This was originally posted to CWA's Wright On blog - http://www.charleswright.org/blog/wright-on. It is reposted on Patch.com with permission.
Most middle-school and high-school students these days have required summer-reading assignments to complete over the summer. But what about those bookworms out there who enjoy reading for fun on top of that? Charles Wright’s Head Librarian and Upper School Librarian Jane Riches champions the role choice plays in fostering a love of reading year-round and recommends perennial favorites.
As a librarian, I am drawn to reading about reading. There are reports that, as a nation, we are experiencing declines in the amount and quality of our reading. There are also studies that show recent upticks in young adult (ages 18-24) reading (NEA 2009). There are questions of whether reading online and reading popular fiction count as “literary” reading. Research has shown a correlation between reading and academic success, job potential, involvement in civic life, and even participation in sports and other physical activity (NEA #47). The more we read, the more proficient we become in reading.
For me, a key component in these assessments of reading is that of reading for pleasure or voluntary reading. How can we encourage our young people to move away from the screen and media consumption into the world of books? I am of the mind that we teach the value of reading most effectively by modeling how much we personally enjoy and grow from reading—sharing our reading experiences within our families and in our social and professional lives. An informal survey in the New York Times Arts Beat (2009) drew many responses about acquiring a love of reading at home—being read to by a parent and by being allowed to choose one’s own books, be they comics or classics. Some valued family time spent reading; others treasured the chance to be alone with a book. I grew up reading because my parents read. We received books as gifts from the time we were in preschool. My favorites growing up were Travels of Jaimie McPheeters, The Little House series, All Creatures Great and Small, anything by Dr. Seuss and, yes, those paragons of literary merit, Nancy Drew mysteries. Sometimes I tackled things that were beyond my comprehension; The Caine Mutiny and Hiroshima, for example, stick in my mind as hardly the best reading for a young teen. But the freedom to try them left a lasting impression, and I revisited both as an adult.
What would I recommend for summer voluntary reading? The most important advice is, decide what interests you. What do you want to learn more about? What type of reading do you want at the moment—something deep or a “beach book”? For adult/older young adult readers I pass along a Spanish teacher’s suggestion: Isabel Allende’s Island Beneath the Sea. One of my personal favorites is Peace Like a River by Leif Enger. Then there is anything in the history/fantasy oeuvre of Guy Gavriel Kay. For nonfiction, I recommend anything by Seattle author Erik Larson or Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. For younger high school students, recreational reading will vary on ability and interest. Reading is so personal! However, two fiction titles that I have consistently recommended are Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hearn and The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King. For nonfiction, The Burn Journals by Brent Runyon is a powerful story. I also have several brief reviews listed on my blog. As Ms. Riede says about reading, “Take the time and go on a journey.”
By: CWA Librarians :Samantha Harris, Jane Riches& Deborah Baldwin