As is happening with so many activities this summer, COVID-19 is moving BHML Summer Reading online.

We’ve teamed up with an organization called Beanstack to host the Summer Reading Challenge. That means no passports to stamp this year (which we’ll miss, because they were so much fun!). However, we’ve worked hard to make the website fun too, and we think you’re going to enjoy logging your reading online just as much.

As in past years, Summer Reading will officially kick off on Tuesday, June 23, which would have been Windjammers for Wee Mateys day. On that day, you’ll be able to register an account and start logging your reading at bbhlibrary.beanstack.org

Remember, at BHML Summer Reading is for everyone! We have an adult’s Summer Reading challenge set up, one for high school students, and of course, one for the kids.

Here’s how it will work: 

The first step will be to create an account, which only requires a username and password. You can choose to create a family account or an individual account. (Beanstack has done enough data analysis on their platform to know that moms end up doing the actual logging 80% of the time, so if that sounds like your family, we’d recommend making one account!)

If you go the family route, you can still create individual users within the family, so all of your reading can be tracked separately.

Once you’re registered, you’ll choose your challenge based on your age.

Then, you’ll start reading!

At your own pace, you’ll log your reading on the website. It’s easy--just select the date that you read on the calendar, enter the number of minutes or hours you read for, and add the title and author if you’re so inclined. That’s it!

Every time you complete an hour of reading, you earn a badge. I swear, it’s fun, and you’ll get a kick out of it.

You’ll also be able to enter book reviews. Adults, these are the key to you guys earning prizes.

In previous years, the challenge for adults was to write a six-word book review. This year, because the website offers character restrictions but not word restrictions, we’re asking you to write a twitter-length book review. That means you have just 280 characters to express your thoughts on the book.

Each book review will earn you one ticket into the coveted prize mug drawing.

All the reviews will also be posted to the website (where they’ll be identified by your username, so keep that in mind when you choose one!), so you can browse those to help choose your next book.

Kids get entered into a much better prize drawing than adults--they can read their way to a new bike, donated by the Bay View Masonic Lodge in East Boothbay!  The drawing for the bikes will be in mid-July, to give kids time to cruise in the summer air! So, kids, hit the ground reading on June 23!

They’ll also earn tickets by reading, and will be able to enter those tickets into smaller prize drawings along the way.

Teens! Email me at desiree@bbhlibrary.org to give me some ideas for prizes!  It’s too hard to keep up with you all!

And to everyone, get those books ordered and get ready to read!