By the NumbersSeptember/October 2016

Number of books read: 18.

Fiction: 11.
Non-fiction: 7.

Audiobooks: 10.

On the Kindle: 2.
(One of these I own, and I borrowed the other from the public library.)

Number of books read with "Natalie's Book Club": 1.
(Ruta Sepetys' Salt to the Sea ‐ which we loved ‐ was our September read. In October, the pick was Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In, which I'd previously read.)

Books by male authors: 5.
Books by female authors: 13.

5-star rating: 2.
4-star rating: 7.
3-star rating: 8.
2-star rating: 1.

Cumulative number of books read year-to-date: 80.
(My goal is to read a total of 104 books in 2016, so I've to got to read 24 more books before year-end. That's a lot ‐ but I remain hopeful!)


How is your 2016 reading adding up?

By the NumbersJuly/August 2016

Number of books read: 13.

Fiction: 12.
Non-fiction: 1.

Audiobooks: 5.
(Four of these I "read" during my commute, and the other one I "read" on my iPod as incentive to exercise.)

On the Kindle: 8.
(Two of these I had purchased, and the other six I borrowed from the public library.)

Number of books read with "Natalie's Book Club": 2.
(Both Fahrenheit 451 and Just Mercy gave us lots to discuss!)

Books by male authors: 4.
Books by female authors: 9.

New-to-me authors: 6.

5-star rating: 1.
4-star rating: 8.
3-star rating: 3.
2-star rating: 1.

Cumulative number of books read year-to-date: 62.
(My goal is to read a total of 104 books in 2016, so I'm currently seven books behind schedule.)


How is your 2016 reading adding up?

Utah Book WeekAugust 22 - 28, 2016

For posts about all things bookish in Utah, visit Utah Books and @UtahBooks on Twitter - and join in the fun with the Instagram Challenge.

#UtahBooks #Stack
Just a few of the books currently on my to-read list!

By the NumbersMay/June 2016

Number of books read: 14.

Fiction: 12.
Non-fiction: 2.

Audiobooks: 7.
(Four of these I "read" via CD during my commuting time. The other three were e-audiobooks, two of which I borrowed from the county library and "read" on my iPod as incentive to exercise and the other of which I "read" via Audible.)

On the Kindle: 4.

Number of books read with "Natalie's Book Club": 2.

Books by male authors: 0.
Books by female authors: 14.

5-star rating: 3.
4-star rating: 5.
3-star rating: 4.
2-star rating: 2.

Cumulative number of books read year-to-date: 49.
(My goal is to read a total of 104 books in 2016, so I'm currently three books behind schedule.)


How is your 2016 reading adding up?

By the NumbersMarch/April 2016

Number of books read: 23.

Fiction: 16.
Non-fiction: 7.

Picture books: 4.

Audiobooks: 7.
(Four of these I "read" via CD during my commuting time. The other three were e-audiobooks: I borrowed Identical from the county library and "read" on my iPod as incentive to exercise; I borrowed Off the Page from the library via One Click Digital and listened to much of it in the mornings while getting ready for the day; and The Master Magician was my first "read" via Audible, purchased to complement the Kindle book.)

On the Kindle: 10.
(I purchased seven of these, including Off the Page and The Master Magician, to which I also listened to e-audiobook versions. I borrowed the other three from the county library.)

Number of books read during Dewey's 24-Hour Read-a-Thon: 9.

Number of books read as part of a book launch team: 1.
(I hadn't heard of Alexandra Kuykendall when her new release Loving My Actual Life came onto my radar screen - but it was perfect for this year when my One Little Word is YES and I am so glad I was able to be part of the launch team.)

Books by male authors: 8.
Books by female authors: 15.

5-star rating: 1.
4-star rating: 15.
3-star rating: 5.
2-star rating: 2.

Cumulative number of books read year-to-date: 35.
(My goal is to read a total of 104 books in 2016, so — thanks to the read-a-thon — I'm actually one book ahead of schedule. At least for the moment.)


How is your 2016 reading adding up?

Elapsed Time 18:00

Progress Report
Time Reading: 10:30

Pages Read: 592. (That's about 56 pages an hour.)

Books Finished: 3. (Helen of Pasadena by Lian Dolan, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Future by Michael J. Fox, and Summerlost by Ally Condie.)

Time on Social Media: 3:00 (I'm @utahalison on both Instagram and Twitter.)

Time Napping or Otherwise On Break: 4:30

Frame of Mind: It's definitely past my normal bedtime, but I'm hoping for more of a feeling of success before I call it quits. I've changed into pajamas, but I still have my contact lenses in. I'm feeling a bit melancholy about the whole day.

Cans of Diet Coke with Lime Consumed: 4 1/2.

Food Consumed: Pretzel Crisps. Oatmeal with walnuts and brown sugar. Leftover steak and baked potato from Texas Roadhouse. Crab cakes. Red Vines. Steak enchilada with rice and beans from Cafe Rio.

Elapsed Time 13:00

Progress Report
Time Read: 6:30

Pages Read: 290. (That's about 45 pages per hour.)

Books Finished: 1. (Helen of Pasadena by Lian Dolan.)

Time on Social Media: 2:00 (I'm @utahalison on both Twitter and Instagram.)

Time Napping or Otherwise On Break: 4:30

Frame of Mind: I've been much more tired than I hoped to be - but I guess the long workdays over the past two weeks have taken a toll. I'm hoping to pick up the reading pace in the second half of the read-a-thon!

Cans of Diet Coke with Lime Consumed: 4.

Food Consumed: Pretzel Crisps. Oatmeal with walnuts and brown sugar. Leftover steak and baked potato from Texas Roadhouse. Crab cakes.

Elapsed Time 6:00

Progress Report
Time Reading: 3:30

Pages Read: 157. (I am a little more than half done with Helen of Pasadena by Lian Dolan.)

Books Finished: None yet.

Time on Social Media: 1:00 (I'm @utahalison on both Twitter and Instagram.)

Time Napping or Otherwise On Break: 1:30

Frame of Mind: I was feeling quite sleepy a while ago, so I didn't fight it and just went ahead and had a nap - likely the first of several.

Cans of Diet Coke with Lime Consumed: 2.

Food Consumed: Pretzel Crisps. Oatmeal with walnuts and brown sugar.

Intro Meme

What fine part of the world are you reading from today?
The suburbs of Salt Lake City, Utah.

Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?
I've got so many options, but let's go with Summerlost by Ally Condie.

Which snack are you most looking forward to?
Crab cakes. Red Vines. Pretzel Crisps.

Tell us a little something about yourself!
Although I work with numbers, I love words! I learned to read with Dick and Jane when I was six years old, and I've not stopped since. I participated in the very first Dewey's Read-a-Thon in 2007, and this is my twelfth - although it's been a couple of years since I've been able to join the fun. I am @utahalison on Instagram and on Twitter, and I'm alisonwonderland on goodreads.

If you participated in a previous read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today?
My strategy today is to keep changing things up - book choices, reading locations, snacks, and reading mediums - to help me keep the read-a-thon momentum going!

My Read-a-Thon Pile

For me, half the fun of any upcoming event is the planning! Planning my to-read pile for Dewey's Read-a-Thon is no exception. Here are the forty-two books I collected for today's festivities - twenty-one on my Kindle, eighteen from my county library, and three (just three!) traditional books from my personal collection.

I won't get through all of these, of course. (My lofty goal is one-third - including the five picture books.) But like I said, half the fun is in the planning!

Elapsed Time 0:00

Here We Go!
It's still dark, early on a Saturday morning, and yet I'm awake. It must be Dewey's Read-a-Thon!

I participated in the first Dewey's Read-a-Thon in October 2007 and in many of those since. In fact, this is my twelfth read-a-thon - and I'm looking forward to a great day of books. Good luck to the other read-a-thon participants, and a big thanks to the hosts, the cheerleaders, and all the other helpers! Happy reading!

If you're just stopping by and want to know more about what's happening, check out the read-a-thon blog or Twitter.

The Read-a-Thon is Tomorrow!

For the first time since October 2013, I'm going to read-a-thon! This is my twelfth Dewey's Read-a-Thon - and I was among the small group of participants in the very first one in October 2007.

Follow my progress here and on Instagram (@utahalison) and on Twitter (@utahalison) and on goodreads (alisonwonderland)!

Happy reading!

By the NumbersJanuary/February 2016

Number of books read: 12.
(My goal is to read a total of 104 books in 2016, so I'm about five books behind schedule.)

Fiction: 8.
Non-fiction: 4.

Audiobooks: 6.
(Four of these I "read" via CD during my commuting time. The other two were e-audiobooks, which I borrowed from the county library and "read" on my iPod, mostly as incentive to exercise.)

On the Kindle: 5.
(I purchased three of these. I borrowed the other two from the county library.)

Books by male authors: 4.
Books by female authors: 8.

4-star rating: 8.
3-star rating: 4.


How is your 2016 reading adding up?

February Read-Along: Little Women

For several reasons, I'm saying "YES" to a February read-along of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women!

Hosted by Suey, Jenni, and Kami, the schedule is as follows:

Chapters 1-17 - February 1-10
Chapters 18-33 - February 11-19
Chapters 34-49 - February 20-29

The hashtag for discussion will be #LittleWomenRAL.

I'm eager to re-read this book from my childhood — and maybe, just maybe — my participation will jump-start a return to book blogging!