I don't know about you, but I have a very real, very well-developed ability go on book-requesting-sprees and end up requesting seemingly every book available on NetGalley. Then, about two weeks or a month later, I'm super gifted at becoming incredibly overwhelmed when I suddenly get approved for all of them on the same day. What should be joyous relief at that "Your wish has been granted!" email becomes more of a "Oh, god, what have I done?" instead.
This is why I about peed myself (in excitement, of course) when I first heard about #AVAReadathon, a month-long readathon dedicated to getting through that ARC pile. It's hosted by the awesome Aimal at Bookshelves & Paperbacks. Sure, I could technically spend the month of April getting through all these books all on my own, but isn't it [almost] always better doing things with friends?
There are no set rules, guidelines, or contests. In short: There's no pressure. The readathon simply runs from 12:01 on April 1st (wherever you are in the world) and runs until 11:59 on April 30th (again, wherever you are in the world). There are two giveaway winners at the end (more books, yay!).
If you simply want to get through as many ARCs as possible, whether that's 2 or 22, that works. Some folks are just trying to get their NetGalley ratio up to the recommended 80%. All of these non-rules fill me with no small amount of joy.
I would love to get my ratio up to 80%. It's currently at 70%, so I think it's totally doable (assuming I don't suddenly get approved for 10 books I requested months ago or something). Beyond that, I would love to get through all April and May releases, plus any March releases that may still be hanging around (don't judge). Here's my ARC TBR:
Perhaps stupidly, I'm also trying to take part in #TomeTopple this same month, which is where people spend two weeks trying to get through as many 600+ page books. I've come up with two I'd like to get through (finishing Dragonfly in Amber and Crooked Kingdom). We'll see how it all goes; maybe my new shtick is setting myself up for failure!
Are you taking part in either #AVAReadathon or #TomeTopple? If so, please share your list with me! I'd love to set up some group reads if any of us have the same list! Also, if you're interested in joining, check out the blog post here.