By Violet Li
Australia’s loved audiobook narrator Stig Wymess guested Brentwood Park Primary School in Berwick on Thursday 14 December to promote reading across the summer holidays.
Stig voiced over 50 children’s audio books, including the much loved 13-Storey Treehouse by Andy Griffiths, the Tom Weekly series by Tristan Bancks, and Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton.
He captivated more than 200 grade three students with his passion for reading, raising the awareness of the merits of reading.
The Big Summer Read is an annual challenge organised by Public Libraries Victoria to help stem the drop in reading confidence caused by children not reading across the summer.
It entices them to read on the holidays through qualifying them for the Connected Libraries and State-wide prize draws if they can read and log a minimum of 10 books across December and January.
Children who record their reading online through the Beanstack App will be eligible for the State-wide prize draws.
Local prize draws include a Nintendo Switch and five $50 Robinson Book Vouchers.
The project encouraged over 10,000 participants last year across the state to read and engage with their local library services.
Connected Libraries chief executive officer Beth Luppino said the aim of The Big Summer Read Challenge was for children to read and log as many books as they could over summer.
“Connected Libraries branches are open over the school holidays, drop in, use the free WiFi and let the kids choose a bag of books to keep reading,” she said.
The Big Summer Read Challenge runs from 1 December to Wednesday 31 January 2024.
To enter the local prize draw, drop into any Connected Libraries branch and pick up a paper entry form.
For more information, visit: https://www.connectedlibraries.org.au/big-summer-read/
