Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon: Hours 5-8

 

Welcome to the second post of the April Dewey readathon!  This one will take me through until 9pm here in England; if you want to catch up on all my challenges, updates and photos so far, you can check out my post for Hours 0-4 by clicking HERE.  Onwards!

~ Hour 5 (6pm) ~
I've been reading:  The Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé
Pages read since my last update:  33
Pages read altogether:  158
Mini challenges completed:  3
The menu:  The pizza's a-cookin'!
In six words:  I've finished my first book already!

Thoughts:  Man, I feel so tired already!  It's not even frickin' bedtime yet, but my eyes are so sleepy, I could drop off right now...  On the plus side, I kept reading for a few extra minutes past the hour before I stopped to do this update, and managed to finish my first book!  The Suicide Shop was weird and charming and intriguing, a little detached and offbeat at times, and it ended on a note so unexpected that it'd have floored me if I hadn't accidentally caught a glimpse of the last line as soon as I turned the page (don't you hate it when that happens?).  Glad I finally picked it up - and it was the PERFECT way to feel like I'd had a productive start to the readathon, especially as it looks like I might not be awake for quite as much of it as I'd originally anticipated!  ;)

 

MINI CHALLENGE: Operation: Quotation!

Hosted by Geeky Library

"Life is the way it is.  It's worth what it's worth!  It does its best, within its limitations.  We mustn't ask too much of life, either.  Nor should we want to suppress it!" 
- The Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé

 

~ Hour 6 (7pm) ~
I've been reading:  Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell
Pages read since my last update:  8
Pages read altogether:  166
Mini challenges completed:  3
The menu:  A couple of slices of Goodfellas pepperoni pizza; coffee
In six words:  An hour for doing other things.

Thoughts: This hour's mostly been about finishing cooking the pizza, EATING some of the pizza, and catching up on Instagram, to be honest.  Plus I'd already spilled over into this hour to finish my book from the LAST hour.  Aaaaanyway, a couple of pieces of pizza have been consumed, my mum had a nibble as well because "it smells so gooooood", then Domino (feline readathon buddy) decided SHE needed to investigate, and THEN I managed to get them all to sod off and picked up my next book - Kindred Spirits, the World Book Day mini novella quick read thingy by Rainbow Rowell, about a girl waiting in line for the new Star Wars movie.  It's another of my shortest book choices (oops) but I'm feeling lazy and also like I want something nice to read post-Suicide Shop!

 

 

~ Hour 7 (8pm) ~
I've been reading:  Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell
Pages read since my last update:  25
Pages read altogether:  191
Mini challenges completed:  3
The menu:  The last dregs of my coffee from before
In six words:  Ugh, is it bedtime yet?  #FAIL

Thoughts:  I'm really, genuinely knackered, ugh.  I don't know if it's my new medication, hormonal shittiness (ah, the joys of womanhood), the fact that I've been staring at my books and/or laptop for seven hours solid... WHO KNOWS?  I've read a bit more of Kindred Spirits anyway - very fun, very easy to read, very Rainbow-y - so I'll carry on with that for a bit now and see what happens.  Most of the challenges so far either aren't appealing or aren't actually available for me full stop (like this hour's Facebook one) which is at least freeing up a few extra minutes each hour for other things!  ONWARDS!

Accurate representation of my reading speed.

 

 

~ Hour 8 (9pm) ~
I've been reading:  Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell
Pages read since my last update:  41
Pages read altogether:  232
Mini challenges completed:  4
The menu:  Nothing this hour, that pizza was quite enough!
In six words:  Another book done!  I'M ON FIIIIIRE!

Thoughts:  I finished Kindred Spirits!  And the little teaser extract of a different book in the back, which only served to highlight how good Rainbow Rowell is compared to other YA novelists, haha.  It was really cute anyway, all about Star Wars and fandom and these three people sitting in a non-existent line for the new movie for several days, just for the experience and thrill (or not) of being there.  I loved it, and it's so tiny and quick to read that I'll definitely be keeping hold of it to reread next time I need a little pick-me-up!  Now, I'm off to do a few chores and generally surface for air, so I'll leave you with Victoria Wood, who sadly died this week, and her wonderful Ballad of Barry and Freda (Let's Do It), possibly the most hilarious musical skit of all time ever.  Sometimes mid-readathon you just need a good giggle...




MINI CHALLENGE: SHARE A QUOTE
Hosted by My Life is a Fairytale That Will Never End

"I have never been able to understand why people who come over as all weak and watery are said to be weeds.  Those posh plants with their double-barrelled names and a family tree as long as your arm, with roots that go way back, they don't know they're born.
'My dear, I simply can't cope with this soil - far too acid for my liking.  And look, there's a horrid little stone in the way.  It's just too much.'"

- From A Play on Words by Deric Longden

 

 

And so we come to the end of Hour 8, and this post.  There'll be a new post up for Hours 9-12; by the end of that one it'll be 1am here, when things start getting trippy...

 

Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon: Hours 0-4

 

Good afternoon readers, read-a-thonners, and anyone else who might have dropped by accidentally!  It's that time again - Dewey's 24-Hour Read-a-Thon starts at 1pm today (that's London time) and runs through until 1pm tomorrow (clue's in the name), and I'm going to be here and updating (hopefully) for as many of those hours as I can stay awake.  All the info on signing up and start times for different time zones is on the website, along with the infectiously enthusiastic Dewey blog, so just click the link to find out more!  As always, I've spent the last couple of days amassing a pile of potential reads - reasonably short books, with snappy chapters, an interesting premise and, most importantly for those 3am looking-through-a-fog moments, decent sized print - and a delicious heap of potential snacks.  I AM READY.

I'm setting myself a tentative goal of 500 pages for the day, which seems to be roughly my limit in these 24-hour readathons.  I'm also planning to 'read for charity' again, and match the donation to what I've read.  Sooo, for the readathon in which I read Wesley, about a woman raising and living with an injured baby barn owl, I adopted a barn owl from The Barn Owl Trust at the end.  This time around, if I read a Deric Longden book, I could pick a cat charity; if I read The Virgin Suicides, I could donate to MIND... you get the idea.  I'm not working so I don't have a lot to give, but I've not spent too much this month and I really like the idea of making the readathon count, so I'M DOING IT ANYWAY.

 

Over the day I'll be updating here on the blog, starting a new post every four hours just to keep things tidy (maybe less if I fall asleep or something - but I'm hoping to cram plenty of updates, photos and challenges into each post!), and also over on Instagram.  If you don't follow me already, my handle's @derbyshirelass87, and the readathon hashtag is... #readathon.  Nice and easy to remember!  If you're blog hopping, do feel free to leave your update links in the comments so I can return the visit at some point and cheer you on right back.  :)

 

 

~ Kick-off ~

 

Good morning, afternoon, night, or whatever time it is where you are!  It's 1pm here in England, I've just finished devouring a pile of toast and a cup of tea... so let's get cracking!

 

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

A sporadically sunny Derbyshire, smack bang in the middle of England.  More specifically, in my bedroom, where I'll probably be alternating between my bed (comfy, lots of natural light) and my reading nook (because there should be less likelihood of me falling asleep for six hours there).

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to? 

 Ummmmm.  Well, I've picked out quite a hefty stack to choose from, because I know that if I finish a book at 3am it's important to have ALL THE CHOICES so I don't stall, but... maybe the Deric Longden book, A Play on Words?  It's been ages since I read one of his, and just the first page made me snort when I flipped through it, which always bodes well!
 

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to? 

I'm cooking a Goodfella's deep pan pepperoni 'n' pepper pizza later, which is always delicious.  And I bought peanut M'n'Ms.  And sometime tonight I'll probably have a giant bowl of Frosties and a YouTube break, because ALL THE SUGARY GOODNESS.  Oooh, oooh, and I bought Rocky Road bites!  All the snacks, basically.  ALL OF THEM. 

 

4) Tell us a little something about yourself! 

I never know what to say for this bit.  No wonder I'm so good at job interviews.  Ummmm.  My favourite ice cream is proper toffee fudge, with those little bits of soft toffee in it. I'm a total cat lady and will probably be joined by one or all of ours at some point today.  One of my favourite movies is Psycho and it worries my mum that I frequently describe Norman Bates as 'sweet'.  I love having houseplants and flowers in my room and have gotten quite good at not killing them.  IS THAT ENOUGH THINGS? 

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?

I didn't participate in the last readathon, I don't think, just because October's a bit of a squiffy time for me to be messing up my sleep (potential for SAD, existential despair, uncontrollable weeping etc).  It's definitely not my first rodeo though, so I'm just going with my usual set-up - setting my phone alarm to go off every hour, switching to juice and water and lighter snacks overnight so I don't mess up my stomach too badly, taking part in a few challenges, stalking around Instagram, MAYBE EVEN READING A BIT OMG.  Hopefully it'll go okay!

 

 

~ Hour 1 (2pm) ~
I've been reading:  The Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé
Pages read this hour:  27

Pages read altogether:  27

Mini challenges completed:  2 (including the intro meme)

The menu:  Nothing this hour!

In six words:  A lively and oddly charming start.

 

Thoughts:  I'd heard that this book was strangely warm and amusing, despite its bleak title, and so far I'm racing through it!  It's about a family running a suicide shop - everything you need to end your life right! - and their despair at their youngest son, the disgustingly sweet and cheerful Alan.  At the moment he's standing in a corner with sticking plaster over his mouth with a frown drawn on, so none of the customers can see that he's smiling underneath.  It just wouldn't be good for business, would it?!

 

MINI CHALLENGE: Our Bookish Childhood

Hosted by Readage: Snapshots from a Reading Life

 

For this challenge we have to share five books (and the experiences of reading them) from childhood!

 

1.  The moment I first learned to read silently, sitting on our big old green sofa with a copy of The Wishing Chair by Enid Blyton.

2.  Finally picking up Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, thinking it didn't sound like a book for me at all - then getting about four pages in and being hooked for life.

3.  First reading That Moment in Anne of Green Gables and sobbing my socks off for the first time over a beloved character dying.

4.  Cutting and pasting coloured circles in class to make our own versions of The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

5.  Reading Matilda for the first time and desperately wishing I could go to Miss Honey's cottage for tea and bread and jam too!

 

 

 

~ Hour 2 (3pm) ~
I've been reading:  The Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé

Pages read since my last update:  30

Pages read altogether:  57

Mini challenges completed:  2 (including the intro meme)

The menu:  Nothing again - I'm super thirsty though!

In six words:  MY MUM KEEPS INTERRUPTING ME.  GLEEFULLY.

 

Thoughts:  I'm sailing through the book at a good clip - the print's pretty big, and the story is quirky and blackly humorous, which always goes down well!  Now if only I could persuade my Mum that it isn't, in fact, hilarious to keep wandering in to look out the window and raid my snack stash every few minutes, I might really get going with this thing!  :)

 

  

 

~ Hour 3 (4pm) ~
I've been reading:  The Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé

Pages read since my last update:  33

Pages read altogether:  90

Mini challenges completed:  2 (including the intro meme)

The menu:  Mug of tea; Graze summer berry flapjack

In six words:  This book is a wonderful surprise!

 

 

 

~ Hour 4 (5pm) ~
I've been reading:  The Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé
Pages read since my last update:  35

Pages read altogether:  125

Mini challenges completed:  2 (including the intro meme)

The menu:  Nothing this hour - I'm starving now though.

In six words:  Broken out the eye drops already!

 

Thoughts:  Well!  I reckon I'll finish my book in the next hour, other stuff allowing.  I have to say, I suddenly had the most tired and aching eyes in this hour, I ALMOST put my head down to nap for a few minutes, just to lose the burn.  Then I remembered that I bought some eye drops recently, specifically for exactly this type of tired-eye burniness, and ALL WAS SAVED.  I'm now absolutely starving, so I'm going to wander off and stick a pizza in the oven I think.  Can't have a readathon without pizza!

 

 

I'll be starting a new post for the next four hours, so I'll see you there! 



March: What I Read

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis (4*) - FINALLY, I HAVE CONQUERED THE BEAST.  Yes, fifteen years after my teenage self combed through this book for 'good bits' and nearly lost her lunch, my adult self read it in its entirety and to her surprise, rather enjoyed herself!  This book is not going to be for everyone, or even for most people.  The eponymous Patrick Bateman's relentlessly monotonous cycle of brand names, outfit descriptions, expensive restaurants, pill-popping and bed-hopping will put many off before they even GET to the torture, murder, sadism and frenzied cannibalism - but actually, I ended up finding the repetitive detail quite soothing, and found that not only did this shallow everyday rhythm counter the (incredibly) graphic scenes beautifully, but it also allowed Bateman's black humour and moments of sudden wisdom and humanity to shine through with unexpected brightness.  I got quite fond of him by the end - like somehow as reader and character we had been through the wringer together, each inside the other's psyche - and I still can't quite work out how much of his narrative was 'real' or whether some interactions and moments were purely the product of his increasingly desperate mind.  Now I'm going to allow myself to revisit the (much tamer and more obviously funny) movie, and my mastery of this novel will finally be complete!

Little House in the Big Woods (Little House 1) by Laura Ingalls Wilder (4.5*) - I'm waaaay behind on Bex's 2016 Little House readalong, so this month I finally picked up the first book to get started - and it was wonderful.  Set in the early 1870s in Wisconsin, it's an autobiographical year in the life of four year-old Laura's pioneer family - Ma, Pa, Mary, Laura and baby Carrie - and their log cabin in the woods.  What really struck me was how connected the family is to its surroundings: how the shifting seasons are enjoyed; how the natural world is respected and seen as something to coexist with, not conquer; and how each meal, each foodstuff, each item for the house is carefully planned and created from scratch, often with help from Laura's wider family.  It's a wonderful antidote to modern living, with charming illustrations to add to the reading experience, and I loved every minute.  It's a rose-tinted tale to be sure, and it lost half a star for a couple of slightly muddled descriptions of the objects and processes Laura observed - but they were minor gripes.  Roll on book 2!

Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín (4*) - I'm not a massive reader of historical fiction, but when the film buzz first arose (with a bunch of my favourite actors attached to the project) it really whet my appetite for this one.  It's the story of a young Irish girl, Eilis, who travels from Enniscorthy to Brooklyn in the 1950s to start a new life full of expanded opportunities and interesting people.  The novel explores her growth from a timid girl to a poised young woman, and the way she is torn between her Irish roots and American lifestyle.  It's written in a slightly detached tone, and the ending was a bit too abrupt for me (albeit realistic), but I loved Eilis's journey and the many little details that brought her experiences to life, whether it was the rough crossing to New York, working in a department store, Christmas at the local parish hall, or spending the day at the beach with friends.  A compelling, subtle little novel that didn't rock my world, but made me very glad I picked it up and gave it a chance.  Just one word of warning - don't (re)watch the movie trailer if you plan to read it; it spoils (and therefore ruins) one of the most important plot points of the whole novel!

P.S. I watched the movie last night and it was BEAUTIFUL.  The music is to die for, it streamlines some of the fussier strands of the original, and the slight air of detachment in the novel gives way to a deeply emotional screen adaptation that ends on a perfect note.  My only issues with it were that some of the key characters lacked the depth and spark they had on the page, and it skipped over most of the novel's romantic scenes that served to heighten the stakes in Eilis's dual lives and make the necessity to choose between them all the more poignant.


Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (4*) - Yup, I finally read it - which is good, because I was starting to feel like the last person in the universe to pick it up, and it's been on my shelves for TWO AND A HALF YEARS already.  I didn't like it as much as Attachments, but I appreciated the slow-building and refreshingly joyful nature of the relationship between Cath and Levi, and I loved Reagan's sass and Mr Avery's dry wit (I was imagining him as Stanley Tucci all the way through!).  The focus on the Simon Snow fandom brought back some great Potter memories, and given my Carry On purchase last week it's probably a good thing that I preferred Cath's fanfiction to the 'real' Simon book excerpts peppered through the novel.  Overall I think it was maybe a little longer than it needed to be, but it finally succeeded where Anna and the French Kiss (and others) failed for me - it's a fun, bookish college novel full of interesting and multifaceted characters and different types of relationships and issues, and has a self-awareness and charm that help to excuse its more clichéd moments.  Bring on the next Rainbow! 


It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini (5*) - This book's been on my radar for the longest time (you know how much I love a good mental health novel) and HOORAY, it was so worth the wait!  First of all, let me say that it's quite refreshing to read one of these stories from the perspective of an average guy; not a painfully innocent or shy boy, or a kooky girl, but a regular, testosterone-driven, vaguely worldly fifteen year-old who likes video games, pot and jerking off.  Craig's description of his five days in a mental hospital, which he checks himself into after a long battle with depression and a night of suicidal crisis - is not only pithy, warm and very realistic (it is drawn from Vizzini's own experiences), it is also, as the title suggest, really kind of funny.  It's filled with wonderful characters and it's possibly the most relatable mental health novel I've read yet; I've scrawled so many notes and hearts and stars in the margin to mark passages to go back to next time I need to feel that I'm not alone and that other people have had the same weird thoughts as I'm having.  I also watched the movie adaptation, which is quite faithful to the book and put a big smile on my face by the time the credits rolled.  Highly recommended!

Gold by Dan Rhodes (4*) - This is an odd little book.  Nothing much happens, and yet it completely won my heart back in 2009 with its mixture of small-town characters, gentle charm and earthy British flavour.  It opens with three friends - short Mr Hughes, tall Mr Hughes and Mr Puw - chatting idly in their local pub.  Septic Barry is sitting across the room with his band, and Mr Edwards is pulling pints behind the bar.  All is as it should be.  And then a Japanese-looking girl walks in, orders a pint and sits down in the corner.  "Welcome back," everyone says.  But who is she?  Every year she arrives in this little Welsh coastal town and stays for a fortnight, alone, walking and drinking and reading.  Why is she here?  The book meanders through each day of her stay, adding little by little to the quirky tapestry of the town and the people in it as their stories unfold, and reaching deeper into Miyuki's life back home.  It's funny and delightful and strangely beautiful, and I loved reconnecting with it - and its sweetheart of a protagonist - all over again!

Biblioholism: The Literary Addiction by Tom Raabe (4.5*) - Another reread for me - and one I would wholeheartedly recommend to a large swathe of my fellow book lovers, be they LibraryThingers, GoodReaders, bloggers, BookTubers or just die-hard lifelong readers.  It could have been written for us - or by us, for that matter!  In short, this is a comprehensive guide to biblioholism and all the various quirky traits and habits that go along with it.  It is evident that Raabe is 'one of us' and he drives right to the heart of our affliction with humour and insight.  Alongside chapters on book buying, reading, collecting and storage, he also includes a hilarious alternative history of the book and a section on the extremes of bookish behaviour - eating books, stealing them, burying them and even destroying them.  With a wealth of interesting and amusing examples of biblioholic behaviour drawn from literature and history, this is a definite keeper for me - and I was delighted to find that when it came to the self-help-esque quiz (just how bad DO you have it?) I had actually increased my score a few points since my last reading; I can now rest assured that I'm still on my chosen path to eventually dying happily under a collapsed bookcase.  Good to know.  :)

 

 

Aaaaand that was my March...  Hope you all enjoyed your reading this month too!

A long-overdue EIGHT mini-reviews

It's time for a mega mini-review catch-up!  I think that I'm now up to date with everything I've read up to the end of February, so... shall we get started?

The Pearl by John Steinbeck (4*) - It's been a while since I read this, and honestly I think it will be quite forgettable in the long run - but I obviously really enjoyed it at the time, hence the four-star rating!  A kind of fable about greed, materialism and envy built around the discovery of a great pearl by a poor Mexican freediver, it's short, folksy, lyrical and poignant, and I very much enjoyed the musicality and dreamlike feeling of the reading experience.  Not necessarily one I'd rush to read again, but quite beautiful!

 

Give a Boy a Gun by Todd Strasser (3.5*) - This is essentially a novel for young teens about bullying and gun violence, in particular the school shooting phenomenon. Its moral is perhaps a little simplistic and obvious to an adult, especially so long after it was first written, but the evolution of the two boys at the centre of the story has played itself out so many times in the intervening years that it still rings all too true. It's clear that the novel has used genuine incidents to formulate the story, with Strasser including footnotes to show where specific details echo real-life cases. If this makes even one kid stop and think differently about how they treat others around them, then that's got to be worth something.

 

The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet by Dr Michael Mosley - I can't really rate this one yet, and it's very unusual for me to read anything like this - but diet book, yaaaaay! I've put on weight since my last mega-depression, and with my family history of diabetes, high cholesterol, heart problems and all kinds of other ticking time bombs, I thought this would be worth a try! Michael Mosley is known here in the UK for his well-researched, well-presented TV health documentaries, which time and time again have thrown things into new perspectives and flipped over decades-old received wisdom, so I have high hopes. The book itself is made up of a swathe of detail about Type 2 diabetes (which this diet has been proven to actually reverse), blood sugar, the Mediterranean diet and the science behind the resurgence of the VLCD (very low calorie diet).  All very interesting and persuasive.  The last section is all recipes, most of which I didn't like the look of - but I HAVE started the diet, using my own menu made up from the same foods and principles, and it's going well so far, cake cravings aside!

 

A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby (4*) - This was one of the longest-standing books on my TBR, and I'm SO GLAD I finally read it.  It's about four very different strangers who meet on top of a tall building on New Year's Eve, each planning to jump off - only they don't.  Instead, they grudgingly head back down the stairs together, and after a rocky night, end up making a pact to stay alive until Valentine's Day and see how things go.  I loved the four voices - disgraced TV presenter Martin, downtrodden Maureen, madcap young Jess and musician JJ (he was my favourite) - and the way this single shared experience unites them, separates them, brings them meaning but also trouble, creates opportunities but also slams doors.  It was real and blackly humorous and strangely uplifting and I can't wait to read my next Nick Hornby novel!

 

 

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Napoleon by Gideon Defoe (3*) - The fourth in the humorous Pirates! series, this one actually doesn't involved that much pirating.  After humiliation at the annual Pirate Awards, the Pirate Captain (with his luxuriant beard and pleasant, open face) has decided to retire - only his tropical island of choice actually turns out to be a bleak goat-riddled chunk of rock, and he'll be sharing the hearts of the local townspeople with none other than Napoleon Bonaparte.  Bring on the clash of the egos!  Funny, slightly surreal, and heralding the return of all my favourite pirates including Jennifer (former Victorian lady) and the long-suffering pirate with a scarf.  A fun way to while away an afternoon!

 

 

Plain and Simple: A Woman's Journey to the Amish by Sue Bender (4*) - Reading this slim little volume was like sitting down in your favourite armchair with a hot cup of tea at the end of a long day: soothing, comforting and deliciously peaceful.  Built around Bender's fascination with Amish quilts, this is the story of how her interest became a full-fledged quest for a better and calmer life.  Bender went to stay with two different Amish families over the course of a few years, and tried to use her experiences in their communities to pinpoint what was missing from her life and reframe it in a way that balanced Amish values with modern American living.  Unexpectedly relatable, interesting and quite lovely.

 

An Age of License: A Travelogue by Lucy Knisley (4*) - This was my third Lucy Knisley book (after Relish and French Milk) and despite the lack of all-out foodie emphasis this time, it was definitely my favourite of the three.  This time Knisley documents her trip around Europe promoting her books, meeting up with old friends and enjoying her three loves - comics, food and culture.  There's a dash of romance and a cheerful appearance from Knisley's lovely mother, and the overall tone is light and welcoming; she's mercifully lost that whining self-pity that made French Milk so much less appealing than it should have been.  Definitely a keeper!

 

Breathing Room by Marsha Hayles (4.5*) - I picked this up on Amazon when it happened to pop up in my recommendations at the same time as one of those sudden 'last copy of the current stock' price drops.  I had never heard of it before and had no idea what to expect - but I'm glad I took a chance!  It's a YA novel set in a Minnesota TB sanatorium in 1940, and is told from the perspective of Evelyn, a 13 year-old new arrival on the girls' ward.  Although it's undoubtedly sanitised for younger readers, there are some genuinely shocking moments alongside the friendships, intrigues, medical interventions and the relentless strict monotony of the sanatorium routine.  Whenever I started to forget, something drew my attention back to the fact that these patients were literally fighting for their lives, every single day.  I cried several times, and learned a lot both from the novel itself and from the historical images, background information and research details that Hayles includes in the book.  A well-written little gem.

 

 

Aaaaand that's me all caught up, finally!

Bout of Books 15: Saturday

Ugh.  Another night where I just couldn't get comfy enough to drift off to sleep...  I ended up having a lie-in until about 10am this morning, despite my alarm being set for 7am so I could get up and do something useful, but... c'est la vie.  It's more important that I get enough sleep at this time of year, potential for seasonal depression and all, so I'm never too worried about what time that sleep happens as long as it does.  Aaaaaanyway, I'm up now, so ON WITH THE READATHON!

~ SATURDAY ~

Books I've read from:  Zoo by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge; The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens

Pages read today:  132

Books finished today:  None

Running total:  2 books; 690 pages 

The menu: Blueberry muffin, mixed tinned fruit and coffee; sweet tea; buttered toast with orange and ginger marmalade; apple; Graze 'chocolate pudding' punnet (sultanas, jumbo raisins and chocolate chips); my stepdad's amazing kedgeree with smoked fish, boiled egg, rice, peas and herbs; cocoa puffs with sultanas; vanilla rooibos tea

Today #insixwords:  'Ellie and Charles Dickens: The Reunion'

10:30am:  We begin the day, naturellement, WITHOUT the call of the laptop but WITH the readathon breakfast of champions: blueberry muffin, fruity goodness, and a small bucket of coffee.  I'm diving straight back into Zoo this morning, because I'm intrigued and worried and puzzled and I'm not quiiiiite sure what's happening.  The sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach (as well as the hefty remaining page count) is telling me that the animal-human conflict is probably going to get a lot worse before it gets better.  Always a good draw to keep turning those pages!

1:30pm:  Oooooh, things are getting really scary in Zoo!  I'm still reading, over a lunch of buttered toast with orange and ginger marmalade (my favourite), an apple and more coffee.  Our protagonist Oz, a young biologist, and his new friend Chloe have just returned from their scary trip to Botswana and are now up against government red tape, disbelieving officials and the awful possibility that the change in animal behaviour may have made it to the US.  Properly, not just the odd isolated incident.  What I like about this book so far is that it combines the best of all elements of a biothriller - intelligent theories, interesting characters, overarching menace and just enough shocking moments to remind the reader that the situation isn't just bad, it's outright terrifying.

4:30pm:  STOP THE PRESSES.  I HAVE BEEN FOR A WALK.  Yes, this IS news, in my world anyway.  Regular readers of this blog and people I've known from days of yore may remember that I left university due to crippling levels of agoraphobia which left me completely housebound.  Obviously things are not at that point any more - I don't have a panic attack every time I go outside - but I've noticed that over recent months I've been deteriorating again to the point where I only really leave the house to hop in the car and visit my sister, or go to Tesco or to the doctor's surgery for my prescriptions.  Even then it's not always voluntary.  It's not good.  My world has narrowed to my room again, and if I'm not careful it will stay that way.  And obviously, this has health implications for everything else too, including my weight, my cholesterol, my bad hip, my sleep patterns, my IBS, my potential for depression... EVERYTHING.

So, I decided to go for a walk.  Just one, little, fifteen-minute, round-the-block walk.  Even then I had to psych myself up for a few minutes first, and I thought about putting it off 'until another day' because it was raining a bit.  BUT I WENT.  Without my phone, but with my camera, because some of my favourite photos that I've ever taken have been a result of happening to have my camera in my pocket at the right moment.  Gently, at a relaxed pace, just enjoying the breeze on my face and the scent of damp trees and earth, for the first time in MONTHS.  I have a bit of a headache now (cold wind whistling in my ears, it's been getting me like this since I was a kid), and I think my dicky hip will feel the sudden switch from 'sitting still' to 'striding purposefully up and down hills', but... I went.  One step at a time, right?


8:45pm: Another readathon day draws to a close... I've kind of faltered a bit with Zoo as the day's worn on (I'm wondering if the title should actually be ZOO, as it's a government acronym in the book now, but whatever), but I HAVE spent a few sweet minutes diving back into the first chapter of The Pickwick Papers.  Back in 2014 there was a readalong of this book going on, which I was really enjoying.  Unfortunately everyone else, including the host (*eyes Bex sternly*) was bored stiff, and the whole thing fell apart.  After several months of it just sitting there on my bookshelf, I pulled the bookmark on it, and I've decided to start again from the beginning.  This time I'll read one or two chapters a week instead of cramming a ton of them in there (all the better to appreciate the humour and the many stories-within-the-story), PLUS I won't have a blog feed full of weekly doses of hatred for it this time around.  So hopefully it'll be a more positive reading experience all round!

Aaaanyway, I read the first little chapter - reintroducing myself to the key four Pickwickians: honourable Mr Pickwick, romantic Mr Tupman, sporting Mr Winkle and poetic Mr Snodgrass - and now I'm going to turn the laptop off (as per the rules of a digital sundown, which I'm trying in an attempt to counter my ongoing inability to get to sleep at night), read a bit, maybe do some colouring in the fancy Secret Garden artist edition thingy my sister bought me for Christmas?  One more day left, fellow readers!  UNTIL TOMORROW!


Quote of the day:  "Turns out an apocalypse actually comes on pretty slowly.  Not fire and brimstone but rust and dandelions.  Not a bang but a whimper."
- from Zoo by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge


CHALLENGE: COMFY READING SPOT
Hosted by Once Upon a Chapter

I have two comfy reading spots, kinda.  The most obvious one is, of course, my library corner.  It's got a bright light and books and lots of cushions - including my two new ones, based on Psycho and Beauty and the Beast (the Gemini in me is strong - Disney and death, that's the best way).  HOWEVER, the Ikea chair is not as comfy as it appeared in the store - it tips me backwards so my head's at the wrong angle to read, and it pulls on my bad hip - so I don't sit there often at the moment.  I might have to admit defeat and buy a new chair sometime soon.  Maybe a Poang one from Ikea?

 

My favoured reading spot at the moment is on my bed.  See the picture of my library above?  Well, on the left hand side there's another set of Kallax cubes, forming the last part of a square 'U' shape of shelving.  On the other side of THAT is my bed.  The library side of the shelves are filled with more books, and the bed side houses some of my DVDs, my sunrise alarm clock lamp radio thingy, my current reads and a heap of backlogged Graze boxes.  I have more cushions, my 'Bee Happy' canvas from our local honey farm, plus lots of natural light from the big window.  Also it's nearer the radiator, which comes in quite handy at this time of year.  :)

 

Just a few more hours of the readathon to go... 

DOUBLE REVIEW: Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson (5*)

~ THE BOOK ~

Published by Hodder Children's Books, 2008.

As I mentioned in my March reading wrap-up, this was actually a reread for me.  I first read this book at the age of perhaps 11 or 12, and really didn't understand what all the fuss was about.  Why?  Well, I'd only been at secondary school for about ten minutes, had no knowledge of sexual violence, and thus didn't really appreciate the level of 'reading between the lines' that is required in order to catapult this book up to greatness.

This time around I absolutely loved it!  On the surface it is the story of Melinda Sordino, a thirteen year-old girl starting high school for the first time.  Unfortunately, Melinda has recently alienated her entire group of best friends - amongst others - by calling the police from a party over the summer.  What her ex-friends don't know is why she called the police: she was raped at the party by the hottest boy in school.  Which brings us to what's going on under the surface - because this isn't just some flighty Mean Girls novel about an unpopular girl in high school.  It's really about a young woman slowly healing after a terrible experience, finding her voice, discovering her own strength, and finally being able to speak out about what happened to her.  And what a beautifully evoked journey it is...

Not only is the writing deceptively simple and frequently gorgeous, but what really surprised me was how much humour runs through this book!  I didn't remember that at all from my first reading, so I was delighted to discover that Anderson has a marvellous knack of combining sparkling wit with troubling themes to offer a reading experience that has it all - it's funny but truthful, sarcastic but airy, tongue-in-cheek but very moving.

One thing I absolutely loved was the idea of art as therapy.  Early in the book, Melinda's unconventional and completely awesome art teacher allocates each student an object that will form the basis of their work that year, across as many media and styles as they care to try.  Melinda's object is 'tree'.  Not only does this offer a metaphor for Melinda's personal growth, strength and return to life as the novel goes on, but her artistic efforts, and Mr Freeman's enthusiastic mentoring, become the means for her to learn self-expression and explore her feelings in new ways.  She keeps her work in a deserted janitor's closet (like a mini staffroom), which she cleans, personalises and adapts into her own little sanctuary.

I think these elements of the novel particularly struck a chord with me because I, albeit for different reasons, found similar refuge within my school environment as a teenager.  Like Mr Freeman's art room, ours was light, bustling, relaxed, and always open to students during breaks and lunchtimes.  I'd tag along with friends who were taking art and spend time doing homework, eating lunch, singing along to the radio, and ogling my crush, a shy boy from the year above who was also a proficient artist and could usually be found hiding away in the art room with his best friend.  My 'janitor's closet' was an upstairs classroom, my Mr Freeman a history teacher who would quietly unlock the door for me and unceremoniously throw out any rowdier groups who dared to invade by pretending I was in detention!  Like Melinda, I found that having somewhere peaceful to go made school more bearable.

In conclusion, this is a truly fantastic novel.  Despite being published fifteen years ago (so around the time I first read it, rather scarily), it still has a wonderful blend of humour and truth, a school setting that is still relatable now, and a strong and inspiring message about sexual violence, self-expression, and having the confidence to speak UP and speak OUT against people who have hurt us and experiences no one should have to endure alone.  This is definitely a story that will stick with me this time around - I may even buy my own copy to keep - and I can't wait to read Wintergirls, which is already installed on my TBR shelves!

Notable Quotables:

• "Art without emotion is like chocolate cake without sugar.  It makes you gag...  The next time you work on your trees, don't think about trees.  Think about love, or hate, or joy, or rage - whatever makes you feel something, makes your palms sweat or your toes curl.  Focus on that feeling."
• "I try to read while eating alone, but the noise gets between my eyes and the page I can't see through it."
• "People say that winter lasts forever, but it's because they obsess over the thermometer.  North in the mountains, the maple syrup is trickling.  Brave geese punch through the thin ice left on the lake.  Underground, pale seeds roll over in their sleep.  Starting to get restless.  Starting to dream green."
• "I crouch by the trunk, my fingers stroking the bark, seeking a Braille code, a clue, a message on how to come back to life after my long undersnow dormancy.  I have survived.  I am here.  Confused, screwed up, but here.  So, how can I find my way?...  I dig my fingers into the dirt and squeeze.  A small, clean part of me waits to warm and burst through the surface.  Some quiet Melindagirl I haven't seen in months.  That is the seed I will care for."

Source: I borrowed this book from my local library. 

~ THE MOVIE (4.5*) ~

Starring Kristen Stewart and Steve Zahn. Directed by Jessica Sharzer, 2004.

I wanted to give a quick shout-out to the excellent TV movie, which I watched the day I finished the book.  It stars Kristen Stewart as Melinda and (sorry Stewart-bashers) she's really great!  It's a pretty faithful adaptation - a couple of detail tweaks, a little less friendship-drama and a slightly altered ending to her year as Mr Freeman's art student aside, it's spot on.  Everything is beautifully played, from the giddiness of the party to the horror of rape, from the trauma of Melinda having to be around her attacker in the school environment to the slow process of self-expression in her art class.

 

I think my absolute favourite scene is between Melinda and Mr Freeman (played by Steve 'This place is a tomb... I'm going to The Nut Shop where it's fun!' Zahn, aka George from You've Got Mail) at the end of the school year.  Unlike in the book, Mr Freeman leaves at the end of the movie, just not suited to following the no-radio no-freedom no-fun rules of the school board.  To show him what a difference he's really made, Melinda takes him into her janitor's closet, which is now FULL of her art.  All kinds of trees, studies of leaves, paintings, a sculpture and the most beautiful Picasso-esque chalk drawing.  It's basically Melinda's entire emotional journey, and he can only look around in wonder, tears in his eyes, while she watches shyly.  It's a beautiful moment, perfect and simple, and I'm not ashamed to admit that I had tears running down my face by the end.

 

 

Anyway, if you like the book, watch it.  It's hard to find on DVD here in the UK, but you can watch it on YouTube or elsewhere online quite easily.  Highly recommended - I might even cough up for the DVD now!