Following the return from March break, Head Librarian Elyse Seltzer announced a new tournament to choose the summer reading book. The field contained eight books ranging from science-based novels to activist memoirs. 

The science category featured the novels Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmrer and The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer.

Some books covered the topic of human rights. These books included I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb and Being Heumann by Judith Heumann.

Two of the books, Never Caught by Erica Armstrong Dunbar and The Distance Between Us by Reyna Grande, focused on new beginnings.

The activist category displayed the books One Life by Megan Rapinoe and How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi.

The competition attempted to unite the community under summer reading. “I thought this was a fun opportunity for the community to bond over reading,” Seltzer said. 

Students found the change to be positive. “I think it is a good idea because it encourages people to read and the competitive aspect makes reading more pleasant,” Noah Panto ‘25 said.

While the contest was a single-elimination tournament, the School will allow students to choose from the top four books.

Those books were The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, I Am Malala, The Distance Between Us, and One Life.