Middle School Madness

The 25 young adults enrolled in C.H. Booth Library’s 2003 summer reading program, “Middle School Madness,” took on a special challenge this summer. Could they read, as a group, enough books to earn credits for livestock to be donated to families in underdeveloped countries through the Heifer International “Read to Feed” program? The answer, according to Booth Library young adult librarian Margaret Brown, is “a resounding Yes!”

At the rate of 50 pages equals one book, the Friends of Booth Library agreed to fund the purchase of a goat (120 books) and a llama (150 books).

The young people entering grades 6-9 reached this bar by the beginning of August, but the best was yet to come, Ms Brown said this week. In two more weeks, they read 478 additional books, more than doubling the first numbers.

The library encourages students to read for enjoyment as well as to fulfill their summer reading requirements. The group read 107 different titles.

The most popular title was J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, read by 15 people.

Most people – 13 – read between 1 and 1,000 pages; five read between 1,001 and 2,000 pages; three participants read between 2,001 and 3,000 pages; three read between 3,001 and 4,000 pages; and one person read 4,805 pages.

Congratulations to all the young adults who participated.