World Book Night: PSST--Do you like to read? I do, too. Would you like a book?

Sara Swenson, Librarian/Media Specialist, Edina High School It’s just that easy to be a World Book Night giver.  World Book Night (WBN) occurs each year on April 23^rd, and is an evening where reading is celebrated around the world.  “Spreading the love of reading, person to person” is the goal of the event. The date is central to the mission of WBN as it is the UNESCO International Day of the Book, as well as Shakespeare’s birthday. How does World Book Night work?  It’s simple!  You apply to be a giver at the WBN site and then wait with fingers crossed to be chosen.  Givers pick up their books from a local bookstore and then on April 23rd, they share the book with readers.  At Edina High School, our giver Emma Westbrook hands out copies of books to her peers.  Emma has been our designated giver these past two years and I chose her for this project because of her passion for reading.  Emma helps pick which book to give.  Last year she chose Looking for Alaska because, as she notes: “I think of John Green as ‘our school’s author’ because so many students read his books and the juniors in U.S. Literature read The Fault in Our Stars as part of their required course reading.”  This year Emma has chosen to give away copies of Maria Semple’s Where’d you go, Bernadette.  She read it as a member of our school Breakfast Book Club and knew her peers would enjoy it, too.  “It’s just the kind of fun thing you want to read after your AP exams are done!” Emma is a fantastic ambassador for reading at Edina High School. World Book Night allows her to give away 20 copies of a great book.  It’s a powerful thing for a classmate to give you a book and say “Here take this.  It’s a great story and I think you’ll like it.  And when you’re done, share it with one of your friends.” We’re givers.  You can be one, too!