Bloggiesta 24-Hour Update

I was able to work for about six hours yesterday. Breaking it down, here's what I accomplished:

One mini-challenge: Hosted by Kim and Jackie at the Blog Improvement Project.  There were a few very informative links that served as a springboard for me to explore new territory and learn new some new vocab.  I have a lot more territory to cover.

Reviews by title and author:  I can see this will take a while, so it's good that it was my only goal listed!    I don't even think I'll get to my "secret" list.  Maybe I'll save it for next time.

Visits:  Spent a couple of hours visiting other participants' blogs, which only scratched the surface.  I haven't spent too much time on Twitter.  Today I've got a few hours to work and then it's off to a dance recital and a birthday party. 

Food:  I did have my taquitos for lunch!  But then I went all multicultural and had Chinese for dinner.  Maybe I'll have a burrito for breakfast to keep things in a proper balance.

Bloggiesta Begins

I just have one thing on my task list at this point:

1. Make links for reviews by title and author--I have no idea how long this will take, but I like it when blogs have this and I've always wanted to add my own. I don't even know yet how many book reviews I've done over the last few years.

And I also have a SECRET list.  Things I want to get done but may not actually have the skills to do.  So if I fail, no one will know about it.

Other than that, I want to be open-ended and check out the challenges, visit other blogs, and mostly just learn about a lot of stuff that I am currently ignorant of.  Some of the to-do lists I've read so far seem like a foreign language, which I should be ashamed of in light of the fact that I've been blogging for  few years.  So my focus during this Bloggiesta is to

Explore and Learn

(and eat).

Bloggiesta Ole!

I don't know how much time I'll actually have this weekend (June 11-13), but I don't want to miss out on the fiesta!  Head on over to Maw Books Blog if you  haven't heard about this event dedicated to spiffing up your blog.  It's also a good excuse to down an excessive amount of taquitos, but that may just be me.

I'll write out my to-do list tomorrow at the starting line. 

¡Hasta mañana!

Countdown by Deborah Wiles

Author: Deborah Wiles
Published: 2010
Length: 400
Source: Bought it from Amazon
Award: YALSA Best Fiction Nominee for YA
Author Website
Challenge:  Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 2010
 

Personal Enjoyment Factor: 4.5/5

Heavens to Murgatroyd!  Being twelve can be tough!  Franny feels virtually invisible.  Her history teacher repeatedly passes her by when it's her turn to read.  Her college-aged sister leaves for a week without bothering to tell her why.  And the boy-of-her-dreams down the street won't notice her if ex-friend Margie has anything to do with it.  Sometimes, though,  it would be nice to be invisible.  Like when her Uncle Otts is trapped in World War I memories and tries to get the neighborhood kids to "fall in line" as they run away in fear of the "crazy" old man.  

What puts Franny's life a notch above the usual preteen woes is that it is the year 1962, at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis.  Air-raid drills, bomb shelter blueprints and the threat of  nuclear war all occupy Franny's thoughts as she tries to compose a letter to Chairman Khrushchev pleading for peace.  But despite all the fear and uncertainty that surrounds her, she still has to figure out what she wants to be for Halloween.

Countdown is a documentary novel, a first for me, but definitely not the last.  I loved the format of the book with photographs, song lyrics and news headlines from 1962.  What a great way to get immersed in history!  This is set about ten years before I was born, but some of the pop culture woven into the story must have lingered into the seventies because it had a familiar feel for me, especially the music.  I spent much of my childhood listening to my mom's 45's (and eating Chex mix,  pig-in-blankets and TV dinners, but those are still popular today, right?)

Aside from the fresh approach to historical fiction, Countdown is a pleasing story that had me turning the pages until I was through.  Franny is a likable character whose own experiences parallel the increasing tension of the Cold War, and I appreciated being able to look at the events of the early 60's from different angles.  It seems that many of the books I've been reading lately have sequels, and this one is no exception.  Countdown is actually the first of a trilogy.  For the record, I will eagerly anticipate Book Two, which, according to Wiles' blog, she is currently writing.  She also has an iMix on her blog of songs and clips of speeches that are highlighted in the book that you can enter to win here through July 1.  Sadly, I have no iAnything to download it to.  I'm so behind the times--no wonder I loved a book about the sixties.

48 Hour Book Challenge Completed

What a wonderful 48 hours! I've learned that sometimes I'm in the zone for these readathons, and sometimes I'm not. This time it was exactly what my brain wanted to do! Not that my numbers are overly impressive--another thing I've learned is that I'm not good at keeping track of time, especially towards the end. I'm not really in it for the stats anyway, I just love setting aside a block of time exclusively for reading.
I read for about 22 hours, which included some Twitter time and some blog visiting done at random times throughout the weekend.   Here's what was read:


The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry
Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
Countdown by Deborah Wiles
Trading Faces by Julia DeVillers (finished with 11-year-old daughter)
I listened to a couple of hours of Guests of the Ayatallah by Mark Bowden, and started The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson. 
My 15-year-old daughter also finished My Lost and Found Life by Melody Bowsher.

 
I'm looking forward to doing more visiting in the coming week to find out how everyone did and what great books are recommended.  Oh, and I suppose I should do some reviews.  It's good timing for the Bloggiesta coming up next weekend, June 11-13.  I'm not sure if I will be able to participate yet, but I am hoping to!  I have a lot of little tasks I would like to accomplish, and this event makes it fun.

*For the 48 Hour Book Challenge, we will be donating to Love 146, an organization my daughter heard about at her high school that she has become involved with.

48 Hour Book Challenge Midway

It's the middle of the 48 Hour Book Challenge for me. I've had a good night's sleep and am ready to get started again. For the first half, I was able to read for 11 hours and 45 five minutes which was beyond my wildest expectations. I read

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry
Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko

For cleanliness reasons, I listened to Guests of the Ayatallah by Mark Bowden while cleaning up, taking a shower, and blow-drying and straightening my hair.  I may have damaged my ears some with the whole hair drying/listening bit, but it sure made it seem to go faster.

I  also spent some of that time reading out loud to my 11-year-old a book we've been flying through this weak, Trading Faces by Julia DeVillers.  I was scared I would be bored with this one when she picked it out, but it's quite entertaining.  We're hoping to finish it today.

Today I will continue to read Countdown by Deborah Wiles, and then I don't know what.  I do have a carnival to go to this morning and a fundraiser event tonight involving eating yummy food.  And looking around there's a fair amount of housework to be done.  I'm not as good at ignoring it as I once was. 

48 Hour Book Challenge Starting Line

As I sneeze and sniffle this lovely Friday morning, I am ready to begin the 48 Hour Book Challenge hosted by MotherReader.  (If you want to join in, it's not too late!). My chosen 48-hour block sits between 9 a.m today and  9 a.m Sunday.  I'm not reading continuously or anything--I am after all human and I have various events to attend the next couple of days.  But I am looking forward to reading A LOT, and I'm excited to read several children's and YA books that I've wanted to get to for a while (out of the 30 I check out of the library.  I couldn't help myself.)   I will attempt to tweet, but I'm not sure when I'll do updates on this blog.  Maybe just when I feel like it.  Have fun, those of you who are participating!