My favorite book this summer.

“Reading Summer” at our house is that brief time of year when we have the opportunity to read whatever we want, without the distraction of assigned reading. I enjoy reading. I  actually find my textbooks engaging. There is something, though, about having an entire three weeks to binge on my own reading choices that makes me giddy. My son does not enjoy reading like I do. For most of the year, it is a chore he must engage in to not fail his English Language Arts classes. During the summers, though, reading has begun to come alive for him. My husband is a voracious reader like me, but he was unable to participate in Reading Summer this year because he was reading legal manuals for an Army course–riveting, I’m sure, but assigned.

My Reading Summer wasn’t three whole weeks solely dedicated to reading, but it was three whole weeks dedicated to reading what I chose. And it reinforced for me everything I expressed in my early summer post Death to (Assigned) Summer Reading! Long Live Summer Reading! about how important it is to allow people time during which they are free to choose what they read–not from a list or for points, just for enjoyment. My fifth-going-into-sixth grade son’s quirky summer reading choices, which mostly involved kids-with-super-powers novels and informational texts, was a great reflection of his personality. It was also a relief to see the ease with which he read. He read with ease not because the material was “easy,” but because he had chosen it and could abandon it at any time for something better if he didn’t like it.

My second favorite Summer Read was our September book club pick! Serendipitous, eh?

I read with ease these last few weeks, too. I also abandoned books that didn’t work for me. It was liberating.

I hope you are able to carve out some space and reading time in your year to take a reading vacation, too. Not a vacation from reading, or a vacation from daily life, but a serious chunk of  time that you are able to set aside for the sole purpose of reading things that interest you–that you already love or may grow to love.

I would also love to hear about your favorite book to read for pleasure–at the moment or “of all time!” Please join the conversation by adding your favorite book (or for even more fun, you most quickly abandoned book!) in the comments below.