The Biggest Public Library supported reading challenge in Australia
The Big Summer Read is an annual reading challenge run by Public Libraries Victoria. It is designed to encourage young people 0-18 years to read and engage with their local public libraries over the Australian summer school holidays in December and January.
Now in it’s fifth year, the Big Summer Read has grown to include all public library services in Victoria as well as public libraries in Tasmania, Queensland New South Wales and South Australia. Last year in 2024, more than 24,000 young readers participated in the challenge, and that was just in Victoria!
The program starts on the 1st December and finishes on the 31st January each year and registration is free. Participating library services typically offer incentive prizes for those who complete the challenge as well as a national prize draw to encourage and reward the efforts of young readers.
Join the challenge here https://readbooks.com.au/bsr
How it all started
The ‘summer slide” refers to the decline in academic achievement that occurs during the long summer break when school is not in session. Research shows strong evidence of learning loss—especially in numeracy and, for disadvantaged children, literacy—compared to the school year. These losses can accumulate over time, widening achievement gaps. This matters for libraries and parents because providing access to books and encouraging reading during summer can help slow the slide and support children’s learning continuity.
Public libraries provide an essential and lifelong service for reading and offer opportunities for socialisation, play, and activities that promote literacy. Engaging with public library programs and services can significantly increase a young person’s enjoyment of reading and likelihood of engaging in daily reading. Research shows that even a few books over summer can make a big difference.
The Big Summer Read campaign aims to address the ‘summer slide’ by:
• engaging young people in reading for pleasure
• supporting literacy development
• raising awareness among young people and their families of the resources available to them through public libraries.
A national approach helps position our libraries as vital community resources in early childhood development and ensures all Australians have access to free resources, which have been proven to mitigate these learning declines.
The program starts on 1 December and finishes on 31 January each year.
For all media enquiries please email christine.peters@plv.org.au
General FAQs
Is my library service participating?
Yes! All library services in Victoria and Tasmania participate each year. A select number of libraries in Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia will also participate. Please contact your local library for more information.
Who can participate?
All children between the ages of 0-18 are welcome to participate! Independent and non-independent readers can log any book they read, that is read to them or listened to as an audio. We encourage parents and caregivers to continue to read aloud to young people during the summer school holidays and log their reading as part of the challenge.
Further Reading
Eglitis, E., Miatke, A., Virgara, R., Machell, A., Olds, T., Richardson, M., & Maher, C. (2024). Children’s health, wellbeing and academic outcomes over the summer holidays: A scoping review. Children, 11(3), 287. https://doi.org/10.3390/children11030287