Library celebrates Teen Read Week with appearance by award-winning YA author Isabel Quintero
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library will celebrate Teen Read Week (October 18-24, 2015) with special events and programs aimed at encouraging teens around the area to read for the fun of it. Thousands of libraries, schools and bookstores across the country will hold similar events centered on this year’s theme, Get Away @ your library.
A variety of programs to encourage teen reading and use of the library will be offered at libraries throughout Mecklenburg County. Highlighting the week will be a special appearance by Isabel Quintero, author of Gabi, A Girl in Pieces, which was the recipient of the 2015 William C. Morris Award for Debut YA Novel, among many other honors.
The Library will host Quintero at a free event for teens at ImaginOn on October 19 at 6 p.m. She will speak about her writing process, inspiration, career path, and the importance of diversity in literature.
“Literature is where we all go to learn about and from the experiences of others; it helps us relate to one another,” said Quintero. “The omission of certain groups of people from literature in the United States limits that understanding. In a similar way, that omission invalidates the experiences and voices of so many who should be able to see themselves in the society in which they live. I know I didn't see part of myself until I saw my voice reflected in Michele Serros' poetry, and that, as I've said many times before, is when I realized that what I had to say mattered.”
Teen Read Week is a time to celebrate reading for fun while encouraging teens to take advantage of reading in all its forms —books, magazines, e-books, audiobooks and more! It is also a great opportunity to encourage teens to become regular library users.
In recent years, many families have had to adapt to make do with less. Teen Read Week is a great opportunity for teens and their families to learn about all the free services and resources the library offers. The library also offers a safe and supervised space for adolescents to engage in creative, educational activities with caring adults and mentors.
Moreover, according to Charlotte Mecklenburg Library teen lead librarian Britni Cherrington-Stoddart, strong reading skills are more critical than ever because they translate into better performance at school and better preparedness for careers. This is why it is important to take advantage of Teen Read Week and show teens that reading is a fun and relaxing activity they can do for free.
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library invites teens, parents and other concerned community members to participate in special programs and events during Teen Read Week. To learn more, contact your local library branch or visit cmlibrary.org.
Parents of teens are also encouraged to celebrate Teen Read Week at home. Charlotte Mecklenburg Library offers these ideas:
- Set aside time each day for the family to read
- Give books or magazine subscriptions to your teen as a gift or reward
- Share your favorite book with your teen
- Go online with your teen to learn about new books or authors by visiting www.ala.org/yalsa/reads4teens, or use YALSA’s free Teen Book Finder app
- Host a book discussion group
- Build an in-home library (library book sales offer an inexpensive way to do that)
- Listen to audiobooks on trips
- Create a cozy reading corner somewhere in your home
- Use meal time to talk about books that you’re reading
- Parents and caregivers can be role models by making time to read, too
- Incorporate reading into teen chores, such as reading a recipe when cooking, reading instructions for how-to projects, reading sales fliers to develop a shopping list, and more
Support for Charlotte Mecklenburg Library’s Teen Read Week programming has been provided by a Young Adult Library Services (YALSA) Teen Read Week Activity grant. The grant was funded by the Dollar General Literacy Foundation and was awarded to 10 libraries to help fund their literacy-focused Teen Read Week activities.
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