- Utah Gov. Spencer Cox participated in a "book drop" at aSalt Lake City middle school on Friday.
- Literacy and reading have been one of the governor's principal priorities.
- Bestselling author John Schu delivered a high-energy message about the power of reading.
There’s just a week left in the 2026 Utah legislative session.
But Utah Gov. Spencer Cox opted for a late-game “timeout” Friday, stepping away from the state Capitol to spend much of his morning with Utah middle schoolers — and champion reading.
Cox shook a bunch of young hands and swapped reading stories with students at a “book drop” event at Salt Lake City’s Bryant Middle School.
Sponsored by Operation Literacy, the book drops are being staged in schools across the state this year to promote youth literacy at a moment when reading scores across the country are dipping.
That alarming literacy trend has caught the attention of lawmakers — along with Cox and Utah first lady Abby Cox, who have made reading one of their shared, primary objectives.
All the students who participated in Friday’s book drop event received a copy of the book “Louder than Hunger” by John Schu, who also delivered a hyper-energetic message about the power of reading and writing at Friday’s Bryant Middle School event.
A governor’s challenge: Start reading now
Cox assured the students squeezed into the Bryant Middle School assembly hall on Friday that it’s OK if they don’t like reading.
“I didn’t like reading either, but let me tell you why it’s so important — reading has the ability to change everything in your life.”
The governor agreed that ignoring cellphones and video games to sit down with a book can be tough — but it’s worth it. “It can actually rewire your brain in very, very positive ways.”
Research, he added, confirms that students who read every day will do better in school. But that’s just the beginning.
“Later on, you will actually make more money in your career,” Cox said.
“You’ll be happier throughout your life and you will have better and stronger families. The outcomes that are associated with people who read are incredible.
“And so even if you don’t like reading, if you start right now — I promise it will change.”
Cox then challenged every student to find a book and start reading a few minutes every day. It might be hard at first, but soon the books will start “pulling you in.”
And it doesn’t matter the book’s subject, he added. “Just start reading.”
The governor concluded his message Friday assuring the kids that good days await.
“I know that the country’s really divided right now; there’s a lot of bad things that are happening out there,” he said.
“But there are so many good things that are happening, too — and I want to make sure that you’re focusing on those good things. Reading can help you make those good things better — not just for you, but for your families and for our entire state and our entire country.”
The nation needs each person’s help to make it better. “And you can’t do that if you can’t read,” he said.
A bestselling author/reader’s rigorous journey
An Illinois native, Schu saluted school librarians “who make hearts more capacious through story.”
The author told his young audience Friday that he was going to “try really hard to be an optimist.” But, he added, if he were to go back in time and speak to his 13-year-old self, he would not be conversing with an optimist.
Instead, Schu said he would find a teenage boy who was hospitalized for an obsessive compulsive disorder, anxiety and depression. And, he added, there was a “very loud negative voice” telling him that he was worthless and miserable.
“And for a long time, I listened to that really negative voice,” he said.
Schu would later become an elementary school teacher and a school librarian. Now he’s a bestselling author and a professor at Rutgers University in New Jersey advocating for libraries and literacy.
“But most importantly,” he said, “I’m always a reader.”
He credited his grandmother for making him a lifelong reader — adding that the main character in his novel-in-verse depicts him as a child.
“In my book ‘Louder Than Hunger,’ there’s a refrain: ‘Reading aloud is love,’” said Schu. “And many of us are readers because of people reading aloud to us.”
The author said he spent two years as a teen in a hospital. He didn’t always want to get better. He fought back. He was manipulative.
“But I will tell you this, I am here today — and I am well today — because of good teachers. I am well today because of libraries. I am well today because of stories. And I am well today because of being a reader.”
Schu’s love for reading and books evolved into him becoming a writer and, ultimately, crafting a fictionalized memoir reflecting his own life and challenges.
He named his “Louder Than Hunger” protagonist “Jake.”
“You and Jake are about to go on a harrowing journey together,” he told his young audience Friday.
“By the time you finish reading this book, you will be friends. Reading Jake’s story will change you. You might find that you want to reveal your heart; tell someone your truth. Telling your story can save your life. It may save someone else’s life too.”
