The opportunity to read during the day was always one of my favorite parts of summer vacation—lazy weekdays spent on epic adventures or engrossed in riveting mysteries, all without leaving my backyard. Sitting outside in the sun with a good book is a luxury I don’t get to indulge in very often any more, but still, I find I tend to read more during the summer months than I do any other time of the year. That’s why we’re lucky that our public libraries here in Hawai’i offer summer reading programs with great incentives for all ages. Alex and I signed up this summer and although the program goal is at least ONE book per week, we decided to up the stakes. A competition to see who can read the most books, and the most pages from now until July 2nd!
It’ll be a battle more fierce than pirates versus ninjas, more brutal than zombies versus aliens, more socially segregating than Team Jacob versus Team Edward. It’s *dun dun duuun* monkey versus robot.
It’s me (robot) and Alex (monkey) in a frenzy of books to see who will walk away the ‘2010 HBB Reading Champion’. Here are the ground rules:
- Audiobooks, picturebooks and comicbooks don’t count.
- Comments and short review must be provided for each book at the end of the week.
- Any subject or genre, not just Hawaiiana, is fair game.
- Winner is the person with the most pages read, they get to pick a place for dinner and a movie to be paid for by the other.
So, who will it be? MONKEY or ROBOT?
Aside from the fact that Alex really likes monkeys and I adore robots, our mascots are eerily similar to the way we approach reading. Alex is a faster reader than I am (for every four pages I read, he’s read seven) but he’s easily distracted by things like videogames and eating. Even though I’m slower, once hooked on a book I will not stop until I’ve finished (because I HAVE to know how it ends!). I’m notorious for ignoring friends and family, sleep and food, work and make-up all to finish a book! You can always tell if I’m distracted with a book by the severity of my disarray. The odds are pretty even.
The library’s reading program itself is pretty casual and with incentives like free DVD rentals, CD giveaways and more, it’s not too hard to read a book a week. Alex and I are crazy playful and we enjoy challenging eachother, thus our own little spin. You could do the same with your family or group of friends, book club or with co-workers and have fun thinking of your own incentives!
Remember, even though these summer programs have sponsors it never hurts to donate some money to your local library and help them pay for performances, activities and materials in your area. Visit the HSPLS website to make donations and find a schedule of events or special performances for this summer’s reading program!
Speaking of monkeys vs. robots, check out the music video to one of Alex’s favorite songs:
