About Orem Reads

Orem Reads is Orem Public Library’s community-wide reading event. It began in February of 2007.  The National Endowment for the Arts had just finished extensive research in how readers impact their lives and communities for the better.  Their research showed that

“reading for pleasure reduces stress, heightens empathy, improves students’ test scores, slows the onset of dementia, and makes us more active and aware citizens. Book clubs and community reading programs extend these benefits by creating opportunities to explore together the issues that are relevant to our lives.”

They created a program called “The Big Read” to help communities promote reading among teens and adults by hosting a community-wide reading event. 

Seed money ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 was made available through a national competitive grant process. Orem Library applied and was awarded three years in a row for our 2007, 2008, and 2009 programs. Now that our community reading program has successfully launched, we have continued the program on our own. In 2009, the library received an award from the Utah Humanities Council for excellence in programming.

As we look back, we remember many fun programs and enlightening discussions with some terrific authors and presenters. Please join us this year as we celebrate the American classic novel Little Women, beloved for 152 years!

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Past Orem Reads Titles