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December 2023 | Volume XLI, Issue 4 »

Warming Up to Winter: Exploring Winter Reading Programs at Libraries

December 7, 2023
Emily Hampston, Palos Park Public Library

As summer reading programs wrap up, many library staff plan for their successor: the winter reading program. Though not as commonplace as summer reading programs, winter reading programs are beginning to gain momentum. I wanted to gain more information on winter reading programs, and what library staff have planned, thus I created a survey and collected responses online and over the phone from various library staff members. As a result, three libraries are highlighted in this article to examine the variety and format of winter reading programs.

Keeping things simple, the Kenosha Public Library runs a winter reading program called More Than 4. Brandi Cummings, the Head of Community Programs and Partnerships, shared the inspiration behind this program. After participating in the winter reading challenge with Beanstack, a web and mobile app that tracks independent reading, Cummings wanted to revamp the program and find “a more accessible way to encourage adult reading.” Thus, More Than 4 was born. The program runs from December to the end of February, when the library typically sees lower program engagement. The goal of More Than 4 is for adults to exceed the national reading average for American adults and read more than four books in three months.

In comparison with the summer reading program, in which Kenosha Public Library patrons are asked to count pages towards a collective goal, the winter reading program is “more focused on books with only individual goals.” Adults log at least five books or audiobooks in a three-month period. This straightforward, individualized approach has paid off, with the target demographic responding very positively to the program and log format. Cummings notes that during the first year of More Than 4 the library had “more adults complete the program than in the previous year’s summer reading.”

In contrast with a multitude of winter-themed reading programs, Carbondale Public Library focuses on a more specific subject matter with their Black History Month Reading Challenge. This winter reading program runs during February, coinciding with Black History Month. The program, logged through Beanstack, asks patrons to read books by Black authors, books featuring Black characters, or books about Black history. Participants are challenged to read for twenty minutes daily throughout the month to win a book. Additionally, badges earned on Beanstack enter patrons into the grand prize drawing. In 2022, the grand prize for the Black History Month Reading Challenge was a gift card from a Black Chamber of Commerce of Southern Illinois eatery.

Library Director Jennifer Robertson says that this all-ages winter reading challenge began in 2019 when she was working in adult programming. After the initial year, Robertson says, “We have continued doing it annually as a way to showcase great books by Black authors.” In addition to providing guidelines for readers to choose their reading material, Carbondale Public Library also creates displays and reading lists for patrons to take home. Robertson notes that the library is excited to highlight the importance of Black History Month and hopes to expand the reach of their winter reading program.

After years of running a youth winter reading program, Eisenhower Public Library, located in Harwood Heights, wanted to try something new with the adult demographic. Following a department initiative to encourage reading fun in 2022, Assistant Head of Adult Reference Molly Bitters and a colleague created and previewed a new winter reading program with a pop-up bookshop to match. The program ran from the beginning of January to the end of February, with patrons self-reporting their logs and reading at the librarian’s desk. Each book read earned one physical ticket. Readers were also entered into a drawing for one of three prizes for each ticket submitted. To create an in-house “book store,” Bitters filled a study room with library discards, donations, vendor swag, and handmade mugs, plushies, and keychains that a staff member created to promote the maker space.

The reaction to the program and bookshop was overwhelmingly positive. Readers enjoyed browsing the prizes and exploring the space which was made available to patrons during the month of February. Bitters reports that library staff received comments from patrons such as, “I’ve got to hurry up and read another book to get that polar bear plushie!” Mugs, featuring literary designs and slogans and made with the maker space Cricut, were difficult to keep in stock due to their popularity. After seeing the positive response during winter reading in 2022, Eisenhower Public Library repeated the same concept during adult and teen summer reading, bringing in the best sign-up and participation statistics the library has ever seen for a summer reading program. Bitters notes that adult and teen patrons were happy to have a program that is “something as fun as the kids get.”

Behind the unique approaches and programs, the core of winter  reading reflects libraries’ ethos of literacy and community  engagement. Andrea Vaughn Johnson, the Youth Services Manager at Wilmette Public Library, shares that the reader’s goal in their reading program is not to track minutes, pages, or books, but rather “to establish or maintain the daily reading habit.” With each innovative program, the future of winter reading programs shines brightly. They are a reminder that reading and the joy of discovery know no season.

A special thanks to all those who were interviewed over the phone or completed the survey to share their experience. More than twenty-five libraries contributed to the data collection through the online survey or through phone or email interviews.

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