Fourth and fifth graders around Seattle are buzzing with book news: The Library has just unveiled the Global Reading Challenge books for 2024-25 on our website at www.spl.org/GlobalReadingChallenge.
For those new to the program, the Global Reading Challenge, now in its 30th year, is a reading incentive program for fourth and fifth graders enrolled in Seattle Public Schools. Students form teams and read selected books, then take part in a trivia competition.
Books are chosen for their accessibility and because they represent a wide range of experiences by authors with cultural connections to the stories they tell. They are chosen because they appeal to all kids, especially those who might not consider themselves readers.
Here are this year’s eight Global Reading Challenge books, which the Library makes available to students in multiple formats:
- Ben Yokoyama and the Cookie of Doom, by Matthew Swanson & Robbi Behr
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Mexikid, Pedro Martín (also in Spanish)
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Miles Lewis: King of the Ice, by Kelly Starling Lyons
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Shiny Misfits, by Maysoon Zayid & Shadia Amin
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Snapdragon, by Kat Leyh
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The Case of Windy Lake, by Michael Hutchinson
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Ways to Make Sunshine, by Renée Watson
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When You Trap a Tiger, by Tae Keller
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Cuando Atrapas un Tigre, by Tae Keller
Even better, listen to our children’s librarians talking about this year’s selections.
The competitions will gear up in 2025. From late January to February 14, trivia teams compete against other teams from their school. The semi-finals take place at the Central Library March 3-21, and the City Final will be the evening of Wednesday, April 2 at the Central Library. The City Final is a thrill for everyone involved.
While the competition is exciting, it starts and ends with the books. At the 2024 final, Loyal Heights’ school librarian Colette Blangy, who worked with the winning team, praised the careful selection of books.
“The fact that SPL makes the books so accessible to kids really makes the program work equitably,” she told a Seattle Public Schools spokesperson. “My favorite part of the challenge is walking around during our meetings and listening to our students really talking about books. It never gets old.”
– Elisa, Communications
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