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GOLETA, CA, December 15, 2025 – Community members of all ages are invited to participate in the Goleta & Santa Ynez Valley Libraries’ 14th annual Winter Reading Program starting on December 20! The program is open to children, teens, and adults and will run for six weeks through January 31.
The 2025-26 theme is “Read with Benny”, the adorable mascot for our online logging system Beanstack who encourages our patrons to get cozy and enjoy reading this winter! The library’s collection of print and digital titles has something for every reader to explore – plus, weekly prize drawings and fun activity sheets will keep the winter magic alive all program long.
How It Works:
- This program will be held through the online reading tracker Beanstack, which you may remember from the Summer Reading Program. Participants will log every book they read during the program, which automatically enters them into weekly prize drawings. Signing up is easy! Go to goletavalleylibrary.beanstack.com to create an online account and select the Winter Reading Challenge. Beanstack is available both as a website and a free app.
- Paper entry forms are also available at each location for patrons who prefer to record their reading screen-free. These completed forms will be entered into the same weekly drawings.
- Prize drawings will be held by age category for readers aged 0-5, 6-12, 13-17, and 18+. Drawings will be branch-specific for each of our library locations: Goleta Valley Library and the Bookvan, Solvang Library, and Buellton Library.
Participants are encouraged to read in whatever format they like best, including print books, graphic novels, eBooks, and audiobooks. This year we also have some suggested reading lists you can find on the Beanstack app or pick up a copy at your library.
For extra fun aside from prize entries, pick up a BINGO card with self-paced literary activities (such as “Read to an Animal” or “Listen to an Audiobook”) to challenge yourself to reach new reading heights during the program.
Explore GoletaValleyLibrary.org for up-to-date information about our services, programs, and events.
