Fairfax County Public Library’s annual Summer Reading Adventure is back.
Kids and adults alike will be able to start logging books and activities tomorrow (Wednesday), though registration for the program has been open since June 4.
Everyone who registers for the program in advance will be entered into a drawing for a $25 e-gift card from Scrawl Books in Reston, which has provided a total of 80 e-gift cards. Twenty cards each will be awarded to preschoolers, school-age children, teens and adults.
As in previous years, participants can complete the program and win prizes by earning either 15 virtual badges for children or 10 badges for adults. Badges are given for reading or listening to a book for 20 to 30 minutes, or attending a library program.
Provided by program sponsors, this year’s coupon book includes free guest passes to the Fairfax County Park Authority’s rec centers, discounts on books from Scrawl, Old Town Books and Hooray for Books in Alexandria, free admission to George Washington’s Mount Vernon, treats from Wendy’s and Potbelly, and more.
The theme of the 2025 Summer Reading Adventure is “Color Our World.”
“Every book you read adds a new shade to your summer, whether you’re reading at home, in the park or on the go,” a public service announcement for the program says.
With the launch of the summer reading program, FCPL and the nonprofit Fairfax Library Foundation are also reviving the Children’s Summer Reading Festival for a third year.
The event will bring food trucks, games and crafts, live entertainment, face painting and other family-friendly activities to Sherwood Regional Library (2501 Sherwood Hall Lane) in Fort Hunt on Saturday (June 14) from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“The festival marks the Foundation’s third year hosting the free community event to encourage summer reading among preschool- and school-age children and to prevent learning loss over summer break,” the Fairfax Library Foundation said in a press release.
According to the foundation, which provides fundraising support for the library’s programs and services, the children’s reading festival has seen a steady increase in attendance since it was introduced in June 2023. In the past, a second festival has been held at the end of the summer reading program, which will wrap up on Aug. 17 this year.
The two 2024 festivals — which were hosted by the renamed Culmore Community Library in June and Chantilly Regional Library in August — drew more than 3,600 attendees combined.
With the festivals helping raise awareness, FCPL saw a record number of summer reading program participants last year, the foundation says. A total of 23,283 people, including 16,704 kids and teens, took part in the 2024 program, a 12% increase from 2023.
