Howell's Highlander Reading Express hits the road for summer reading
HOWELL, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - Howell Public Schools' mobile library is up and rolling for the summer.
"Graphic novels are big right now; kids are really into them, and we want kids to get excited about reading, so we went with this really colorful, fun theme on the bus to entice them over to get some books over the summer," said Tom Gould of the bus' comic book theme.
The mobile library called the Highlander Reading Express has been hitting the roads around Howell every summer since 2018, and this week it made its inaugural trip around town.
"What we do is we look at groups of students who might be a little further away from our outstanding public library, where it might be harder to get there in the summer, and then we try and find a park or an area in the neighborhood that we can bring the books to," he said.
Gould says that community partners contributed to revamping the bus into what it is today. Each year, the mobile library costs about $1,000 to $1,500 for upkeep and to get new books.
Local students might see familiar faces behind the wheel.
"Our teachers, principals and administrators actually volunteer their time over the summer to drive the Reading Express as well as come out and read with students and help students pick out books, and the kids always love it when they see their teachers or principals over the summer," Gould said.
The Highlander Reading Express has about 3,000 books on board for pre-K reading levels up to eighth grade.
Students don't have to worry about late fees or due dates for the books they check out.
"We don't want the fact that someone might not be able to make it the next week to be a reason that they don't check out a book — if you're going to check out another book and read it in the car or when you have some downtime on your vacation," Gould said.