Groff.

Books finished: Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer.

Book Thoughts: I didn't get as much read this morning as I wanted to, but I did read a few pages in Secret Life of Dust. I pulled out Refiner's Fire from the stack and will start it today.

Non-Book Activities: I spend most of last evening talking on the phone. I am resolved to not answer the phone tonight. I want to watch TV, knit, and read. I finally got the temperature regulated in the bedroom, so I slept better. Today I am going to do the washing and will unpack a few boxes today. The bedspread came out of the wash in great condition, so I put it on the bed this morning. I am looking forward to unpacking a box labeled as "Office." I have no idea what I put in it. I went to community coffee this morning. The weather is still cold, but it is sunny so that makes it nice and cheery. I am going to spend today relaxing. That will include baking, but I am not going to overdo it today. I have Holiday music on the TV and just got my first batch of stuff done in the dryer. It should be a another quiet day.

Reading Time Today: 1 hours
Time Reading this weekend: 3 hours
Time listening:
Time posting:
Food: I had homemade granola and yogurt for breakfast.

Total books finished since the Read-A-Thon Began: 473
Total Time Reading since the Social Distancing read-a-thon began: 1442 hours since I started doing the weekend Read-A-Thon starting in April of 2020.

I'm in! A very social weekend with lots of visiting folks here and there but catching an hour here and there to physically read or at least listen to a book. Finishing A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley - not a holiday read, yikes! so want to finish and move on ... a couple of SciFi's to read and a book about the Collins class of submarines' namesakes to finish. Hoping Sunday is my chance to catch my breath!

Friday Night Update

Books read from: A Passage to India by E. M. Forster (audiobook), Lies, Damned Lies, and History by Jodi Taylor, Written in My Own Heart’s Blood by Diana Gabaldon, and Calculated in Death by J. D. Robb
Books finished: 1, Lies, Damned Lies, and History
Time reading: ~2.5 hours + listening to audiobook

Total books finished: 4
Total read from: 7
Total time reading: ~5.4 hours + listening to audiobook

Late Friday update because I fell asleep and then forgot about it this morning.

Books read from: The Fortune of the Rougons by Émile Zola and The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
Non-book activities: Watching TV, exercise biking, Duolingo.

Saturday afternoon

Book: The Paris Apartment. Hope to finish it today.

Book activity: packed up books for Santa Swap.

Book thoughts: my reading has slowed down. Unsure that l’ll reach my customary 100 books for the year. I think I’m only at 82.

Other: grocery shopping, baked choc chip muffins for family brunch at my house tomorrow.

Lunch: leftover pasta with snow peas and smoked salmon.

Partly sunny, 46F/8C.
Had our first frost Thanksgiving night.

I finished Catch-22 this evening, even though I've had a lot of distractions during this long weekend. I cooked a couple of dishes on Thursday for a Thanksgiving meal with friends. Thursday evening I needed to do a load of laundry and my washer leaked all over the floor. After the initial panic, I determined that the drain hose had come unseated from the drain pipe enough to cause a problem. Friends came over yesterday morning to help me move the washer and dryer so I could make sure it was dry underneath. (It was, thanks to my persistence in sliding towels underneath with a yardstick.) I did a load of laundry yesterday and several more today without any leaking, so I think the problem is fixed!

I also listened to a little bit of Excursion to Tindari while I was in the car running errands. I'm getting ready to start reading The Man Who Invented Christmas but I doubt that I'll finish it tomorrow.

Saturday update

Books read from: Secret Life of Dust by Hannah Holmes. Fortune's Rocks by Anita Shreve, Refiner's Fire by Donna Leon, and am listening to Matrix by Lauren Groff

Books finished: Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer.

Book Thoughts: I read for about an hour this morning so did make some progress on Secret Life of Dust

Non-Book Activities: I found my coffee maker! It took me two hours of pulling boxes out of stacks and opening them. Of course, it was on the bottom and in the last stack I looked in. However, I have now washed it up and have run some of the parts through the dishwasher so tomorrow morning I will have good coffee! It is progress. I made one of the beds and now have a complete bed made up. That feels good. I used my Christmas sheets (red and green polka dots and the set is so festive.) I have also acquired a cold so I am spending less time unpacking boxes than I am sleeping and drinking lots of fluids.

Reading Time Today: 1 hours
Time Reading this weekend: 4 hours
Time listening:
Time posting:
Food: I had tortilla soup for supper and it was very good. It was hot and tasty. It made me feel better.

Total books finished since the Read-A-Thon Began: 473
Total Time Reading since the Social Distancing read-a-thon began: 1443 hours since I started doing the weekend Read-A-Thon starting in April of 2020.

Saturday Night Update

Books read from: A Passage to India by E. M. Forster (audiobook), Written in My Own Heart’s Blood by Diana Gabaldon, and Calculated in Death by J. D. Robb
Books finished: 0
Time reading: ~2.35 hours + listening to audiobook

Total books finished: 4
Total read from: 7
Total time reading: ~7.75 hours + listening to audiobook

Saturday update

Books read from: The Fortune of the Rougons by Émile Zola and The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, tiny bit of Ruddy Gore by Kerry Greenwood
Non-book activities: Watching TV, exercise biking, Duolingo.

Sunday update

Books read from: Secret Life of Dust by Hannah Holmes. Fortune's Rocks by Anita Shreve, Refiner's Fire by Donna Leon, and am listening to Matrix by Lauren Groff

Books finished: Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer.

Book Thoughts: I have not been feeling good and so spent a good deal of time reading this afternoon in Secret Life of Dust

Non-Book Activities: I had coffee this morning! real coffee. hot coffee. I love my Technovroom Mochamaster. It was nice to have hot coffee for most of the day. I still have my cold but I am feeling better and will get back to work tomorrow. I finished up doing my Christmas ordering. Now I can sit back and wait for things to be delivered. I also uncovered another box of stuff that turned out to be my mother's things. I will wash them up and take the to the donation box at the nursing home. There are two good flannel nightgowns in there that I am sure somebody will be able to use.

Reading Time Today: 3 hours
Time Reading this weekend: 6 hours
Time listening:
Time posting:
Food: I made a vegetarian casserole today. It had canned corn, tomatoes, lima beans, and one of my favorite ancient grains - faro, topped with parmesan cheese. It was tasty but the recipe said to bake it for thirty minutes until the casserole was hot and bubbly and the cheese melted. That wasn't nearly long enough. It needed to bake for more like an hour before it was hot and bubbly. But it was good.

Total books finished since the Read-A-Thon Began: 473
Total Time Reading since the Social Distancing read-a-thon began: 1446 hours since I started doing the weekend Read-A-Thon starting in April of 2020.

I have had a great reading weekend with six books finished!:

The Netanyahus
Tension
The Tenant
Under Fire
James
and
And Yet

Sunday night

Books:
Finished The Paris Apartment
Next up - Strange Folk by Alli Dyer

Dinner:
lavish turkey dinner with all the fixings. We had Thanksgiving II at my sister’s house. l made an olive wreath appetizer and a pea salad. My husband made a broccoli/swiss casserole and a cherry pie.

Other activity:
Had a family breakfast for 8 at our house this morning. Kept it simple since we were having a big meal in the mid-afternoon - berries, yogurt, bagels, pastries, and l baked choc chip nut muffins. My niece brought mimosas.
Watched a new Netflix Christmas movie - “Our Little Secret”

Sunday Night Update

Books read from: A Passage to India by E. M. Forster (audiobook), Terec and the Wild by Victoria Goddard, Bound to Please by Michael Dirda and Calculated in Death by J. D. Robb
Books finished: 2, Terec and the Wild and Calculated in Death
Time reading: ~2.4 hours + listening to audiobook

Total books finished: 6
Total read from: 9
Total time reading: ~10.15 hours + listening to audiobook

Sunday update

Books read from: The Fortune of the Rougons by Émile Zola and Ruddy Gore by Kerry Greenwood
Non-book activities: Duolingo, exercise biking, putting up ads online, taking a long walk, dropping off a package.

I didn’t read as much as I’d hoped to this weekend, and also didn’t get the other things done that I’d meant to. Not sure where the time went, to be honest.

Monday update:
I didn't check in all weekend but have managed to finish three books.
Living with our dead: On Loss and Consolation by Delphine Horvilleur
Monumenta by Lara Haworth
Calypso Dreaming by Charles Butler

Weekend update:

Books read from: Sword and Scimitar by Raymond Ibrahim, Living in Wonder by Rod Dreher, The Book That Broke The World by Mark Lawrence
Books finished Sword and Scimitar and Living in Wonder
Pages read: 350-ish

Non-reading activities: Much family gathering, of course (hence the relatively low page count), and a good amount of college football. I'm a huge Michigan fan, having grown up near the campus, plus my grandfather played on the team from 1926-28, so I was delighted by their upset of the Buckeyes.

Okay, I'm gonna ask - not to shame, but because I've been watching now for weeks and wondering - Silverwolf28 kindly starts these threads each weekend but doesn't post about their reads ... totally cool, just wondering ... is there a story behind this?

Here's my report back about my own weekend:
Books read from: 3 - A Thousand Acres, Jane Smiley; The Sand Pebbles, Richard McKenna; and The Lightning Seed, John Durant

Thoughts: Okay, I'm obviously thick ... read the Smiley book and never once thought about King Lear. I was SO caught up in the modern story, it totally kept me guessing throughout. I'm still forehead smacking myself ... I literally just saw Patrick Page in Simon Godwin's production last year. Oof! Another headsmack .... something must be stuck up there!

Non-book activities: Richard Thompson in concert ... oh, yes, you can be envious: it was perfect!

Total books finished: 1 - A Thousand Acres
Total read from: 3
Total time reading: 9-10 hours

Thanksgiving Readathon wrapup

Books read from: Secret Life of Dust by Hannah Holmes. Fortune's Rocks by Anita Shreve, Refiner's Fire by Donna Leon, and am listening to Matrix by Lauren Groff

Books finished: Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer.

Book Thoughts: Secret Life of Dust is proving to be a hard book to read. small print, and lots of information in it. I intend to finish it this week.

Non-Book Activities: Spent the day looking for my Christmas cake pans.

Reading Time Today: 2 hours
Time Reading this weekend: 8 hours
Time listening:
Time posting:
Food:

Total books finished since the Read-A-Thon Began: 473
Total Time Reading since the Social Distancing read-a-thon began: 1448 hours since I started doing the weekend Read-A-Thon starting in April of 2020.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/366284