Callapidder Days

Just a quick post to announce the last few winners from Spring Reading Thing 2010

The winner of the final book giveaway, A Hopeful Heart, is:

Comment #11: Carrie

The winner of the $15 Amazon.com gift certificate is: Jennifer @ Going With What I’ve Got

The winner of the $10 Amazon.com gift certificate is: Amy @ Hope Is The Word

Congratulations to all of you!

Thanks again, everyone. Have a great summer!

Yesterday, I took the kids to ride bikes on some nearby trails, and then introduced L. (4) to his very first Italian Ice. It was a perfect and refreshing end to the bike ride because all three of us were hot and sweaty. Why? Because it was almost 90 degrees — a sure sign that summer is moving into town.

As summer moves in and spring takes its leave, we also have to say goodbye to Spring Reading Thing 2010. I want to thank all of those who participated. We ended up with 156 participants — a great turn-out! Thank you for spreading the word, sharing your love of books, and reading along with me this spring.

I’d love to hear how the challenge went for each of you. I hope you’ll take the time to write a wrap-up post and link to it using the Mr. Linky below.

Feel free to work from the questions I listed in this post, or just write about your experiences, thoughts, and results in any way you please. Once your post is up, come back here and sign up on the Mr. Linky below. Don’t forget — include the URL to your wrap-up post, not just your general blog web address, to make it easy for people to find your post.

Also, there are still two Amazon.com gift certificates up for grabs — one for $15 and one for $10. To be eligible, please post your wrap-up post (and put it on the Mr. Linky) by midnight EST on June 24th to get your name in the drawing. I’ll announce the winners on Friday, June 25th.

Thanks again to all the participants. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading with you!

My reading this spring was sporadic interrupted inconsistent, to say the least. I had weeks when I was a diligent reader, diving into one or two books every day. But then there were weeks when life was just crazy and I barely read a couple pages. Those weeks are not very helpful when it comes to completing one’s Spring Reading Thing list.

In the end, however, I’m pleased to say that I completed all the fiction books I set out to read. You may remember that I decided to read all kid-lit type books this spring — trying to stay a bit ahead of my 11-year-old and make sure the books he might be drawn to are appropriate. I’m glad I did it, but I also have to admit that I’m looking forward to getting back to some “grown-up fiction.”  The kids’ books were good (and I didn’t have any major issues with any of them), but I’ve just about reached my limit for exclusive kid-lit reading. Starting today, I plan to return to some women’s fiction, finishing The Mailbox, and then reading Life in Defiance and maybe Burn next.

Of the kids’ books I read, my favorite was Gregor the Overlander. I really shouldn’t be surprised, since I am loving Suzanne Collins’ YA Hunger Games series. Gregor the Overlander was engaging and full of adventure, and I happily passed it on to my son, C., who now owns the first four books in the series. He’s enthusiastically dubbed the Gregor books one of his very favorite series ever.

I also really enjoyed 100 Cupboards. It took a little while to get into (C. tried it and stalled), but in the end, it was worth it. I also found out that I was right — the Missing series by Margaret Peterson Haddix is one I would have devoured as a young teen. Suspenseful, action-packed, and mysterious all at once.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

In the realm of nonfiction, I think I fared well. I read 3.5 of the 4 books I had chosen. Admittedly, that’s not much nonfiction reading, but if I’m honest, I’d have to admit that I dabbled and dipped into at least five other nonfiction books over the course of this spring — never reading more than a chapter or two, but still. I’m so very distractable when it comes to nonfiction.

Overall, I know I didn’t have a high volume of reading going on this spring. But I enjoyed the books I did read, and I enjoyed reading with all the other Spring Reading Thing 2010 participants.  I accomplished most of my reading goals, I felt confident introducing C. to several new-to-us kid-lit authors, and I learned that I should probably intersperse some grown-up books next time I decide to tackle a pile of kid-lit books. So my verdict? A successful Spring Reading Thing 2010.

Be sure to stop by the Official Wrap-Up Post to see how other participants did this spring!

Can you believe that one week from today, summer will officially be in full swing? Since C.’s been out of school for an entire week, and since we’ve had temperatures approaching 90 degrees recently, part of me feels like it’s already summer. However, I must admit that there are two more books from my Spring Reading Thing 2010 list that I haven’t quite finished…

Are you still trying to finish your list, too? If so, you’ve got 6 more days!

Summer will begin on Monday, June 21st. So between now and Sunday night, we can make one last push to complete our lists and finish strong.

But whether I finish my books or not, when Monday arrives, I’ll be putting up a Mr. Linky where participants can link to their wrap-up posts. The post will go live at 9:00 a.m. EST next Monday. Remember, you must post a wrap-up post on your blog (and enter it on the Mr. Linky I’ll have up Monday) by midnight on June 24th in order to be eligible to win one of the two Amazon.com gift certificates I’ll be giving away.

Not sure what to include in your wrap-up post? There are no official rules — we’d just like to see how the challenge went for you! But if you are someone who likes a little more structure, here are some questions you can answer as part of your wrap-up. Pick and choose whatever works for you!

• Did you finish reading all the books on your spring reading list? If not, why not?
• Did you stick to your original goals or did you change your list as you went along?
• What was your favorite book that you read this spring? Least favorite? Why?
• Did you discover a new author or genre this spring? Did you love them? Not love them?
• Did you learn something new because of Spring Reading Thing 2010 — something about reading, or yourself, or a topic you read about?
• What was your favorite thing about the challenge?

That should be enough to get your started, but remember — make it work for you.

See you back here on Monday, June 21st!