To students, what does the term “summer reading” evoke? For some, it is a welcome activity that they would do anyway, and a good suggestion is all the more welcome for want of engaging books. For others, dare I say the majority, any word following “summer” could never count as an improvement. What, after all, could ever improve summer? We love books at Golden View Classical Academy, but we also know that it is possible to love them too much and forego a proper summer as book lists extend to drudgery and annoyance. And, is it not true that nature itself is a book to be read? If so, Colorado has some of the best chapters, and a school that robs students of the chance to read deeply therein is properly called a thief.

For that reason, our goal in summer reading is to preserve that most happy of seasons without letting its lack of structure deplete the mind’s energy. Students who read over the summer are better prepared for school in the fall, not to say simply the better for having read a great tale.