Mt. Pleasant to offer adult summer reading challenge

MT. PLEASANT — The city library has announced a reading program for adult patrons this summer, its first one since 2019.

The program looks a little different — and more competitive — than in years past. It’s now a reading challenge, with participants given a list of prompts which they can check off as they finish books, rather than a list of specific books to read over the summer.

“People can come in and pick up the form … on the sheet, there are several prompts they can read from,” Mt. Pleasant Library Director Kayleigh Septer said. “One of the prompts is a book published in 2022, or a book with a recipe in it, or a book with a misleading title, so there’s several different prompts that people can choose from.”

Septer said patrons could do their own research to find books that met each prompt, or could ask librarians for their recommendations. The books themselves can come from anywhere, not just the library.

“If they’ve already got a book in their collection that fits the prompt, they’re more than welcome to read it,” she said. “We would like it to be checked out from the library, of course, but if we don’t have it or they already have it, we can work with that.”

After several years away, Septer said the adult reading program’s return was prompted by popular demand.

“We had people asking about it, we had patrons come in and say, ‘Are you going to be doing an adult program?’ so we thought we would accommodate that,” she said. “I think (it’s) just the chance to read books that might not be something they would normally read, or even think about reading. I know a lot of us, myself included, get into a rhythm of what they read and they might not branch out a little more, so it kind of gives people a chance to do that.”

Books eligible for the challenge must be read between June 6 and Sept. 30, and previously completed books don’t count unless they’re reread in that time window. Sheets are due Oct. 1, with prizes for first, second and third place awarded the following week.

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com