The Louisville Free Public Library’s annual 10-week Summer Reading Program, presented by the Library Foundation, encourages children and teens to read for fun over the summer and helps them avoid summer learning loss. Summer Reading 2025 ran from May 28–August 2.
Congratulations to the 27,335 children, teens, and caregivers that completed the program and helped make this year the 6th biggest in LFPL Summer Reading history. This was truly one for the books!
How to participate:
To complete the program:
- School-aged children (K–5th grade) read 10 books.
- Preschool-aged children (newborn–preK) read, or have read to them, 20 books.
- Teens (6–12th grade) read 6 books.
Simply read the required number of books, log them online or on a Summer Reading form, and then stop by any library branch by August 2 to receive great prizes!
What are the prizes?
- A glow-in-the-dark backpack
- Passes to:
- Fazoli’s Lemon Ice
- Ehrler’s Ice Cream
All kids who complete summer reading will also be entered to win Grand prizes from Carmichael's Bookstore, Derby Dinner Playhouse, Kentucky Kingdom, KMAC, StageOne, Texas Roadhouse, and YMCA. Drawings take place at the end of Summer Reading.
Teen Summer Reading Challenge
Teens ages 12-19 only need to read 6 books to complete Summer Reading. Read and log your books between May 28 – August 2 to earn a glow-in-the-dark backpack, along with sweet treats and passes to area attractions.
All teens who complete Summer Reading will also have a chance to win Grand prizes from Breakout Games, Legend at Pope Lick, Sandbox VR, and more in teens-only prize drawings.
Cultural Pass
The new Cultural Pass app is available for download at CulturalPass.app or wherever you download your apps. Presented by the Fund for the Arts, Cultural Pass offers young people ages 0-21 and their families in the Greater Louisville and Southern Indiana area access to participate in arts, culture, science, history, heritage, and nature activities provided by over 50 venues, free of charge, from May 31 through August 10, 2025. Start your summer adventures to discover new experiences throughout Greater Louisville! Go to https://fundforthearts.org/culturalpass/ for more information.
Babies, toddlers, and preschool-aged children are also eligible for the Summer Reading Program. Preschool-age children and younger need to read (or have read to them) 20 books to complete the Summer Reading program. Reading to preschool-aged children builds vocabulary, language skills, and helps prepare them with the skills they need for kindergarten.
These books also count towards the 1000 Books Before Kindergarten Challenge, a Library program that encourages all families and caregivers to read at least 1,000 books with their young children before they enter kindergarten. In as little as 15 minutes a day, families can build the skills for future school and life success.