BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Organizers say this year was Books in Motion's biggest year yet. Performers traveled to 20 library locations across Kern and gave away nearly 3,000 free books.
- Video shows the Kern Dance Alliance and Kern County Library sharing details of their record-breaking Books in Motion season.
- The dancers traveled all across the county with 42 performances in 20 locations across Kern. The Kern Dance Alliance says this was their biggest year yet, and they expect to grow even more next year.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
The eighth chapter of Books in Motion has officially come to a close, and the Kern Dance Alliance and Kern County Library say it was their biggest year yet, giving nearly 3,000 free books away to kids across the county.
“Every year, the program has grown. This summer, we surpassed all of our numbers from last summer,” Andrea Hansen said.
Books in Motion had 42 performances in 20 library locations across the county, and Andrea Hansen, executive director of Kern Dance Alliance says their attendance rates nearly doubled compared to 2023.
“We saw nearly 4,000 people come through books in motion, and we gave away nearly 2,700 free books,” Hansen said.
Books in Motion partners with the Kern County Libraries to encourage literacy through the arts, and this summer, the dancers performed in more library locations, with first-time performances in county libraries such as Lake Isabella and Taft.
“Bringing the books in motion program to different libraries, new libraries is like a dream come true," Fahra Daredia said. "This program is one that we do every summer, it only grows, having more faces, more libraries in the community shows the validity of this program.”
Daredia does marketing and promotions for the Kern County Library. She says the nearly 3,000 books given away this summer help promote reading early, and eventually, she says the library hope to improve literacy in the county. According to data from the California Department of Education, 31% of students met or exceeded the standards for English language arts in Kern County last year.
“We build their at-home library. Having books in their home will not only help them now, but will set them up for success in the future,” Daredia said.
Also this summer, Hansen says they started to see kids grow up with the program, and even become performers.
“That’s such a full circle experience and that’s really one of the goals of the program to encourage people to explore the arts," Hansen said. "Through literacy, through the libraries, we’re also promoting the arts and seeing artists come out on the other side as performers for the program.”
As they look ahead to next summer, organizers say they hope to continue to grow and inspire reading through the arts. To keep up with the program, you can visit the Kern Dance Alliance’s website.
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