The bedtime story hour is, for many, a family ritual steeped in magic and nostalgia, rich in reflection, immersed in make-believe. The scene is an intimate one, perhaps the most precious, protected part of one’s day set in the refuge of the bedroom. Children’s picture books are often filled with tales of hope and heroism; fears faced, the underdog triumphant. “Slumber Party: Storytime Edition” moves this fabled bedtime setting into the public sphere with a communal storytime. Here, adult literacy learners from Action Read are the readers. Some learners have never experienced this twilight tradition in their childhood; others have not had the literacy skills to read to their own children. At Slumber Party they did.

Some readers shared real-life anecdotes of struggle and success; all read aloud stories they selected to a lying-down audience, “tucked in” for the night. Illustrations from the books were projected on the ceiling.

The books included in this program were all available for loan at the Guelph Public Library and for sale at The Bookshelf.

Screening of So Much Depends Upon, a short film by Dawn Matheson and Cheryl Turner. Followed by a public storytime hour: children’s stories read by adult literacy learners from Action Read Community Literary Centre including readers’ personal tales of inspiration.