Summer Reading Season Is Here!

There’s just something so magical about summer reading programs at local libraries. Maybe it’s just my fond memories of kicking every other kindergartener’s tail or walking to the bookmobile with my sibling each weekend to pick up the prizes, but it just makes me smile.

One time, when I was heading into 7th grade, I was so determined to get my weekly punch, I left lunch of my first ever volleyball camp, walked home, got my card, walked to get it punched, then returned to camp a wee bit late. It’s kinda wild to think about how unbothered the adults were that a 13-year-old girl was missing for a while and didn’t tell them she was leaving. How times have changed!

I’ll be honest. I haven’t participated in a summer reading program since I was a teenager, mainly because I didn’t think about it. Summers in college was a break from reading textbooks, with time absorbed by jobs and friends. The last ten years, I didn’t really remember that it was an option for adults. But that streak ends today.

I just skedaddled on over to a library branch near me and signed up since I heard about some pretty sweet raffle prizes. They are far better than the oversized lemon yellow “Relaxation Reading Vacation” t-shirt I won in kindergarten, despite having a million tickets in the pot. I still distinctly remember the Ronald McDonald impersonator chanting that phrase to us at least fifty times during the winners celebration program. I thought it was the dumbest thing at the time, but now, the idea of a reading vacation sounds like paradise.

Moral of the story, I’m pumped to be reading for personal gain once again. Ha! Not only am I doing the library’s program, I’m also participating in “whatever-you-want-a-thon” in the internet world for the fun of earning points. Team Camp Contemporary is going to crush it this month (I hope).

What fond memories do you have of summer reading programs as a kid? What are your goals for summer reading this year? Drop a comment with your hot book summer thoughts.