Aberdeen City Libraries’ annual summer reading challenge returns this week (Saturday June 26) and the city’s readers are being asked to help Library Bear celebrate the Year of Coasts and Waters on his Great Staycation.
The Aberdeen Reads Challenge which runs until Saturday August 21, is open to people of all ages to take part in, either as individuals or as a group, with family and friends encouraged to keep each other reading this summer.
There will be eight reading-related challenges available to try. Working with partners from across the city there will be a range of activities to choose from, covering a broad range of topics such as Mystery Picks, Get Creative and The Great British Book Off.
For every book read or challenge completed, Library Bear will earn 10 'Bear miles' which will see him travel around the Scottish coast. The aim is to have Library Bear travel round the entire coast of Scotland before returning home at the end of summer.
Everyone who takes part in the Aberdeen Reads Challenge will be entered into a prize draw. Additional prize draws for those who help Library Bear travel the furthest.
Councillor Marie Boulton, Aberdeen City Council’s culture spokeswoman, said: “It’s wonderful to welcome back the Reading Challenge. Like Library Bear, even though many of us will be ‘staycationing’ this summer, reading offers us the chance to escape and explore far-flung destinations.
“All sort of reading counts; books or eBooks, fiction or nonfiction, picture books or audiobooks – anything you like to read! Even if you don’t want to do all the challenges, you can still use them as inspiration for what you’re reading."
Updates on Library Bear’s progress around the Scottish coast will appear on Aberdeen City Libraries’ website and social media for throughout the summer. The website will also have bonus activities, challenges and reading suggestions.
The challenge card can be downloaded from the website or picked up at one of the reopened Aberdeen City Libraries and used to record progress. Participants can also share their challenges or what they have been reading online with the hashtag #AberdeenReads. Anyone who is not yet a library member can still join online.
For full details, visit http://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/aberdeenreads