Kimberly wants to know: if you could read any book for the first time again, what would you pick?

If you could go back and read any book/series for the first time again, what would you pick?

This was a Top Ten Tuesday topic back in 2011, so it will seem familiar, however, I was dying to talk about it and see what others would say.

For me, my automatic reaction is, and will most likely always be: Harry Potter.

But this got  me thinking about other books/series that really affected me. What other books would I want to experience again?

The first one that came to mind is the Fire and Thorns series. I ADORE those books, and have read the series twice. However, reading it for the first time was magical. I wish I could recapture that feeling!

The next one I thought of was The Book Thief. Oh, that book. I have suggested it to everyone I can possibly think of. I remember getting the chills the first time I picked it up and was introduced to Death's unique narrative. The storytelling is beautiful. Heartbreaking, but wonderful.

So You Want to Be a Wizard. This is the series that introduced me to the wonderful quote “Reading one book is like eating just one potato chip.” I immediately identified with the characters and fell head over heels in love with the story. I was 12 when I first read it, I'd love to experience that feeling of delight I had when I read it.

Those books were the ones that stuck out to me the most, though there are others. What about you? What would you pick?? Please, share in the comments below!

Tahleen remembers Summer Reading at the library

As a public youth librarian, I have the great honor and responsibility of organizing and executing the Summer Reading Program, along with my director and the children's librarian. This week I'll be going to the public school to tell my young patrons all about it, and I can't help but remember the summer reading programs of my youth.

It was one of my favorite things about summer. I was a voracious reader, and summer was that magical time where I could literally lie in bed for 6 hours and read an entire book. And back then, I didn't have a TBR or the Internet to tell me which books were good or bad, or which authors were popular. I browsed freely and often, finding books on the library shelves based solely on the back descriptions, and maybe a recommendation from a friend every once in a while.

And the excitement of the prizes! I loved filling out my little sheet with each book I read, earning myself raffle entries for gift certificates and other prizes from local businesses. Sometimes I would even get the call that I had won something, and I would beg my mom to bring me to the library so I could pick it up.

Funnily enough, the summer reading program for the kids in the town where I work is similar to what I remember from my childhood. I am hoping these kids will remember this summer reading program as fondly as I remember my own.

Did you all take part in your library's summer reading program? What do you remember best about it? Or did you just love to boundless possibilities summer brought?