Back in December, we teased a new reading program in development at the Aurora Public Library District. The time has now come to officially let the secret out. Introducing… Expand Your Shelf! A year-long, self-paced reading challenge for ages 16 and up. With 12 different reading prompts, Expand Your Shelf aims to encourage you to read genres you might not have picked on your own.
It’s okay to have a favorite genre, most readers do, but sometimes you get in a rut of choosing the same things all the time. Predict the ‘plot-twist’ much? The goal of this program is to get participants to read different types of books and experience the amazing range of novels and stories out there. “We’re encouraging customers to explore the library’s collections, whether they read print, eBooks, audiobooks or graphic novels,” said reader’s services coordinator, Becky. “APLD offers readers so much, and I hope the Expand Your Shelf reading challenge will inspire customers to find stories that resonate with them!”
We’re also hoping for a resurgence of reading purely for enjoyment in adults. Since our current reading incentive programs are primarily aimed at younger readers, Expand Your Shelf was designed specifically for adults. The prompts were chosen to promote thoughtful reading, where the goal is not how fast or how long you read. We hope the challenge takes you on a journey that allows you to enjoy reading for fun and personal satisfaction again (or perhaps for the first time).
With prompts such as “Who Dun It?” (mysteries and crime novels), “Armchair Traveler”, (a novel set somewhere other than the United States), and “Short & Sweet” (a book less than 250 pages), the goal is to read or listen to one book for each prompt over the course of the year. You can choose any book that fits that category or ask us for suggestions! We have suggested reading lists for all the prompts on our website. When you’ve read a book from all 12 genres, you are rewarded with a fantastic tote bag, perfect for carrying your library books (or anything else). “Participants can use their Expand Your Shelf bookmark logs to write down the titles for each category, and you can rate them as well”, said Becky. “It’s a really fun way to track your reading progress on the challenge.” Readers can also track their reading online or with the Beanstack Tracker app. Plenty of options to set you up for reading success!
Are you up for the challenge to expand your shelf? Registration for Expand Your Shelf is open online at www.aurorapubliclibrary.org/ExpandYourShelf or at any library location. We’re so excited to share this new opportunity with you. Who knows? The biggest plot twist of the year might be discovering a new favorite genre.
Andrea Tiberi is the communications coordinator for the Aurora Public Library District.