“Read It Forward†is Moving Forward!
One of the most popular tables at the Youth Services Section’s Table Talks Workshop [during the 2013 NYLA Annual Conference] was the “Read It Forward†table.’ This presentation was given by Deena Viviani, a Young Adult, Programming, and Circulation Services Librarian for the Brighton Memorial Library in Rochester, NY. ‘ Deena credits the idea to a presentation she attended at the YALSA Symposium in St. Louis, MO, in November of 2012 – given by YA Librarian Carrie Dietz – so it appears that this idea has quite a bit of forward momentum already! ‘ ‘ 
During her Table Talk, Viviani spoke about how librarians in the Monroe County Library System (MCLS) were looking for a way to increase participation in the Greater Rochester Teen Read (GRTR) – which encourages parents and teens to all read the same book and then meet with authors at schools and local libraries during Teen Read Week.’ When she saw Dietz’ presentation, she thought “Read It Forward†would be an excellent way to build on the existing GRTR model.’ Thanks to cooperation with their local schools, contributions from both the system and individual MCLS libraries, contributions from Friends of the Library groups, and a YALSA/Dollar General Grant, they were able to purchase over 100 copies of A.S. King’s Everybody Sees the Ants and to host author visits to local libraries, local schools, and the Monroe County Children’s Detention Center.
I am pretty sure the success of Viviani’s Table Talk means “Read It Forward†projects are going to start springing up all over NY.’ In fact, I know my own library system [the Upper Hudson Library System] is in the process of starting our own “Read It Forward†project for 2014!’ Hopefully, now that the idea is featured in YALSA’s Virtual Road Trip as well, “Read It Forward†will start popping up all over the US!
Submitted by Chrissie Morrison, President of NYLA YSS
