Cumberland library programs and events coordinator Kirsty Plumridge says entering Summer Reads is as simple as rating and reviewing the books you read over summer and completing an online entry form.
She says entries are also available at the council’s eight libraries at Auburn, Granville, Greystanes, Guildford, Lidcombe, Merrylands, Regents Park or Wentworthville.
“Reading is a great way to relax and to learn about someone else’s experience, and in lieu of not being able to travel right now, it might be the best way of exploring another country, another culture,” Mrs Plumridge said.
“I’m personally a slow reader so I actually work off the literary award lists. If I can just read the award winners, I feel like I’ve achieved something in the year.”
With libraries quieter than they would normally be, she said staff had been using the opportunity to showcase the collections that could be accessed from home including ebooks and audiobooks, as well as engaging with children via online reading and craft sessions.
“Cumberland Library Service is also running a Summer Reading Club (SRC) for children and youth aged between five and 15 years old,” she said.
“Come into your local library to pick up a free Starter’s Pack and some books and start reading. Every week SRC club members that borrow from the library, will go into a prize draw to win some fun activity packs.”
The SRC closes on January 23, while entries for the adults Summer Reads competition close on January 31.
For more information, call 8757 9060 or visit cumberland.nsw.gov.au/library.
Cumberland Library staff favourites from 2020:
For adults: The Yield by Tara June Winch, The Happiest Man Alive by Eddie Jaku, The Two Lost Mountains by Matthew Reilly, The Naturalist’s Daughter by Tea Cooper and Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe
For young adults: Ghost Bird by Lisa Fuller and Unpregnant by Jenni Hendriks and Ted Caplan.
For children: Hollowpox by Jessica Townsend (the third instalment of the Nevermoor series) and The Encyclopaedia of Ugly Animals by Sami Bayly.
