Sunday, June 7, 2009

My Times

Just a final note to say, down below I edited the post "I forgot to post my times" to reflect how much I read now that I'm done with the challenge. In short it was 14 hours and 57 minutes. For all the details, scroll on down.

Juli

Book Number 3

My third book in the 48 Hour Book Challenge is Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney.

This is probably the last book I'll complete for the challenge, but I've still got 25 minutes left, so I'll see how far I get in the next one. Meanwhile, here's my review of Diary of a Wimpy Kid

This is the journal of Greg Heffley, middle schooler. At the beginning of the school year Greg's mom suggests he keep a journal. The "highlights" of his school year include wrestling class in P.E., making a haunted house with his friend Rowley, his brief but failed campaign for class treasurer and the disastrous class play. Despite these "highlights," things are going pretty okay. That is until Rowley starts gaining popularity among their classmates. Rowley and Greg start having some differences of opinion and tensions begin to devlop. Does this spell the end of their friendship forever?

Greg was my favorite character is this book. He is funny, sarcastic, and definitely a character kids can relate to. The middle-school world provides a familiar setting for readers. Kinney's informal tone and humorous cartoon illustrations give a freshness to the story that readers will appreciate.

I recommend this to parents who wonder what middle school is like now days and to all middle-school readers who wonder if anyone knows what they're going through. Take heart, Greg Heffley does and he'll be around to tell you more in the next few books in the series.

Saturday, June 6, 2009

I forgot to post my times

Here's how my reading panned for the challenge

June 5th

7:10p.m.-9:45 p.m. = 2 hrs. 30 min. reading Through the Fire by Shawn Grady

June 6th

10:15-1:30 = 3 hrs. 15 min Finished Through the Fire, blogged it and started Castle by J. Robert Lennon
3:00-3:25 = 25 min Reading Castle
4:00-6:35 = 2 hrs. 35 min Reading Castle
7:25-11:10 = 3 hrs. 45 min Finished Castle and blogged it.

June 7th

7:35 a.m.-7:45 a.m. 10 minutes Started Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
4:50 p.m. - 6:45 p.m. 1 hour 55 minutes Finished Diary of a Wimpy Kid and blogged it
6:48 p.m. - 7:10 p.m. 22 minutes started The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and got to page 14. So far I'm liking it.

Alas, my time is now up. If I did the math correctly I read for 14 and 57 minutes. Not bad considering I had some unexpected yet fun things come up that took me away from reading for a bit.

Now I must catch up on laundry and get ready for a new work week. For those still finishing up, I hope you're enjoying your reading. Hope we can all get together next year at this time for a 5th annual challenge.

Signing off now, but check back. Who knows, I may decide to keep this blog going after all.

Juli

Just finished book #2

For my second book of the challenge, I read Castle by J. Robert Lennon. Here's my review

Eric Loesch arrives in his former hometown in upstate New York, Gerrysburg, with the purpose of buying and fixing up a run-down house. There is an air of mystery about Loesch and the reader immediately gets a sense that there is more to Loesch than meets the eye. He is defensive with the locals and is obsessed with exploring the woods that aren't technically part of his property. As his time in the town proreses, Loesch is forced to confront the events of his past from his choldhood to time spent serving in Iraq with the United States Army. This intense and sometimes frightening novel told from Loesch's point of view will keep the reader's attention from page one to its unexpected conclusion.

The aura of mystery surrounding Loesch is what kept me reading. When it was finished I felt as though the air had been knocked out of me. It was an intense read that touched many emotions in me and truly left me speechless.

Okay, so I'm a slow reader

Hi There,

I finally finished my first book of the challenge. It was an ARC of a new book coming out in July from Bethany House called Through the Fire. It's a debut book by a new author, Shawn Grady. Here's my review

idan O'Neill serves as a firefighter in Reno, Nevada. Following the deaths of his father and grandfather, Aidan turned his back on God. Fiver years on Aidan is still angry and grieving. An emergency call that goes wrong and a string of fires set by a serial arsonist in his community push Adan to make a life-changing decision. This part of the plot alone will keep you on the edge of your seat. Add in a budding romance with Julianne, a talented fire investigator working to solve the mystery of the fires and you have an appealing read for both men and woman.

Grady's experience as a former firefighter comes through in the vivid details such as what it' slike to be in a burning building and what life at the station is like between calls. Grady's narration is detailed, his dialogue original and true-to-life. I especially liked the banter between the firefighters as it helped bring the characters to life. His storytelling is fast-paced, yet he allows the reader to come up for air from time to time. All in all, this is a great first novel by a promising new author.

I'd recommend this to fans of Karen Kingsbury and also guys who are looking for good Christian Fiction.

Look for this book to hit shelves sometime in July 2009. It's a book you won't want to miss.

Friday, June 5, 2009

48 Hour Book Challenge

Starting tonight at 7:00. I learned from experience last year that my eyes get really dry and sore when I read for super long stretches. Also, since I can't neglect housework this weekend (didn't do any last weekend and am very busy next weekend), my plan is to read for a bit, go do a task, read for a bit, go do a task…

Looking forward to making a dent in my to be read pile as well as adding books to my 50 Books in 2009 group at goodreads. I'm a bit behind for the year.

Good luck to all you readers out there.