Book Swaps

Happy July! With a slice of summer left, there’s still time to plan a Book Swap Party with your tween or teen.

Even if the response is a dismissive expression with eyes rolled upward, don’t cave. Brain storm together and allow creativity to inspire a plan. Check out these ideas to get rolling:

1. Be sure to serve gummy worms! Let the other book worms bring their favorite snacks, too.

2. Before the party, write down well known book titles or book series on post-it notes or small cards. Guests will wear these pinned on their back asking yes and no questions around the room until they guess the title.

3. Get a round of charades going based on book titles, characters or book scenes.

4. For the crafty crowd, pull out supplies to make book marks.

5. How the Swap works: Each person brings a favorite book they’ve read, wrapped up. Individuals pick a number and the person with number 1 unwraps a book. The second person can either “steal” the first person’s book (which makes the first person unwrap another book) or they can choose to unwrap a different book. The group continues with each individual either stealing or unwrapping a book. After the last book is unwrapped, the first person has the choice of stealing anyone’s book or keeping the one they have. Each book can only be stolen three times.

6. After the game, everyone guesses which book each guest brought. Ask each person to briefly tell what the book is about and why it’s their favorite. Give awards for the funniest, longest, best cover, most popular, etc.

Book swaps don’t have to be fancy to be fun, and after the party, the real fun begins. Everyone has a “new” book to read!