As always, it was a pleasure to attend the system-wide NYPL Summer Reading Kickoff at the Edenwald Library on June 9, 2016. I have attended this event for years, but this was my first experience volunteering at the event. I helped set up a mobile book cart with circulating books, and we put free books on tables for visitors to the library. It was great to see the staff of the Edenwald Library. We were getting geared up for an exciting day of speakers and programs for the public that focused on reading during the summer!

Get in the Game and Read This Summer

Manny Martinez, library manager of Allerton Library, emceed the event. He introduced the President of NYPL, Tony Marx. Marx let everyone know that reading can be done anywhere, including the library, and that kids and adults can read anything during the summer. He wanted kids to avoid the summer slide, which is losing grasp of literacy skills gained during the school year due to lack of reading. 

Ray Johnson from HSBC, an executive sponsor of summer reading, told the audience about a fascinating book that he is currently reading. He knows that strong communities have strong library systems, and wants to support that. He encouraged the audience to get in the game during the summer and read.

NYC Council Supports Libraries

Andy King, NYC Council Member of the 12th District, which includes the Edenwald library, spoke next. He is also the chair of the Subcommittee on Libraries for the NYC Council. He announced the amazing news that $43 million has been baselined for libraries in the Fiscal Year 2017 NYC Budget. King opined that reading is great because you can learn about foreign lands even if you cannot afford to visit them. Reading is cool, he told the crowd. He was joined on the stage by a young girl who is an avid reader. She told the crowd that she does indeed have a library card.  

Author Reading

Author Kwame Alexander took the stage next. He has written 21 books, including Crossover and Booked. He asked the crowd to help him read one of his picture books, Surf's Up. He asked the left side of the audience to repeat a line or a question after him. Then, the right side of the audience would do the same. The effect was that it appeared that the two sides of the audience were reading the book to each other. 

Performing Arts Outside Edenwald Library

New World High School had singers and dancers perform. There was a Moroccan cane dance and a Middle Eastern dance. Also, they had a few singers sing the song "Hello" and "Happy." It was great to see the kids perform. It is terrific that there is still a focus on arts education in the city, since we need arts and creativity along with science and technology in our society in order to prosper and enjoy all aspects of life.

Author Talk

Kwame Alexander gave a talk to the kids inside the library after all of the action outside. He gave away free autographed books, and he did a rap with the kids. When he opened the floor for questions, this was the response:

• What inspired him to become a poet: Alexander's mother loved poetry, and she supported him in that endeavor.
• Is he a rapper: Yes.
• Does he like poetry enough to make a poetry library: Yes, he loves poetry because of all of the white space, where people can use their imaginations to think of what is not on the page.
• What will his next book be like: He is currently writing a book about a swimmer in Africa in the nineteenth century. 
• Will he ever make a book about a runner like Jesse Owens: He had not thought of that possibility.
• Will he write a book about a female athlete: He will consider writing a book about a female tennis player.

Alexander closed with a story about the importance of perseverance. He told the audience about a time when he wrote a story that was fifty pages long. He submitted it to a publisher, and he received a rejection letter. He then rewrote the story to be 100, 150, 200, and 218 pages long. Each time, he was rejected. He then sent the manuscript to twenty different publishing houses. The story was always the same: poetry does not work for boys. Frustrated, he decided to self-publish the book. After he self-published, a publisher contacted him who wanted to publish the book. The book was Crossover. Then, one day, he got a call from the Newbery Medal Committee in 2015 that his book had won the award. Alexander believes that it is important to embrace all of the nos because you only need one yes. He urged the kids to stay in the game and read.

This year's summer reading kickoff was terrific, and the Edenwald Library was a new location for this event. Hope that you can join us next year!

• Summer Reading web site
• Books about summer reading
• Kwame Alexander's web site