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Unearth a Story This Summer
June 9, 2026 - This summer the Somerset County Library System of New Jersey (SCLSNJ) invites readers of all ages to join the Summer Reading Challenge from June 22 to August 22, 2026. This year’s theme of Unearth a Story™ offers participants the opportunity to dig into a story, uncover the past, or discover something new. Through reading, attending programs, and connecting with their local library, participants will discover that everyone has a story just waiting to be found and shared.
The goal of the Summer Reading Challenge is to create an engaging and fun way to encourage reading and maintain skills over the summer. Each year, SCLSNJ’s challenge consistently reaches over 4,000 participants throughout Somerset County, with over 500,000 total books read. The challenge supports lifelong learning with programs, reading recommendations, activities, and prizes. Whether this is a participant’s first summer reading or their 10th, this challenge offers something for everyone.
How to participate:
Sign Up: Visit SCLSNJ.org/SummerReading and sign up, starting June 19, through Beanstack, a web-based tool participants use to track days of reading and activities via the website or app. Or sign up in person at any SCLSNJ branch service desk.
Earn points and badges: As participants track reading and activities, they earn points and badges. Badges are earned for completing activities and for reaching certain achievement levels in the challenge overall. Activities that earn points include: visiting a library branch and asking for that branch’s secret dinosaur name, attending a library program, writing book reviews, voting for the Garden State Book Awards, and signing up for the Unlocking to 250 Year of History Challenge.
Collect Prizes: Once an achievement level badge is earned (3 levels total), participants can head to any SCLSNJ branch to pick up a prize.
“We’re excited about the challenge this year as it was designed with flexibility in mind in order to encourage more engagement and attract reluctant readers.” says Karen Telesco, SCLSNJ System Program Coordinator. “The challenge acts as a nice excuse to read more, visit the library, and interact with the community. Whether participants want to reach their personal reading goals, help their child improve their skills, or read to a pre-reader, we have them covered. Plus, they get rewarded along the way, what’s not to like?”
Signature Summer Programs
As a part of the Unearth a Story™ Summer Reading Challenge, SCLSNJ will offer a variety of programming throughout the summer centered around history and discovery. Children and adults can delve into the past through hands-on activities and lectures, from learning about the age of dinosaurs to the Revolutionary War and America’s 250th birthday.
Adults can join Dr. Dana Ehret, Curator of Natural History for the New Jersey State Museum, and learn about New Jersey’s rich fossil record in Bones in Our Backyard: Exploring New Jersey's Fossil Record, with several sessions in June and July, starting June 13 at the Manville branch at 2 p.m.
On July 31, families with children ages 2 and up are invited to meet and interact with Terry the T-Rex and his other realistic animatronic and puppet dinosaur friends, hear a story, and dig for fossils with Dinosaurs Arise, held at the Manville branch at 1 p.m. and the Wilson Memorial Church in Watchung at 4 p.m.
If you can’t attend a program in person, check out the virtual program From Trenton to Yorktown: Turning Points of the Revolutionary War and hear from author John R. Maass about the five critical military events that changed the outcome of the Revolutionary War on June 30 at 7 p.m. Please note some programs require registration.
To learn more about this year’s Summer Reading Challenge, visit sclsnj.org/SummerReading.