Posted By Laura in Bookshelf, Competitions | 7 comments

Summer is finally here (yes, really, it is!) and August stretches out before us, with plenty of time to either sit back and relax or head off on adventures – however your summer mood takes you.

But Summer’s not all about heading off to adventurous places is it? We can’t be away exploring and doing every second – and some of us can’t go far at all. But that’s okay too.

I know – I spent a large proportion of my summers as a young teen curled up in a quiet corner with a large pile of books at my elbow; some weeks the furthest I went was a walk to my local library. But that was okay – because I was adventuring in my head. Anyone who loves reading knows that feeling, right? When your attention is dragged reluctantly from the pages and you blink a little, surprised to find yourself NOT actually in the beating sun of Ancient Rome but in a small urban corner of Essex…

So I instantly fell in love with Penguin’s idea of a summer #ByBook. Reading can take us to imaginary places, grows an understanding of different cultures and allows us to live a life that just wouldn’t be possible in the real world. Researchers in Spain have found that the brain does not draw huge contrasts between reading about an encounter and experiencing it in real life; when we read about and dissolve ourselves into an experience, then it’s like we’ve really been there (well I could have told them that…). Fiction books offer a particularly vivid replica of real life, the New York Times reported, and allow readers to fully submerge themselves in another person’s thoughts and feelings.

So to celebrate a summer of travelling #ByBook we’re properly really big hugely excited to be offering you the chance to win not one but FOUR different Penguin Summer Reading #ByBook bumper bundles this August.

We’ll be launching a new competition each Monday – today’s will close next week as the next one opens, and each week will have a different theme with different prizes; but all will have something for everyone!

This week we’re starting with our youngest adventurers who might be hitting that mid-holiday lull, and be in need of a pile of new books to sink into.  So there’s some Hey Duggee (at the beach, obviously), some Peppa Pig, Spot and a little Peter Rabbit too.

But it’s not all about the kids. No no no. Grown ups need their Summer Reading too. So we’ve added a couple of grown up Penguin titles – The Beach and The Girls – plus a totally *want*-able Virginia Woolf mug, and an iconic Penguin Tote Bag too.

One lucky winner will win the whole bundle next Monday – simply use the widgety box below, add your details, and you’re in to win. Closing date is the 15th August (ready for week 2 to begin!) – good luck :)

Penguin #ByBook wk 1