MEXICO — The Mexico Public Library will be hosting their own type of Winter Olympics starting Monday Feb. 3, when its “Reading Olympics” for kids ages 2 to 12 begins.

Library Director Valerie Messana said that the Mexico Public Library attempts to hold a winter reading program every year, but with the Winter Olympics beginning on Feb. 7, she said that they decided to name it in recognition of the sporting event.

“Last year, we named it the ‘Chill Out and Read’ winter program, but it just so happened this was a year when the Olympics were airing,” Messana said. “It worked out perfectly.”

In a news release by the library, the reading program is described as “a reading incentive program and also incorporates exposure to new children’s books that the library obtained with a children’s book grant from the Libri Foundation.”

“The Libri Foundation is an organization out of Oregon that gives grants to small, rural libraries across the country,” Messana said. “We were lucky enough to receive one of their grants. We ended up receiving 80 new kids’ books, all of which were hardcover.”

Messana said that there will be two age groups: ages 2 to 6 and ages 7 to 12. Each reader will keep a record of how many books they’ve read throughout the month and, with each book completed, there will be a choice of prizes.

“A lot of kids will elect to save their credit until the very end and then choose their prizes,” Messana said. “However, kids can come in after finishing a book and collect a prize.”

Messana added that if a child participating in the program finishes a Libri Foundation book, they will receive extra credit.

The reader in each of the two age groups who reads the largest number of books by Feb. 28 will receive a “special prize,” Messana said.

“The whole idea of these types of programs are to keep the kids reading during the winter months,” Messana said. “Obviously, children have to read for school, but this program tries to keep their reading skills up outside of the classroom.”

For more information, call the Mexico Public Library at 364-3281.

mdaigle@sunjournal.com