EDMESTON _ Maddy Smith, 5, of West Oneonta, read 1,000 books in eight months.
Maddy, who will enter first grade in September, is part of the 1,000 Book Club at Edmeston Central School.
Between October and June, with the help of her parents, Gloria, a physical education teacher, and Jim, a high school history teacher, she worked her way through ``Puff the Magic Dragon'' and 999 other titles.
Asked if she enjoys a good book, she nodded Friday while holding a copy of one of her favorites, ``The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses.''
Gloria Smith said her daughter read while commuting from their home in West Oneonta, usually with her father at the wheel, and at home. Both parents work at Edmeston.
``We read the books from school, and we got more from the Huntington (Memorial) Library in Oneonta,'' she said.
Members of the 1,000 Book Club, a program opened to those in pre-kindergarten through second grade, took home book bags, each loaded with 10 books, according to school librarian Susan Ackerman.
``The goal is to encourage students to read and parents to read to their children,'' she said. ``We want to instill a lifelong love of learning in our youngest students.''
The club had more than 90 members during the 2008-09 school year, many of them quite dedicated to expanding their horizons, she said.
`When I'd read to groups, sometimes I'd hear a student say, Oh, I read that book before; it was in my book bag.'"
The school's assistant librarian, Laura Porter, kept track of the students' progress and made sure they had a supply of fresh books.
Although Maddy was the only student to reach the 1,000-book mark, several others did quite well, Porter said.
In second place was Baily Windischman, who will enter third grade in September.
``She read about 930 books,'' Porter said.
Rylee Schreiber and Ashlyn Henze read at least 750 books, and Madison Cole and Isabel Brown read at least 500.
Courtney Wust, Monet Parker, Kennedy Kapp, Jacob Cormier, Derek Lyon, Halil Marinovic, Laquoia Hoagland, Summer Spear, Rylee Chapin, Jacob Walter, Marie Nacarato, Cameron Moriarty, Kaitlyn Wust and Amber Spear read at least 250 books.
Ackerman said she was grateful for community support that helped with the program. Among those who contributed were the Catskills Regional Teachers Center, New York Central Mutual Fire Insurance Co., Professional Secretaries, Gordon B. Roberts Agency, Preferred Mutual Insurance Co., Farmers Lodge 553, the Edmeston Rotary Club, Edmeston Central School and the Future Business Leaders of America, she said.
