Library Summer Reading Club Kicks Off

The Baltimore County Public Library wants you to know you don't have to leave home to travel the world this summer.

You can go to many places just by checking out books from the library, as part of the annual summer reading club.

The reading program officially started Monday and goes until August 14. You can register for the program online or go to the local library. This year's theme is "One World, Many Stories."

For parents with children who aren't old enough to read, they can read books and work on activities together with the starter packet. Children in kindergarten through fifth grade receive stickers for every five books that they read, marking them on a game board as they go along.

Middle schoolers who read three books get to enter their name for a drawing that includes an iPod Touch and other gift cards.

High school students this year can also participate in a summer reading program of their own for the first time, which includes a drawing for a $50 gift card to Phillips Seafood Restaurant.

Last year's program drew more than 35,000 participants across the county. At the , 2,137 children participated and at Arbutus a total of 749 participated.