Summer feels like it’s finally arrived. We haven’t seen snow in a few weeks, temperatures are hanging above freezing, and we might have just made it! Congratulations, you can finally put away your winter coat.
This weekend we also celebrate Memorial Day and take a moment to honor those who served our nation and are no longer with us. All Delaware County District Library locations will be closed on Monday, May 31, in remembrance.
If you’re in the Powell area, look for our team of staff members and their Book Cart Brigade marching down the center of the streets in the Memorial Day parade. It steps off at 10 a.m. from Grace Drive and heads south on North Liberty Street. A special ceremony will be held immediately following the parade at the Greater Powell Veterans Memorial, located at 47 Hall St. Both the ceremony and parade will be streamed live to the City of Powell’s Facebook page.
When the library returns to business on Tuesday, June 1, we are in full swing with our annual Summer Reading Club. Library hours are extended, all areas are open for study and play, and we even have some fun pop-up events planned throughout the summer. The Summer Reading Club goal remains the same – read for 12 hours and collect prizes along the way. There’s no need to register, just track your reading and let us know when you’ve hit your 6-hour and 12-hour milestones for a prize.
Unfortunately, the library was unable to plan our traditional in-person performances and entertainers for this summer as we have in years past. The Youth Services Department begins planning for Summer Reading Club as early as January and February for the 8-week summer program. Earlier this year, decisions regarding masks, gatherings, and even vaccinations were much more unknown than they are right now. However, decisions had to be made, so we moved forward with an abundance of caution.
Many of our favorite performers are joining us virtually or through a new on-demand video program we’re offering this summer. Simply visit www.delawarelibrary.org/summerreading, click the Programs On-Demand tab, and view the videos from the comfort of your own home, as your own schedule allows. Every child who views at least four videos can stop in to their local DCDL branch and claim a special gift. Bonus prizes are also awarded for children getting ready for kindergarten who complete a Kindergarten Readiness Checklist or the Schiffel’s Safety Scholars who watch a series of special safety videos from Delaware County Prosecutor Melissa Schiffel.
Adult readers aren’t left out of the fun this summer. In tradition with other years, adults who read four books or attend four virtual programs, or any combination, will also receive a prize.
Get all the details at www.delawarelibrary.org/summerreading and click through the tabs to see what you’ll discover this summer. Don’t forget to add the Medieval Faire virtual joust on Saturday, June 5, at 2 p.m. to your calendar. It will be a great display, thanks to the Knights of the Rose and Cashmans.
If you’re looking for some book recommendations for your summer reader, you can start with any number of booklists on our website. Below are titles in the Middle School recommended reads category.
• “Other Words for Home” by Jasmine Warga. Sent with her mother to the safety of a relative’s home in Cincinnati when her Syrian community is overshadowed by violence, Jude worries for the beloved family members who were left behind and forges a new sense of identity shaped by friends and changing perspectives.
• “Pet” by Akwaeke Emezi. In a near-future society that claims to have gotten rid of all monstrous people, a creature emerges from a painting seventeen-year-old Jam’s mother created, a hunter from another world seeking a real-life monster.
• “Maya and the Rising Dark” by Rena Barron. Struggling to understand why nobody else in her South Side Chicago neighborhood can see strange phenomena, 12-year-old Maya discovers that her missing father has been protecting a supernatural boundary between worlds.
• “Witches of Brooklyn” by Sophie Escabasse. Moving to Brooklyn to live with two eccentric aunts she has never met after the tragic loss of her mother, Effie forges bonds with loyal new friends while making the amazing discovery that magic runs in her family.
• “Class Act” by Jerry Craft. Eighth grader Drew Ellis recognizes that he isn’t afforded the same opportunities, no matter how hard he works, that his privileged classmates at the Riverdale Academy Day School take for granted, and to make matters worse, Drew begins to feel as if his good friend Liam might be one of those privileged kids and is finding it hard not to withdraw, even as their mutual friend Jordan tries to keep their group of friends together.
