Students in four Leesburg public schools received personal copies of Home, Sweet Motel by Chris Grabenstein, the featured book for the 2021 One Book, One Community program that encourages Central Florida children and the adults in their lives to read the same book.
The program, a partnership between Publix and the Orlando Sentinel, also provides educational activities published in the newspaper and online that are related to the book.
About 850 copies of the book were distributed through the Leesburg Public Library to students at Rimes Early Learning and Literacy Center; Beverly Shores, Leesburg and Treadway elementary schools, and select private schools in the Leesburg area.
“The main goal is literacy,” said Melissa St. Louis-Curry, youth services supervisor at the library. “It’s a community-wide read to help get kids up to the appropriate reading level. It’s meant for a child around third or fourth grade to share with an adult in their lives, or they can use it in their classroom. This is the age group when children are transitioning from learning to read to reading to learn.”
In Lake’s public schools, third-grade students and some fourth- and fifth-grade students received personal copies. The Leesburg Public Library and W.T. Bland Public Library in Mount Dora also received copies to give away to children while supplies last.
Grabenstein will virtually visit with students via Zoom at participating schools on April 30. He will talk about his book, discuss the writing process and how he generates ideas for books, and take questions at the end.
The School Library Journal says Home, Sweet Motel is the story of 11-year-old P.T. Wilkie who lives at the Wonderland Motel in St. Pete’s Beach, FL. His grandfather, Walt, founded the hotel in 1970 and did well until another Walt opened Disney World a year later. The Wilkies have been struggling to remain open ever since. His mom and grandfather decide to sell the motel to a sleazy developer, but P.T. and a hotel guest come up with a series of money-making ideas to save it.
The 2021 One Book, One Community program continues through May 9.
