If You Want Your Kids to Read...

Yes! Summer is officially here, along with the Summer Reading Program. We have a good start with a number of kids, teens, and adults participating and collecting cool prizes. Those who haven't registered online are registering in person at the library, which is great--we always love seeing families coming in! One thing that surprises me a little, however, is parents signing their children up for the Summer Reading Program but not themselves.

I know, I know. We adults have no time for fun. The kids are home from school, and we're trying to keep them entertained while working, cooking, cleaning, and keeping up with the bills. We may feel we have no time for something that feels counterproductive, like reading. It's something for the kids to do, not the adults. Well, I'm here to change your mind.

If children don't see you reading, they will have less incentive to read. Kids love imitating the adults in their lives. If they see adults doing something, no matter what it is, they want to do it, too. And you know what's even better? When you read together with your kids. It's quality (and fun) time for everyone involved. Not to mention it's a great opportunity to nurture your relationship with your children.

Don't think you need to read "grown-up" books to participate in the Summer Reading Program. Reading children's books with your kids is still reading; it counts for your reading logs and theirs. And listening to audiobooks is also reading. Bottom line--if you want your kids to read and take part in the Summer Reading Program, be sure to take part in it yourself--you'll be glad you did.

Wishing you a summer full of fun reading from the perch.

What I've Been Reading (and Liked!)

The Summer Reading Program is here, which means we should all be reading books we enjoy (though, if you ask me, that's what we should be doing year round). Reading something good on our vacation or our staycation, by the lake or by the sea, in the park or in the backyard. Personally, my favorite go-to place for reading in the summer is on my back porch, in the shade, with a glass of iced tea.

There are so many good books out there, old and new, but I'd like to share with you several which I've recently read and enjoyed:

• The Women (Kristin Hannah)  An excellent read, but not a light one. Vietnam Vets we're given anything but a hero's welcome returning home, but many Americans, including male veterans, denied that there were women serving in Vietnam as nurses and in other capacities. This book presents the horrors of the Vietnam War and the toll of PTSD along with the government's failure to support its female recruits.
• Before the Coffee Gets Cold (Toshikazu Kawaguchi) This is a different kind of time travel book. In a Tokyo cafe, a person can travel back (or forward) in time to meet someone, but whatever the person says or does will not change the course of events. It's interesting to see why someone wants to visit a certain time and with whom. Often, the time traveler ultimately finds some kind of closure and peace.
• The Boxcar Librarian (Brianna Labuskes) Big surprise, I enjoy reading books about libraries and librarians; I also enjoy historical fiction. This book, based on a true story, focuses on a Missoula librarian in the 1920s who has the idea of turning a train's boxcar into a library that travels to various mining camps around Montana.

Which books have you read lately and enjoyed? Share with us!

Wishing you great summer reads from the perch!