Give Me Summer! Give Me Books! Returns for Second Year

This week, the ABC Children’s Group at ABA announced the return of Give Me Summer! Give Me Books!, the national summer reading program for kids, open to all ABA member bookstores. The program’s goal is to build a strong community of readers by bringing independent bookstores, local schools, and libraries together to encourage kids to read.

A committee of booksellers from across the country selected the 18 featured titles, which are tailored to children in three different age groups: Kindergarten–Grade 2, Grades 3–5, and Grades 6–8.

Give Me Summer! Give Me Books! challenges young customers to read six books during the summer months. At least three of those six books should be on the list of suggested titles and purchased from a local independent bookstore. Participating stores are then asked to choose appropriate rewards or prizes for children who complete the program, as well as for the local school with the highest number of participating students.

Logos, bookmarks, gift certificates, letter-size and high-resolution posters, a sortable list of titles with ISBNS, a letter-to-schools template, and an updated media kit are available now in BookWeb’s Designs and Downloads.

Booksellers attending the ABC Children’s Institute in San Antonio are encouraged to join a roundtable discussion on Give Me Summer! Give Me Books! to share ideas for getting the most out of the summer reading program by reaching out to schools, partnering with local businesses, creating reading contests, and more.

Below is the full list of titles in the 2014 Give Me Summer! Give Me Books! program:

Grades K–2

• A Birthday for Bear: Candlewick Sparks by Bonny Becker (Candlewick)
• Critter Club #1: Amy and the Missing Puppy by Callie Barkley (Little Simon/S&S)
• Dodsworth in London by Tim Egan (HMH Books for Young Readers)
• Mr. and Mrs. Bunny — Detectives Extraordinaire! by Polly Horvath (Yearling/Random House)
• The Life of Ty: Penguin Problems by Lauren Myracle (Puffin/Penguin)
• Tumtum and Nutmeg: The Rose Cottage Adventures by Emily Bearn (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers/Hachette)

Grades 3–5

• A Tale Dark & Grimm by Adam Gidwitz (Puffin/Penguin)
• Better Nate Than Ever by Tim Federle (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
• Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead (Yearling/Random House)
• One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia (Amistad/HarperCollins)
• Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage (Puffin/Penguin)
• Wings of Fire #1: The Dragonet Prophecy by Tui T. Sutherland (Scholastic Press)

Grades 6–8

• Endangered by Eliot Schrefer (Scholastic Paperbacks)
• Grisha Trilogy #1: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (Square Fish/Macmillan)
• Shadow on the Mountain by Margi Preus (Harry N. Abrams)
• SYLO (Chronicles #1) by D.J. MacHale (Razorbill/Penguin)
• The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd (Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins)
• The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (Scholastic Paperbacks)

Booksellers with questions about the program should contact ABC Children’s Group Manager Matthew Zoni at (800) 637-0037, ext. 7551, or via e-mail.