Read-a-thon: Wrap Up

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?
Hour 18 was pretty rough. My eyes kept drooping and my reading speed had slowed quite a bit.

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?
I like young adult and graphic novels. They always have great stories and are fast reads. I find that I have a lot of reading energy when I see my completed stack growing.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
I'd like to know the charities people are reading for a bit sooner. My reading mojo was better this year because I knew I was reading for a good cause. It would be fun to coordinate with other read-a-thoners to increase our impact.

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
Cheerleaders are awesome! They do a fantastic job of keeping my going. It's always fun to see new comments added to my blog.

5. How many books did you read?
I read 6 books total - three graphic novels, two fiction books, and one young adult book.

6. What were the names of the books you read?

The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo
Deogratias: A Tale of Rwanda by Stassen

The Reader by Bernhard Schlink

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan

Safe Area Gorazde by Joe Sacco

7. Which book did you enjoy most?
American Born Chinese was the perfect book for me when I needed a pick-me up in the middle of the day.

8. Which did you enjoy least?
Deogratias was far more disturbing than I expected. I'm glad I got it out of the way early.

9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?
I was not a cheerleader, but I greatly appreciate and thank them for their efforts. Cheerleaders rock!

10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?
Heck yeah, I'll be participating in October. I look forward to read-a-thon for weeks. I'm already planning what books and snacks I want on hand.



Final Note:
Read-a-thon is one of the highlights of my year. This read-a-thon was my second and I will be sure to participate again. I had fun reading, snacking, but I really enjoyed knowing that I was reading to support an early literacy charity this year. That was a great source of motivation. I didn't want to stop reading because I knew that each book I read would help kids learn how to read.

I completed 6 books and donated $60 to First Book. Other read-a-thoners read for charity as well. You can see the complete list on the Dewey Read-a-thon blog.