Eugene Public Library launches free summer reading program for all ages
Free books, bingo cards and library events are back in Eugene, with no card needed to join and summer programming running through Aug. 31.
Eugene Public Library opened its free Summer Reading program with a full season of books, events and prizes aimed at everyone from babies to adults, giving Lane County families no-cost structure for the long summer break. The program runs through Aug. 31 at the Downtown Library, Bethel Branch and Sheldon Branch, and participants do not need a library card to take part.
The library is pairing reading with a busy calendar of storytimes indoors and in parks, creative workshops, talks, performances and community festivals. Angela Ocaña, the library director, said the program is designed to bring the community together and keep people of different ages reading, exploring and showing up for library events during the summer months. For children and teens, the payoff is immediate: kids and tweens can get a free brand-new book to keep, kids can play Summer Reading book bingo, and teens can enter a raffle for gift cards to book, game and hobby stores by recommending a book for a display. Adults can recommend a book for a separate raffle for bookstore gift cards.
Several of the biggest draws are scheduled in July and August. The Teddy Bear Picnic is set for 11 a.m. July 18 at Amazon Community Center. Lil Comic-Con will be held at 2 p.m. July 31 at the Downtown Library, followed by Teen and Tween Comic-Con at 2 p.m. Aug. 7. Eugene Public Library is also bringing in author Aimee Nezhukumatathil for a talk at 3 p.m. July 25 at the Downtown Library.
Adults have two featured titles this year: Bite by Bite: Nourishments and Jamborees by Aimee Nezhukumatathil and Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto. Book-group discussions for Bite by Bite are scheduled for July 14 at Sheldon Branch and July 23 at Downtown Library. Discussions of Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers are set for Aug. 12 at Bethel Branch and Downtown Library, and Aug. 19 at Sheldon Branch.
The program sits on top of a broader library system that already offers free year-round homework help, e-books, audiobooks, online databases and multilingual tutoring. Eugene Public Library cards are free for people who live within Eugene city limits, for Eugene School District 4J and Bethel School District students regardless of address, and for children age 5 and under in those districts. The summer program is supported by the Friends of Eugene Public Library and the Eugene Public Library Foundation.
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