Bout of Books Goals + 1st challenge

So, every year I see people posting on Twitter about #BoutofBooks, and every year I either have too crazy a schedule to jump in, or I catch it at the tail end. But THIS year, I happened to catch it on the first day, and my work schedule is fairly light (plus I have a huge stack of books to read, and more calling my name), so I figured might as well take advantage of the extra push and start a nice big avalanche in my to-be-read mountain.

If you're unfamiliar with BoB, here's the official blurb:

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 7th and runs through Sunday, January 13th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 6.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. -From the Bout of Books 6.0 team

I also need to catch up on a crap load of reviews (and I have numerous giveaways to schedule in, and meme-y stuff, etc), so I'm not going to make my pile too outlandish, but I'm hoping to at least put a nice dent in this:

Now, this pile is overly optimistic, BUT two of them are graphic novels and the bottom two would be rereads; I figured I'd throw them in because I've been craving them like crazy lately. In fact, I started Daughter of the Forest eaaarly this morning (ie the middle of the night last night), so it'll be my first read of the 'thon. So hopefully it's doable.  (In the back, behind my chosen stack, you can see Shadowlands...I may put that in the rotation too, if I'm craving it.)

My picks:
Review books:
Mist by Kathyrn James, which I need to read so I can read the sequel (gotta schedule in a giveaway, too)
Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick, which sounds interesting, and I need to read soon, or it's in danger of slipping down the pile in favor of Fairy Tale Fortnight prep.
Siege by Sarah Mussi, which just sounds really awesome in a scary, disturbing way, and which is coming out soon, so I need to read it!
Graphic Novels:
Sailor Twain, or The Mermaid of the Hudson by Mark Siegel and  Same Difference by Derek Kirk Kim, both of which were Christmas presents, and both of which sound amazing. I've also flipped through each and love the art, so I can't wait to dig in.
and Rereads:
Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier, which I think I've said all I can really say on it, though I feel like I could talk about it forever; it was time for (another) reread
and  An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott, because I've been talking about it a lot lately, and it's making me really miss the characters.

My goals in general (not just for the week, but for the year) are:

• To close my computer and leave it closed at a set time each night, and spend the rest of the time before I go to sleep reading. (Hopefully this will serve the dual purposes of helping me read more AND not stay up so damn late.)
• To always, always take review notes on a book when I finish, before starting another.
• To read more of my OWN books. I own so many, and have had some that I'm realllly eager for, on my shelves, untouched, for far too long now.

And that's it, really. Simple, straight-forward, needs to happen.

So that's my stack, and I'm gonna keep my fingers crossed that I don't get distracted and give up (did I mention my crazy list of things to do? And the fact that I'm still making Christmas presents, because they turned out more complicated than I'd thought? Yeah...)

NOW. Part of Bout of Books is fun little challenges and giveaways, and though I don't know that I'll have time or the inclination to participate in each, I'm going to try, starting with todays. It comes from The Book Barbies, who want us to have a little Pretend Time session:

You have made a scientific discovery (who knew you were so good at science?!) on how to bring fictional characters to life. The problem? The method still isn't *perfect,* so you can only bring two people to life, and they must return to the land of fiction in 30 days. Who will you choose as your bestie and your love interest for that one splendid month? (Feel free to add pictures if you like, but they are not required.)

I feel like I have a different answer for these questions every time someone asks them. Fickle, fickle me... For right now, I'm going to go with:

<----- Karou for my bestie. She's got a lot on her plate right now, true, but she'd also have some pretty cool stories to share, tricks to show, and people to introduce me to (including her bestie, Zuze, who might be the coolest chick ever.)

and Reyn for my boyfran, 'cause REYN. Yum. 

Nothing more need be said. ----->