Adult
Summer Reading
AGES 18+
JUNE 8 through August 1
- Dig a little deeper this summer by exploring ancient archeology. Each time you complete a “Dig” (by reading 1000 pages of your choice), bring your log into the library for a small reward. Dig sites include three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, “Göbekli Tepe” (1000 pages,) “Skara Brae” (2000 pages,) and “Poverty Point” (3000 pages).
- You can earn extra page points by completing activities listed inside your log. Each activity may be used only once, but can be earned at any time during your excavation. In Beanstack, make sure you log the correct number of pages of reading under the “LOGGING” badge area for each additional activity you complete!
- Your final Reading Goal is 3000 pages with checkins at every 1000 pages.
- Digital books and audios are also allowed. Libby is available for free through your app store. Learn how to use it at our Digital Items page or come talk to a librarian.
- Any reading done before June 8th DOES NOT COUNT towards summer reading challenges.
- You must have your initialed paper log OR have logged your reading online to claim your prize.
- You must choose either paper or online for the duration of the program, you cannot go back and forth.
- Come to the Madison Library District lobby when you have completed an excavation (every 1000 pages) to receive a prize. You can collect a new prize every two weeks!
- If you successfully complete your log by reading 3000 pages before Saturday, August 1st, you’ll be entered into our final drawings and receive five $1 coupons to use towards any unfortunate future fine incidents that may occur.
Program may not be repeated! Only 1 set of prizes per person per summer.
NO PRIZES will be given after Saturday, August 1, 2026.
Prizes
You can read ahead of schedule, but prizes won’t be available until their release date. If you miss a week, you can collect it the next time.
For example, if you come in July 6, and haven’t gotten any prizes yet, you can pick up prize number 1 and 2. If you’ve read past that point, and are ready for prize 3, you’ll have to wait until July 20 to get that next prize.
Prizes will be available any time after their first availability date until August 1, while supplies last.
NO PRIZES AFTER AUGUST 1
Prize Schedule
- Weeks 1 & 2: June 8-20: Program sign-ups only; no prizes available yet
- Week 3 & 4: June 22-July 2: Prize 1 available starting June 22
- Week 5 & 6: July 6-18: Prize 2 available starting July 6
- Week 7 & 8: July 20-August 1: Prize 3 available starting July 20
- Last Day to Sign Up: July 25
- Last Day to Collect Prizes: August 1
Dig Sites (Additional Activities)
#1 - Göbekli Tepi
9500 BCE – Present
Turkey
#2 - Skara Brae
3200 BCE – Present
Orkney Islands of Scotland
#3 - Poverty Point
1700 BCE – Present
Louisiana
Bonus Points
for Our Year of Local and National Commemoration
Flood 50
50th Anniversary of the Teton Dam Flood
America 250
America Turns 250 Years Old
Göbekli Tepe
9500 BCE – Present
Turkey
The number next to each activity is the number of “pages” you can count on your log
100 — Read a book set in the Middle East.
100 — Read a book set over 2000 years ago.
100 — Read a book written over 1000 years ago.
100 — Read a book about archeology or an archeologist.
100 — Read a book set in the desert.
100 — Read a book set in a temple.
50 — Watch a documentary on Gobekli Tepe such as Stone Age Temple Mystery from PBS.
50 — Study the night sky.
50 — Hunt for interesting stones.
50 — Plan a gathering for friends.
50 — Research three other major archeological sites in Turkey.
50 — Hike to a mountain top.
50 — Visit a place you consider sacred.
50 — Eat a food that Turkey is known for.
Skara Brae
3200 BCE – Present
Orkney Islands of Scotland
The number next to each activity is the number of “pages” you can count on your log
100 — Read a book written over 500 years ago.
100 — Read a book set by the ocean.
100 — Read a book set in the British Isles.
100 — Read a book about a farmer or rancher.
100 — Read a book where the main character must abandon their home.
50 — Watch a documentary on Skara Brae such as Skara Brae: Orkney’s Neolithic Heart by Geographics.
50 — Research three other Neolithic sites in Scotland.
50 — Find the oldest thing in your community and estimate its age.
50 — Write about five things in your home that future archeologists might find interesting.
50 — Experiment with cooking oats, barley, or lentils.
50 — Go somewhere you can wriggle your toes in the sand.
50 — Eat a food that Scotland is known for.
Poverty Point
1700 BCE – Present
Louisiana
The number next to each activity is the number of “pages” you can count on your log
100 — Read a book written over 200 years ago.
100 — Read a book about time travel.
100 — Read a book set in Louisiana.
100 — Read a book by a Native American author.
100 — Read a book about a trader or merchant.
50 — Go fishing.
50 — Harvest and eat a wild edible plant.
50 — Attend a community event.
50 — Watch a documentary on Poverty Point such as Mystery Mounds at Poverty Point by Time Team.
50 — Research three other mound-building sites.
50 — Plan a Louisiana-themed pot luck.
50 — Identify five native plants in your community.
50 — Learn how to knap an arrowhead.
50 — Make a trade.
Flood 50
50th Anniversary of the Teton Dam Flood
The number next to each activity is the number of “pages” you can count on your log
50 — Visit the Teton Dam site.
50 — Wade in a river.
50 — Watch Darby O’Gill and the Little People.*
100 — Read a book on Idaho history.
100 — Read a book by an Idaho author.
*Film showed at the Manwaring Center to distract children while adults watched the flood go through town.
America250
250th Anniversary of our Nation
The number next to each activity is the number of “pages” you can count on your log
50 — Document an act of service on America250 in Idaho Ambassadors’ Service Challenge.
50 — Attend a patriotic event.
50 — Read the Declaration of Independence.
50 — Read the Constitution and its amendments.
50 — Watch a film set during the Revolutionary War.
100 — Read a biography of a U.S. founder.
Creative Writing Club
Wednesdays, June 18 & 25, and July 2, 16, & 30, at 6:00 pm
June 18 we’ll meet in the Activity Room
Share your writing with other storytelling enthusiasts or join to make friends! Join the Creative Writers Club for ages 18+. We will share your favorite piece of writing and talk about why writing is our passion.
Thursday, June 26, 2024, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good
by Helene Tursten
Ever since her darling father’s untimely death when she was only eighteen, Maud has lived in the family’s spacious apartment in downtown Gothenburg rent-free, thanks to a minor clause in a hastily negotiated contract. That was how Maud learned that good things can come from tragedy. Now in her late eighties, Maud contents herself with traveling the world and surfing the net from the comfort of her father’s ancient armchair. It’s a solitary existence, but she likes it that way.
Over the course of her adventures—or misadventures—this little bold lady will handle a crisis with a local celebrity who has her eyes on Maud’s apartment, foil the engagement of her long-ago lover, and dispose of some pesky neighbors. But when the local authorities are called to investigate a murder in her apartment complex, will Maud be able to avoid suspicion, or will Detective Inspector Irene Huss see through her charade?
book 1 in the Elderly Lady series
Ratings and Reviews from the Librarians
Cathy rated it ★★★★ and said “Oh, my, she really is. A one sitting read for me!”
Short Story Contest
Entries may be submitted anytime between June 3 and June 28
Do you love writing?
Enter the Madison Library District’s short story writing contest and you could win a prize and be featured in our newsletter!
Our theme is “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” Based on the famous Dr. Seuss tale of facing life’s ups and downs, tell us a story of the places you’ll go, Fiction or Non-fiction are accepted.
The contest winner will be awarded a $100 gift card to Barnes and Noble. The winner will be announced Friday, July 26th and will be featured in our August newsletter.
Email submissions ONLY accepted. Must be 18 or older to enter.
RULES
Entries are submitted online via email: Submit to programs@madisonlib.org
The contest is open to writers 18-years-old and up. No minors may enter the contest.
No employees, relatives of employees, or former employees of the Library or its divisions are eligible.
Entries must be 1,500-2,000 words in length. It must not exceed 2,000 words. Entries that do not meet this requirement will not be accepted.
Entries are allowed to be either fiction or nonfiction so long as they meet the requirements of the theme.
No entries containing violence or derogatory, racist, or sexist language or situations will be accepted, at the sole discretion of the judges.
No published works will be accepted. An “unpublished piece” means it has not been published anywhere. Published work includes anything posted on your own blog, someone else’s, or through a magazine or book. The idea is to get you writing and thinking creatively while following submission guidelines with a new piece.
You can submit your entry anytime before the deadline of the contest. Entries open June 3, 2024 and end June 28, 2024. All submissions must meet the entry deadline.
Entries should be text only and may not include illustrations or photographs.
Proofread your entry before submitting. Follow these contest rules, just as you would a publisher’s submission guidelines.
The winners will be announced on our Facebook page, on our website, and in our newsletters. We reserve the right to first publication of the winning entries in our newsletter, after which all rights revert to the authors. We do not own your work product in any way, shape, or form.
All entries will be read by judges chosen by the Madison Library District staff. Winners will be notified by email (or other means) approximately 30 days after the close of the contest.
Formatting
- Double space your entry.
- Margins should be one inch all around.
- Use Times New Roman or Courier, 12-point font.
- Do not include a cover page with your entry.
- Submissions will only be accepted as a PDF or Word document.
- Be sure to list your name, library card number, email, and title of your submission in the email sent with your submission.
- Entries will only be considered within the deadline, June 3, 2024, through June 28, 2024.
*Entries that do not meet these requirements will not be accepted*
Adult (and Teen!) Makers
Friday, June 30, at 7:00 pm
Drawn Together: Post-it-art creations!
Everyone will do a small piece and then discover what happens when we come together. Teens 12 and older are also welcome to participate!
Dungeons and Dragons
Tuesdays, June 17 & 24, and July 1, 15, & 29 at 5:30 pm
Calling all adventurers!
Calling all adventurers! Dive into a world of imagination, strategy, and camaraderie with our new Dungeons & Dragons program for adults. Whether you’re a seasoned Dungeon Master or a curious beginner, this is your chance to embark on epic quests, battle fearsome foes, and shape your own story in the world’s greatest tabletop role-playing game.
Led by an experienced Dungeon Master, each session will transport you to fantastical realms where the only limit is your creativity. New to D&D? No problem! We’ll provide pre-made characters and guidance to get you started on your journey. Come solo or with friends to forge alliances and make memories that will last a lifetime.
For Adults ages 18+ who are ready to embark on thrilling adventures, solve mysteries, and conquer dungeons.
Crafty Corner
Thursdays, June 12 & July 3, at 6:30 pm
A get-together for crafters and makers!
Bring your crocheting, knitting, cross-stitching, lace-making, tatting, or whatever it is you like to do and spend some time with others who do it too! An informal evening of fun.
"Accidentally Wes Anderson"
Photo Contest
Entries Accepted October 14 through November 1
For those aged 15 and older
Film director Wes Anderson has a distinctive style that many attempt to mimic. A recent book, Accidentally Wes Anderson, shares views of the best efforts by professional photographers. If all those pros are having such a good time making Wes Anderson fakes, we thought it might be fun for our patrons to do so as well.
Take a look at the style hints found in the adult section display case and take a photo that you think is "Accidentally Wes Anderson," and we'll display them during the month of November.
TO ENTER:
Email your photo to our programming team or leave it at the Circulation Desk by November 1.
Please include your name, library card number, and phone number.
The three photos judged to be closest to Anderson's style will receive a copy of the book.
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Reading Resources
Read a Book with
A House on the Cover
Nonfiction:
- White Picket Monsters by Bev Davis
- Ultimate Book of Home Plans
- Be in a Treehouse by Peter Nelson
Adult Fiction:
- The Mist by Rgnar Jonasson
- Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews
- A Week in Winter by Maeve Binchy
- The Heron’s Cry by Anne Cleeves
- A Painted House by John Grisham
- The House of the Seven Gables by Nathanial Hawthorne
- The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
- An Incomplete Revenge by Jacqueline Winspear
Tween Fiction:
- The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser
Read a Book with
A Car or Road on the Cover
Nonfiction:
- A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them by Timothy Egan
- My Cool Classic Car: An Inspirational Guide to Classic Cars by Chris Haddon
- The Big Book of Tiny Cars: A Century of Diminutive Automotive Oddities by Russell Hayes
- Nala’s World: One Man, His Rescue Cat, and a Bike Ride Around the Globe by Dean Nicholson
- Highway 1: The Dream Road Along the Pacific by Andrea Lammert
- Coastal California by Stuart Thornton
Adult Graphic Novel:
- Ashes by Alvaro Ortiz
Fiction:
- Timeline by Michael Crichton
- Shutter by Ramona Emerson
- The All-Girl Filling Station’s Last Reunion by Fannie Flagg
- Murder on Bamboo Lane by Naomi Hirahara
- Sinister Graves by Marci Rendon
- The Mapping of Love and Death by Jacqueline Winspear
Adventures at Home
Nonfiction:
- Breadsong: How Baking Changed Our Lives by Kitty and Al Tait
- The Totally Unscientific Study of the Search for Human Happiness by Paula Poundstone
Adult Graphic Novel:
- Alone by Chaboute
Fiction:
- The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey
- Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
- Beartown by Fredrik Backman
- New Boy by Tracy Chevalier
- The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley
- How Not to Die Alone by Richard Roper
- The Long Call by Anne Cleeves
Young Adult Fiction:
- Swing by Kwame Alexander
Tween Fiction:
- Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos
Cross-Country Trips
Nonfiction:
- The Giant Joshua by Maureen Whipple
- Master Slave, Husband Wife by Ilyon Woo
- Grandma Gatewood’s Walk by Ben Montgomery
- Epic Road Trips of the Americas by Amy Balfour
- Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell
- A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
Fiction:
- The Trackers by Charles Frazier
- The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
Tween Fiction:
- Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
- The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemainhart
Adventurers
Nonfiction:
- The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard
- The Moth and the Mountain by Ed Caesar
- Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland’s History Making Race by Matthew Goodman
- The Brendan Voyage by Timothy Severin
- In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette by Hampton Sides
- River of the Gods: Genius, Courage and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile by Candice Millard
- The Journals of Lewis and Clark by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark
- Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing
- The Impossible First: From Fire to Ice – Crossing Antarctica Alone by Colin O’Brady
- Irresistible North: From Venice to Greenland on the Trail on the Zen Brothers by Andrea Robilant
- Tenzing Norgay and the Sherpas of Everest by Tashi Tenzing
- The Ice Master: The Doomed 1913 Voyage of the Karluk by Jennifer Niven
Biography:
- My Father, the Captain: My Life with Jacques Cousteau by Jean-Michael Cousteau
Creating Art
- Art Thinking: How to Carve Out Creative Space in a World of Schedules, Budgets, and Bosses by Amy Whitaker
- Alwyn Crawshaw’s Watercolour Painting Course by Alwyn Crenshaw
- How to Draw Classic Heads & Faces by Walter Foster
- The Art of the Fold: How to Make Innovative Books and Paper Structures by Hedi Kyle and Ulla Warchol
- Graphic Design for Everyone: Understand the Building Blocks So You Can Do It Yourself by Cath Caldwell
- Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative by Austin Kleon
- The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield
- Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
- Art Matters: Because Your Imagination Can Change the World by Neil Gaiman
- The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron
- The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life: A Practical Guide by Twyla Tharp
- The Art of Noticing: 131 Ways to Spark Creativity, Find Inspiration, and Discover Joy in the Everyday by Rob Walker
Books About Artists
Nonfiction:
- Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life & Sudden Death by Laura Cumming
- The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan
- Con/Artist: The Life and Crimes of the World’s Greatest Art Forger by Tony Tetro
Fiction:
- My Friends by Fredrick Backman
- The Heron’s Cry by Ann Cleeves
- The Agony and the Ecstasy: A Novel of Michelangelo by Irving Stone
- Lust for Life: A Novel of Vincent Van Gogh by Irving Stone
- The Blue Hour by Paul Hawkins
- The Swan Thieves by by Elizabeth Kostova
- Messenger of Truth by Jacqueline Winspear
- Free Fall by William Golding
Tween Fiction:
- Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
Books Set in Greece
Nonfiction:
- My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
- Mythos: The Greek Myths Reimagined by Stephen Fry
Fiction:
- The Moon-Spinners by Mary Stewart
- The Greek Treasure: A Biographical Novel of Henry and Sophia Schliemannn by Irving Stone
- The Mediterranean Caper by Clive Cussler
- Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold by C. S. Lewis
- Circe by Madeline Miller
- Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella
- Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
- Nights of Rain and Stars by Maeve Binchy
- Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz
Adult Graphic Novel:
- Lore Olympus by Rachel Smythe
Books Set in Italy
Nonfiction:
- Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes
- Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India, and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert
- Galileo’s Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love by Dava Sobel
- Brunelleschi’s Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture by Ross King
Fiction:
- Tartufo by Kira Jane Buxton
- Angels and Demons by Dan Brown
- Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
- A Room with a View by E. M. Forster
- The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Arnim
- My Italian Bulldozer by Alexander McCall Smith
- The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
- The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
- The Instrumentalist by Harriet Constable
Books Set in the Southwest
Fiction:
- The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver
- Shutter by Ramona Emerson
- The Blessing Way by Tony HIllerman
- Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko
- Spider Woman’s Daughter by Anne HIllerman
- The Night Flowers by Sara Herchenroether
- Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather
- Beyond the Desert Sands by Tracie Peterson
- Desert Heat by J. A. Jance
- Blind Descent by Nevada Barr
- Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfa Anaya
Young Adult Fiction:
- Holes by Louis Sacher
Books with “ART” in the Title
Nonfiction:
- I’ll Start Again Monday: Break the Cycle of Unhealthy Eating Habits with Lasting Spiritual Satisfaction by Lysa Terkeurst
- A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them by Timothy Egan
- Arthur Ashe: A Life by Raymond Arsenault
- The Quartet: Orchestrating the Second American Revolution, 1783-1789 by Joseph J. Ellis
Fiction:
- Disco for the Departed by Colin Cotterill
- The Bartender’s Tale by Ivan Doig
- The Party Crasher by Sophie Kinsella
- The Apartment by Danielle Steel
- Carte Blanche: 007: The New James Bond Novel by Jeffery Deaver
- Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter by Michael Reaves
- Smart Move by Melanie Jacobsen
Adult Graphic Novel:
- The Cartoon History of the Universe by Larry Gonick
Books About the
Seven Wonders of the World
Nonfiction:
Fiction:
- 7 Deadly Wonders by Matthew Reilly
- Beneath a Marble Sky: A Novel of the Taj Mahal by John Shors
- Armageddon: The Cosmic Battle of the Ages by Tim LaHaye
- The Mummy Case by Elizabeth Peters
Young Adult Fiction:
- Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao
Tween Fiction:
- The Tomb of Shadows by Peter Lerangis
- The Curse of the King by Peter Lerangis
World Leaders
- Everybody Matters: My Life Giving Voice by Mary Robinson
- Daughter of Destiny: An Autobiography by Benazir Bhutto
- Long walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela
- The Dalai Lama: An Extraordinary Life by Alexander Norman
- Suffering into Joy: What Mother Teresa Teaches About True Joy by Eileen Egan
- Gandhi: The Years That Changed the World 1914-1948 by Guha Ramachandra
- The Autobiography of Martin Luther King
- Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet by Thich Nhat Hanh
- God is Young: A Conversation with Thomas Leoncini by Pope Francis
- Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery by Eric Metaxas
- Eleanor (Eleanor Roosevelt) by David Michaelis
- What Is at Stake Now: My Appeal for Peace and Freedom by Mikhail Gorbachev
Thank You to Our Summer Reading Sponsors
These amazing businesses and organizations donated almost $119,000 to make our 2025 Summer Reading possible. We appreciate their support of literacy in our community!
Regular Hours of Operation
- Monday: 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
- Tuesday - Wednesday: 9:00 am – 8:00 pm
- Thursday: 11:00 am - 8:00 pm
- Friday: 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
- Saturday: 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
- Sunday: CLOSED
Closures in 2026
- January 1 – New Year’s Day
- January 19 – Martin Luther King, Jr., Day
- February 16 – Presidents Day
- April 3 – Staff Development Day
- April 4 – Building Maintenance
- May 23-25 – Memorial Day
- June 19 – Juneteenth
- July 3-4 – Independence Day
- September 5-7 – Labor Day
- October 3 – Building Maintenance
- November 11 – Veterans Day
- November 25 – Closing at 5:00 pm
- November 26-28 – Thanksgiving
- December 24-26 – Christmas
- December 31 – New Year’s Eve
- January 1, 2027 – New Year’s Day
Address
73 North Center
Rexburg, Idaho 83440
We are located on Center Street, just north of Main Street, by the Historic Rexburg Tabernacle.
Contact Us
(208) 356-3461
24 Hour Phone Renewal: (208) 356-6658
askmadisonlibrary@madisonlib.org
Madison Library District
73 North Center
Rexburg, ID 83440
A public library.