Story for the Week
Summer reading is here! Summer reading is here! Let me repeat that louder for the people in the back. SUMMER READING IS HERE!
Any book lover has a picture in their head of their perfect reading nook—organized bookcases, maybe some fluffy pillows, definitely a comfortable chair, perfect natural and artificial light (for when it gets dark, of course).
But when I was a kid, I shared a room with my sister, and my nook had to be created from what we had. Our room wasn’t big, so I used a space that was maybe four feet square, sandwiched between our dresser and the foot of my twin bed. It didn’t have any decorations. It was just me and my book. I would wedge myself in the corner and get so absorbed in what I was reading that I wouldn’t hear anyone calling for me. They would have to come looking, and usually my parents would flip the bedroom light on and ask me why I was reading in the dark. My response was always, “It wasn’t dark when I started.”
So when my daughter was old enough, I started taking her to the library every week. When she was younger, she was hooked on the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, and if I would let her, that would have been all she would read.
In an effort to expand her horizons, my rule when we went to the library was that she had to pick something that she didn’t have at home and that she wouldn’t normally read. She would spend some time selecting books to check out, and then we would sit and read for an hour before we headed home. Inevitably, she would end up checking out the book she started reading, and I was able to get in some dedicated and uninterrupted reading time.
Over the years, we started adding friends to our library visits. It started with an older neighbor, also an avid reader. Then her younger brother joined us. Then another neighbor, and then her little sister. Occasionally, my best friend would join us or another of my daughter’s friends when she spent the weekend.
My husband asked me one week why we had to go to the library and stay there every week. He wanted to know why we couldn’t just check out the books and come home. I told him that this was something I loved as a child, and I wanted to pass that on to our daughter. While she is not as dedicated a reader as I am, I hope that it’s something she’ll want to share with her own kids someday.
This year, I was concerned about whether our local library would have a summer reading program in light of COVID-19. How would we go check in for our reading and fill out our raffle tickets and select our prize? I was excited when I saw the information outlining how this year’s program would go. It started a little later in the summer (TODAY!!! 😁) and they’re encouraging participants to track their reading online. I have no idea how they’re going to do the raffle tickets and prizes, but I have six weeks to find out. I’m just thrilled that summer reading is here because—well, duh—reading!
So pick up your favorite fun novel, and let the summer reading begin!
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