In 2018, PBS held a nationwide poll to select America's best-loved books, which they dubbed The Great American Read. The final list features a mix of classics (To Kill A Mockingbird, Invisible Man), beloved children and young adult titles (Anne of Green Gables, The Giver), popular fiction (Gone Girl, Game of Thrones), romance (The Notebook), science fiction (The Martian), and everything in between. 

To celebrate America's 250th birthday, we're inviting Hampstead residents to unite in reading all one hundred books from The Great American Read list between January 1st and July 4th. When you register to read a book, we kindly ask that you commit to finishing it within this time frame and complete a brief form that includes:

• Your rating on a scale of one to five
• Whether you would recommend it to others
• Your favorite quote from the book
• Your thoughts on why you believe it made the list
• Your reasons for choosing that particular title

As participants read their selected books and submit their questionnaires, responses will be displayed in the library, allowing us to track progress and inspire others to join in on reading this list of books. 

Separately, we'll be conducting our own poll to determine Hampstead's favorite books, calling it The Great Hampstead Read. You can vote for your top choices (please limit it to five books) by clicking  HERE before July 4th.  

How to participate: 

- Click HERE for a list of all one hundred books and see which one you'd like to read. 

- Stop by the library to sign up at the front desk or call the library at 603-329-6411. Please note that as titles are chosen they will be removed from the list, so be sure to sign up right away if there is a particular book you'd like to read! Only sign up for one title (if by April 1st more than half the books are left you will be able to sign up for a second).  

Other Information: 

- We have physical copies of most of the books, but for 13 titles (found here) we will either have to borrow them from another library (which may take a week or two) or you may be able to check them out as an eBook or audiobook on Libby or Hoopla. 

- We will check the book out to you for one month, but if you need longer just let us know. 

- We do have some books in Large Print or on CD (click here). If you'd like a specific title in Large Print ask a librarian, and we'll see if we can borrow one from another library. You can also find titles for kids and teens here. 

- We'd love pictures of your books being read around Hampstead! Send us a picture of your book in the wild - whether that's at your home, at a park, at a coffee shop or restaurant, or wherever you take your book in town. Send your pictures to Julie at JWatt@hampsteadlibrary.org so they can be shared with the community and to inspire others to join in on the challenge.