Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library’s Summer Reading Program is back. This year’s theme is ‘Tails and Tales’ and it will feature both real and imaginary animals. The Summer Reading Program runs from Tuesday, June 1 to Saturday, July 31.
Chris Sturgeon, Learning Experiences consultant for Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library, said, “Like previous summers, we have many fun and amazing things in store for our customers. We will be offering reading challenges, virtual events and classes, cool tech prizes, book giveaways, fun activities and more.”
Sturgeon added, “In keeping with this year’s theme, there will be several programs featuring virtual animal encounters. In addition, our programming lineup will include magic, music, science, trivia and much more. Funding for our summer programs is provided by Friends of the Library of Tampa-Hillsborough County, Inc.”
Participants will track their reading progress and be eligible to win books, digital cameras and even hoverboards. Summer prizes will be awarded to reading challenge participants, program attendance and engaging with the library on social media. All winners will be drawn from a pool of eligible customers. There are reading challenges for kids, tweens and teens as well as adults. Participants who meet reading deadlines and complete activities will be eligible to win some fantastic tech prizes.
Participants can take part in live virtual events from home. These include animal acts, magic shows, science programs, storytellers and fun events for all ages. The programs will be offered every Tuesday at 2 p.m., Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. and Thursday at 11 a.m.
Sturgeon said, “Of course, Summer Reading would not be possible without the help and support of our participating community partners. We are proud to be teaming up with ZooTampa at Lowry Park, Hillsborough County Pet Resources Department, Friends of the Library of Tampa-Hillsborough County, Inc., Hillsborough County Parks & Recreation and Tampa-Hillsborough County Children’s Library Foundation. Some of these partners are generously donating prizes and will also be presenting virtual events.”
For more information about all aspects of the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library’s Summer Reading Program, including the programming schedule, reading challenges and prizes, please visit www.hcplc.org/summer.
