The smell of freshly-pressed ink on crisp pages as your finger traces vertical lines for your eyes to follow — who doesn’t love reading a good book? And with so many genres of books to choose from, the Genre Gauntlet Reading Challenge, new to Shorecrest this year, is a good place to start. 

    The program has gained traction since it was first introduced in September. It challenges participants to read a book from a different genre each month, starting with Sci-Fi & Fantasy, then Horror & Thriller in October, Historical Fiction in November and now Graphic Novels & Manga for December. The only requirement for Upper School students who want to participate is to write a short summary on a book of their choice that is within the genre of the month. And of course, it wouldn’t be a challenge without prizes. Completion of one month’s challenge puts you into a draw for a Starbucks giftcard, completion of 4+ month’s challenges gets you a free book, and completion of all 9 month’s challenges gets your name put permanently on a plaque along with a special surprise!

    MS/US Media & Instructional Technology Specialist Casey Giroud, who didn’t start leisurely reading until college, hopes that the challenge she organized will encourage others to start sooner.

     “I think it helps remind people that even though you are bogged down with so much schoolwork all the time, it’s important to remember to read for fun and to enjoy things you used to like when you had more time,” she said.

    A number of students joined the challenge, but some may be discouraged to join, with one reason being required readings. 

    “I think because of the school books, I stopped reading because I had to read specifically that [book] for class, not for enjoyment,” sophomore Dovev Weaver said. 

    Boring books are another factor. 

    “When I’m just sitting down looking at a page full of words … I kind of just zone out, and I start to think about other things. But if it’s a book that I can relate to, I would read it,” sophomore Bra’Jai Spivey said. 

    A word of advice that Giroud would give to non-participants is: “You haven’t found the right book yet.” This challenge could lead them to finding authors or series that will keep them wrapped in the pages of books forever. 

     Aside from the enjoyment of reading, there are other benefits to joining the challenge.

     “I use [reading] now to kind of wind down before I go to bed. I like how [books] make me imagine things, and I think they’ve definitely helped me English-wise. I’m very good at grammar…because I’ve learned how sentences should be formed,” senior Scout Brummett, a current participant, said. 

    There’s more to the challenge than just reading and academics, however. 

     “I think [the challenge] can help the student body get a chance to get off their phones … read and do something fun that’s not related to technology,” junior Cassan Johnson, another participant, said. 

   To make it more enjoyable, Johnson also suggested that “you could choose the same book as your friend and have your own reading study group.”