When I was a kid, summer vacation didn't just mean time away from school. It also meant having time to read even more books! And needless to say, my parents supported that endeavor wholeheartedly. Summer vacation involved weekly trips to our local public library, as well as to our favorite local chain bookstore (RIP, Davis-Kidd Booksellers)—and both places offered summer reading challenges for kids in our area. We'd receive a treasure map marked with different pieces of treasure to collect—aka types of books to read. We'd be handed a jungle safari guidebook listing genres instead of animals, or a map of the solar system with books on each planet. The challenge: read a book in each category in order to win a prize at the end of the summer. The prize, of course, was usually a gift certificate to buy more books. And so it goes. :)
Anyway, when the YA Buccaneers team started talking about doing our own Summer Reading Challenge, I was in 100%. And not just because the idea is giving me major nostalgia for those long summer days where all I had to do was sit under the big tree in our backyard and read. I love challenges where you're asked to read outside your comfort zone. How easy is it to get stuck in a rut, reading only things you know you like? Why not explore other genres, or pick up a book by a new author, or re-read one you didn't love as a kid to see how you feel about it as an adult? This challenge will ask participants to do just that:
Check out our introductory blog post HERE to learn more about the challenge! I'm really looking forward to broadening my reading horizons this summer, and I'll be sharing the books I read here as I cross them off my list. Who's with me?
~Kathryn