Sunday, June 07, 2009

48 Hour Book Challenge Wrap-Up

Time Stats

Total reading time: 18:26:49
Total blogging time (including this post): 4:57:42
Total networking time: 1:28:28

For a total time of: 24 hours, 52 minutes, 59 seconds

WHOA.

Some other statistics

Books finished: 13
Books given up on: 1
Books I will continue: 2 (one on audio which is my bribe for exercising and one that I wouldn't have finished in time but definitely will finish later)
Pages read: 3588 (plus however many that audiobook counted for)

My experience

Much more fun this year than last year. I better enjoyed more of the books. I did a few things differently. One, I gave myself a much broader range to choose from and only chose books I was excited about, and two, I paced myself--exercised, went outside, cooked, etc, in between books. Plus, thanks to MotherReader adding the networking option, I made a point of checking out 48hbc hashtags on twitter and visiting some new-to-me blogs from her Mr. Linky starting line post. It didn't feel quite so solitary.

I used a stopwatch system (which is why all my times are down to the second) and a spreadsheet to add it all up, and was surprised at my reading pace. I've always known I read fast, but had no idea how fast. This morning, I woke up and reached for my iPod (I'd been reading some non-48hbc Twitters on it before I went to sleep) and realized that at some point during the night, I'd turned it on and started the stopwatch function running. What did I think I was timing?

I read a lot of dark and depressing things, but after I read two in a row to start and wound up possibly liking the second less than I would have under other circumstances, I tried to alternate light-hearted and serious.

Finally, I'm really happy that I chose the Greater Good option. Something like this is always kind of fun, but it feels even better knowing that your energy is going to help others. Since part of my donation is dependent on comments, I'm not going to tally that up until Monday night, in order to let them accrue a few more.

Thanks once again for another great 48-Hour Book Challenge, MotherReader, and I'll be here with books next year!

ETA: to correct the number of books. Ooops.

8 comments:

Trisha said...

Ah, I was wondering how you were able to include seconds in your updates.

This is my first year doing the challenge, but I agree about the networking time. I also am checking out the blogs and tweets of other participants, and it's making the whole thing more enjoyable.

Tammy said...

Love your blog and your reviews!
I've added a few new books to my long list of must reads based on your reviews-thank you!

MotherReader said...

I was really happy with the networking addition too as I didn't feel so isolated in the challenge and it kept me going. Having that Greater Good option also keeps you pushing yourself.

BTW, I laughed when I saw the seconds noted. Excellent.

Stephanie said...

3588 pages!!! WOW! :-)

Dreadful Penny said...

Great totals! Wow. I like the idea of a stopwatch and spreadsheet tracking system... I got frustrated with my scraps of paper and started to get whiplash from looking at the clock so much.

Jen Robinson said...

Glad that the challenge went so well for you this year, Maureen! That's a lot of books read in 24 hours, too. Quite impressive.

Ms. Yingling said...

It was fun to have the option to visit other blogs. I tried to hit as many as I could. Glad you enjoyed yourself-- just pick some happier books for next year!

Natasha @ Maw Books said...

I was wondering too how you got it down to the second. Fantastic job!