There may still be a couple more days left of school this week for students throughout Philadelphia, but at the Free Library we've already jumped into The Summer of Wonder and our 2015 Summer Reading program!

Monday, June 8 was the kickoff for this year's festivities, as the lobby of Parkway Central filled with local elementary school students eager to read and have fun (and maybe even meet a certain furry green friend!) Illustrator Zach OHora, who designed this year's super cute and cool Summer Reading poster, read aloud to the kids and kids at heart in attendance and took to the drawing board as well to show us a glimpse into the process of being an illustrator. The kickoff wrapped up with a surprise visit from The Phillie Phanatic, which had everyone in attendance dancing and smiling along with the goofy green guy!

2015 marks the 150th anniversary of the publication of Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.  To celebrate the spirit of creativity and exploration, we've created eight weeks of fun and engaging activities for children, teens, and families! Each week from June 15 - August 7 a Summer of Wonder activity will be unlocked on the Summer Reading homepage.

This week's activity is The Amazing Mazing of Magnets! This all-ages activity gives instructions on how to make a unique and fun maze using markers, cardboard, and magnets. There are also supplemental links to videos of how magnets work and books about magnets that you can check out from Free Library.

Visit your local neighborhood library today to signup for Summer Reading and access a Summer of Wonder Kit or signup online, 24/7! Online Summer Reading is available all summer for everyone to participate! Kids, teens, and adults can create their own username and password, where they can then review books for a chance to be entered into a weekly prize drawing.

Check back weekly on our Summer Reading page for new Summer of Wonder activities and prize winners!