The Adult Summer Reading Program

At every library I performed at this summer, I brought up one of the wonders of my own, the Muehl Public Library in Seymour, Wisconsin.   We have the usual summer reading program for children, an American idea that keeps children reading when they are not at school.  By reading books, they are eligible for rewards and prizes.  Millions of American children go through the program every summer.

But in Seymour, we also have an adult version which encourages us older readers to explore books outside our usual reading habits.  This summer, I had to read six books, not easy since I wasn't able to start until I returned from my tour on July 25 and have only until September 1 to finish up.

The categories:
..A fiction book set in another country.  I chose 44 Scotland Street, by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Edinburgh.
..A non-fiction travel book I've yet to read, Dr. Echener's Dream Machine, about the first zeppelin that circumnavigated the glob.
..A book of choice was Water for Elephants, by Sarah Gruen, recommended by a friend, now deceased.  Yes, Lee, I finally got around to it.
..A classic.  I decided to read Sigurd F. Olson's The Singing Wilderness, one of the twelve environmental classics recommended by the Sierra Club.
..I've yet to read a young adult book, but have started Airborne, a science fantasy book by Kenneth Oppel.  (In the smaller libraries, science fiction and fantasy are often lumped in with young adult fiction, though it's not really the same thing.)
..And finally a large print book, so I chose a sequel to 44 Scotland Street, McCall Smith's The Unbearable Lightness of Scones. 


Each time I finish a book, I take it to the front desk to have my "reader passport" initialed by a librarian.  I feel like a kid again, with that simple act.

There are no big prizes for us grownups other than a chance for small gift certificates but that return to childhood is the best reward of all.