Pulling an All-Nighter
When I was a growing up, my favorite thing about summer was that I could read what I wanted, as much as I wanted. The perks of being a teen included devouring Gone with the Wind in three days – without having to a) talk to anyone or b) make anyone dinner. The headiest thrill was staying up into the wee hours of the night with my nose in a book, a book the was just too good to put down. I remember the delicious feeling of staying up until four a.m. with Emily’s Quest by L.M. Montgomery. If you’ve only read the Anne books, you’re missing out. I knew there was nothing else I’d rather be doing at that moment, and that my book was absolutely perfect.
But I also knew that I could sleep in as late as I wanted to next day. At the time, I don’t think I even had a part time job. As an adult, the decision to pull an all-nighter with a good book is very different. I’m not a great sleeper in the first place, and usually the “getting to sleep” part is the challenge. Most nights I have to read until I’m nodding off, or I’ll just toss and turn uselessly for hours. Books usually lull me to sleep, not keep me from it. But more than that, staying up has consequences. Do I really want to expose my co-workers to my glassy-eyed zombie look that no amount of coffee can truly dispel? Is the book really that good?
Sometimes. I planned ahead for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. My boss laughed when I took the day after its release off, but I knew perfectly well I intended to read all night long, and I did. And it was marvelous.
Last week, I did it again, but it was completely spontaneous. I had started The Hunger Games for book club, and though some of my friends had said it was really good, I was pretty sure I’d find it just okay. I’m not really that into YA fiction in the first place, and I often find post-apocalyptic fiction preachy and annoying (I’ll fess up: I really didn’t like The Handmaid’s Tale). But then I started reading. And reading. And not wanting to do anything else but read, because I had to know what was going to happen next. I kept thinking, “Okay, another half hour.” But at some point – probably around 1:30 – I made the call. I knew that even if I tried to sleep, I’d just be thinking about the book anyway. There are worse things than being mistaken for one of the undead at work, I reasoned. So I read into the night and went to sleep somewhere around 3:00.
On the whole, it was worth it. I loved the book, and loved the feeling that I was doing exactly what I wanted to do, even though I knew I’d pay the price later. Do I envy my teenage son who stayed up with the same book the next night? And slept until noon the next day? A little. What’s the last book that kept you up all night? Was it worth it?
I still love all-nighters I do regular blocks of night shifts so stay awake reading the night before i stat my week of nights si i can sleep in the day. the last book i read that actually lasted all night was War and Peace. Totally worth it.
About a year and a half ago I “”discovered”” romance books when someone left a Judy Garwood in the breakroom. From that point on I developed a sleeping disorder that my husband might call, “”I just need to get to the end of the chapter-itis.”” I used to go to bed on weeknights at 11…now it is more like 1 pm. The little reading night lights have saved my marriage, but I doubt I’ll ever catch up on my sleep!
My last all nighter was Three Rivers by Roberta Latow it was the first romance I had ever read about a woman over 45 although it was erotic it was to me a very good story and it is a keeper
The all-nighter I most vividly remember is Incubus Dreams by Laurell K. Hamilton. I am a mad Anita fanatic & usually take the day after a new release off, but I let my boyfriend talk me out of it. He guilt-tripped me about how shallow it was to call in sick or take a personal day just to read a book.
Big mistake, Incubus Dreams is one of her longest novels and I finished at about 6am, just in time to get in the shower & get to work. Complete zombie time–I am a teacher and it was a VERY difficult day. I am one of those people who need 8-9 hours of sleep to function.
Needless to say, the boyfriend is long-gone. Can you really be involved with someone who doesn’t understand how important books are to you?
I was the same! Back in High School I’d stay up all night reading- not now, got to get up for work the next morning! The most I’ll do too now is fall asleep while reading. I also thought The Handmaid’s Tale wasn’t that great. I’ve been meaning to read the Hunger Games, looks like I’ll have to now.
I remember vividly staying up all night back in the day to read Clan of the Cave Bear.
I did this last Spring go through an Outlander series obsession. If I could have pulled all nighters now I would have. I was showing up often at my friend’s doorstep (she has all the books) like a drug addict trying to get my next fix.
@Molly – Are your kids still pretty young? The good news is that you can eventually do it again. But I have vivid memories of trying to figure out things I could do to entertain a baby and a toddler for a couple of weeks while I read the Outlander books (and there were only three of them then. Outlander books, that is, not children).
@KristieJ – that is awesome.
I can’t remember a book in particular but I remember one time I pulled an all nighter. I was working part time but was called in quite a bit. I was up until about 6:00 am reading and then headed to bed. The phone rang at 7:00 and they asked if I could come in ASAP as someone had called in sick. I jumped in the shower, got all ready and used the deodorant, and was spraying hair spray in my hair. It didn’t seem to be doing the trick at all and I looked at the can. Yep – I was spraying deodorant in my hair and it explained why my underarms felt so sticky!
I was out of town last weekend, and decided to finally read Linda Howard’s “”Death Angel””. It’s been sitting on my shelf since it came out in paperback, and this past weekend was IT for me. I started it right before bed with the intent of reading a few chapters…and the rest is history. It was totally worth the lost sleep because I thoroughly enjoyed it, and have it as one of my favourite Howard titles.
Oh my gosh – this is one of my favorite pleasures in the world and kids have RUINED it! The last one was probably one of the JR Ward books. But the one I remember the best was Time Traveller’s Wife – husband banished me because it was three am and I was SOBBING – I finished the last sixty pages at 4 am in the bathroom.
there is no reason to wait to read hunger games -honestly, one of the best books/series ever.
I don’t think I’ve ever read all night long, but I have read very late into the night.
I’ve heard a lot of good things about The Hunger Games series, but my stack of books to be read is very tall and I’m going to have a wait a bit for that one.
The ipad is absolutely perfect for reading in a dark room with a sleeping spouse. My spouse has always suffered from my noctural reading habits so the invention of the ipad is a near miracle as far as he is concerned!
The Hunger Games was an all-nighter for me, and like you, it was completely unexpected. And then Catching Fire was, too. I guess I’d better prepare for one with Mockingjay!
I remember reading “”Valley of the Dolls”” until 4:00 a.m. one night when I was a teenager. As an adult, though, I’ve wised up. I don’t even start a book by a good author unless I know I have time to finish it before bedtime. I can function on two or three hours a night (I do it routinely once a week, anyway), and I’m a chronic insomniac, but I try not to make my plight worse than it already is. :)
Define “”all-nighter .”” An early night for me is if I get into bed before 2:00 a.m. So I regularly read until then. Even if I am engrossed in reading, I usually still get into bed before the sun comes up, although there have been a few times the sun was starting to peek through. I started all of the Harry Potter books (after Prisoner of Azkabhan) right after midnight, but I usually just read for about 3-4 hours then went to bed and read the rest of the book the “”next day.””
I’ve pulled A-ll nighters a couple of times. Last time it was Anne Stuart’s Ruthless. I stayed up until 5 o’clock in the morning to read. But I can’t to it if I have to go to school the next day. I need at least 7 hours of sleep every night.
The last book that kept me up all night was What the Librarian did by Karina Bliss. I finished it at about 12:30 a.m. but couldn’t fall asleep after that–not because of the story, but because I was reading it with a book light in my dark bedroom. I find this problematic because of the intense light source so close to my face. So now I prefer to do my bedtime reading read on the ipod touch with white text on a black background.
Great post! Takes me back to the first time I did this as a working adult: when I finished “”Checkmate,”” the culmination of the Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett all in one gulp.
I’m inspired to re-read the entire series!
I suffer from migraines and one of the worst triggers for me is interrupted sleep patterns. So, if I stay up past my usual bed time reading a book, not only will I be really tired the next day, I run the great risk of getting a migraine. I still have done it though when a really good book sucks me in.
A year or so ago I made the mistake of starting Kelley Armstrong’s “”Bitten”” at 10 o’clock at night, after everyone else in my family was in bed. I’d intended to just have a couple of hours of “”me”” time alone downstairs, but I kept telling myself, “”One more chapter…just one more,”” and I was still there when the sun came up. Paid for it dearly the next day, when the kids were wide awake and bouncing :-)
I nearly did it again this year with Nalini Singh’s “”Angel’s Blood””, but I forced myself to put that one aside at 2 a.m. and read the rest the next day..
I actually function fairly well on little sleep – I more or less have to since I’m not that great at sleeping. But I need to be up at 6 or 6:30 most days. So going to bed at 3 means 3 hours of sleep for me, which does put me in zombie territory.
I am going to have to try one of those little book lights, because I am usually banished to the game room for late night reading. My husband needs way more sleep than I do.
I did the same thing with the last four Harry Potter books, and I do read until late – 2am – with reasonable regularity. I can manage fine with 6 hours sleep and as long as I’m up by 8am I can still get the kids to school on time. For the last Harry Potter I was reading until 3am. My excuse was that my husband and our youngest son were both waiting for that copy. Elder son bought his own. We had a family excursion into Adelaide to pick up our copies and celebrated over hot chocolates in the cafe next to the U-park in Rundle Mall.
We had risotto for dinner that night because once the chopping is over and it’s all in the pot anyone can stir with one hand and hold a book in the other.
Lynn M – I find that having a small light that clips to the book is a good way to let my husband sleep while I read. He needs more sleep than I do.
I recently pulled an all-nighter with “”Graceling”” by Kristin Cashore, which I’ll confess right here I liked much better than “”The Hunger Games””. When Harry Potter 7 came out, I wanted to stay up all night but we were on vacation and I couldn’t get away with keeping the light on all night in our hotel room. That’s one parameter I use when determining if a book is a keeper or not – did it inspire me to stay up way past my bedtime even though I pay for it the next day.
Last book I remember reading all night was Lover Awakened by JR Ward. I read until about 5am, and I remember that I couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore, but I finished it. I slept for about five hours and then started it over again.
Great topic!