Read-A-Thon (October): Wrap Up, Fundraising, and Book Giveaway

The Read-A-Thon wrapped up this morning at 5:00AM and I was sound asleep! I went to bed around 1:30AM (during hour 21) after participating for 18.5 hours (my down time was 1.75 hours and was mostly eating, showering and about a half hour of watching television). My informal goals were to read 500 pages (I surpassed this) and participate for 20 hours. This event – as always – ran smoothly with Dewey at the helm supported by her fabulous helpers:

Veena went around reminding people who signed up that the read-a-thon was this weekend.

Nymeth, a co-host. She was in charge of posts the last six hours of the event. She also helped Veena remind everyone about when the read-a-thon would happen.

Hannah, a co-host, and on duty the second six hours and the last six hours. Those last six hours were the middle of the night for her! Wow, that’s dedication!  She moderated comments when Dewey was napping. She also took on the daunting task of keeping track of all the prizes and prize donors. And kept track of who won which prizes, as well as matching winners up with donors.

Trish, another co-host, and on duty during the middle twelve hours. She also kept track of all the cheerleaders, their mini-challenges and their prizes for their mini-challenges.

Aerin created the site where feeds to all participants can be found, as well as lists of Readers and Cheerleaders and other pertinent information.

The cheerleaders were also fantastic. Their role, making the rounds to encourage the readers, is so important. THANK YOU!

Dewey has asked that we answer a few questions:

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? Definitely hours 19 and 20 because I was getting tired and my brain was struggling. I also had a bit of a brain muddle during hour 7…but I took a walk outside and that perked me up.

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? I read Testimony by Anita Shreve which held my interest; and I also read Tomato Girl, by Jayne Pupek…another fast paced book. I had collections of short stories to read, but never actually got to them.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? None at all. It was GREAT!

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? I liked how everything came out of one central blog even when another person (other than Dewey) was hosting. It made it easy to get updates on each hour.

5. How many books did you read? I finished 2

6. What were the names of the books you read? Testimony by Anita Shreve AND Tomato Girl, by Jayne Pupek

7. Which book did you enjoy most? They were both good – but I’d give the edge to Testimony

8. Which did you enjoy least? *laughs* I guess that would be Tomato Girl…but not because it isn’t a good book (it is!), but because it is a DARK book.

9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? N/A

10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? Oh, I’m sure I’ll do it again! I like being a reader.

******************************

Final Stats (or see it in a Google spreadsheet)

• Books Read:
  • Testimony, by Anita Shreve (read my review)
  • Tomato Girl, by Jayne Pupek
• Total pages read in the challenge: 603
• Total amount of time spent reading in the challenge: 635 minutes (10.6 hours)
• Mini-Challenges completed:
  1. Intro during Hour 1
  2. Free-Rice.com with donation of 500 grains
  3. Meryl’s quote
  4. Freerice.com with donation of 1000 grains
  5. Name that Book Cover
  6. Walkin’ and Snappin’
  7. Mid-Event Survey
  8. The Very Mini-Library Cat Challenge
  9. Top Ten List
  10. Photo Caption
• Total amount of time spent blogging: 365 minutes (6.1 hours)
• Time spent visiting other people’s blogs (and number of comments left): 115 minutes (1.9 hours) and 25 comments
• Down Time: 105 minutes (1.75 hours)
• Amount of Participation Time (less down time): 18.5 hours
• Prizes Won:
  • I won a book for the Walkin’ and Snappin’ Challenge!
  • I won 2 books for the Hour 20 Reader of the Hour drawing!

Read my posts about:

• Triple Creek Ranch and How to Sponsor Me
• Horses Helping Humans
• What the Heck IS Hippotherapy?
• Therapeutic Horseback Riding

I also offered a book giveaway as part of my fundraising efforts. My husband drew a name this morning and the winner of a hardcover copy of The Emperor’s Children, by Claire Messud is:

LAURA from Musings

Congratulations, Laura! I’ll be mailing your book this week.

*****************************

THANK YOU to all who made this such a successful event!