Next month, the ABC Children’ [6]s Group at ABA will launch “Give Me Summer! Give Me Books!” a national summer reading program for kids that is open to all ABA member bookstores. The program’s goal is to build a strong community of readers by bringing independent bookstores and local schools together to encourage kids to read.

The ABC Children’ [6]s Group Summer Reading Committee has selected 18 recently published paperback titles for the program — six titles tailored to children in each of three age groups: Kindergarten – Grade 2, Grades 3 – 5, and Grades 6 – 8.

Give Me Summer! Give Me Books! presents young customers with a reading challenge:  Can you read six books during the summer months?  At least three of those six books should be on the list of suggested titles and purchased from a local independent bookseller.   

In late April, promotional materials will be available to participating bookstores in the Bookseller DIY [7]. These will include bookmarks that both showcase the list of suggested titles and serve as summer reading tracking forms, a form letter to schools, sample newsletter copy, signage, certificates of completion, and more.

Participating stores are encouraged to choose appropriate rewards or prizes for children who complete the program and for the local school with the highest number of participating students. Readers are asked to provide their school’s name on the bookmark as well as to check off all the books they complete.  Some suggestions for rewards are coupons, gift certificates, book donations, and author visits. Watch for more details about the program in upcoming editions of Bookselling This Week.

To give bookstores a jumpstart on ordering, the list of Give Me Summer! Give Me Books! titles is provided below:

Kindergarten – Grade 2

• Bad Kitty for President, by Nick Bruel ($6.99, 9781250010162, Macmillan)
• Bink & Gollie, by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee ($6.99, 9780763659547, Candlewick)
• Captain Awesome to the Rescue, by Stan Kirby ($4.99, 9781442435612, Simon & Schuster)
• George Brown Class Clown: Dance Your Pants Off! by Nancy Krulik ($4.99, 9780448456799, Penguin)
• Penny and Her Doll, by Kevin Henkes ($3.99, 9780062082015, HarperCollins)
• Pete the Cat: Play Ball! by James Dean ($3.99, 9780062110664, HarperCollins)

Grades 3 – 5

• Aliens on Vacation, by Clete Smith ($6.99, 9781423157236, Hyperion)
• The False Prince, by Jennifer A. Nielsen ($6.99, 9780545284141, Scholastic)
• The Five Lives of Our Cat Zook, by Joanne Rocklin ($7.95, 9781419705250, Abrams)
• The Lemonade War, by Jacqueline Davies ($5.99, 9780547237657, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• The Mighty Miss Malone, by Christopher Paul Curtis ($7.99, 9780440422143, Random House)
• We Are Not Eaten by Yaks, by C. Alexander London ($7.99, 9780142420560, Penguin)

Grades 6 – 8

• Ashes, by Ilsa J. Bick ($9.99, 9781606843857, EgmontUSA)
• Cinder, by Marissa Meyer ($9.99, 9781250007209, Macmillan)
• How to Rock Braces and Glasses, by Meg Haston ($7.99, 9780316068246, Hachette)
• The Story of Us, by Deb Caletti ($9.99, 9781442423473, Simon & Schuster)
• Stupid Fast, by Geoff Herbach ($9.99, 9781402256301, Sourcebooks)
• Trapped, by Michael Northrup ($9.99, 9780545210133, Scholastic)

Booksellers with questions about the program should contact ABC Children’ [6]s Group Manager Shannon O’Connor via e-mail [8] or at (800) 637-0037, ext. 7551.