Long, lazy days over the Christmas-New Year break are the perfect time to indulge in some relaxing - or exciting - summer reading.

The state government's fifth annual Big Summer Read will kick off on 1 December, encouraging Victoria's young people to swap screens for stories - and compete for prizes.

The statewide reading challenge aims to combat the 'summer slide', a common reduction in reading time and subsequent loss of literacy skills experienced by children over the long school holidays.

Victorian children under the age of 18 are eligible to register and track their reading progress through the Big Summer Read website, with digital badges and prizes on offer for participants.

As part of the program, parents can register and read to children who can't yet read independently.

Four winners will each take home a Zoos Victoria family membership, one for each age category, and local libraries from across the state will also award locally-sourced prizes to Big Summer Read participants.

The program reinforces the role of public libraries as a vital community resource for early childhood development and lifelong learning throughout adulthood.

It has been designed to give smaller, rural public library services without an independent summer reading program a way to engage young Victorians over the summer break.

For more information on the Big Summer Read, visit https://readbooks.com.au/bsr or drop into the Wangaratta Library in Docker Street, where staff will be happy to help direct eager readers to material they can enjoy over summer.

Victorian Public Libraries Ambassador Andrea Rowe said: "Victorian libraries are a great place to beat the summer heat, and with so many books on offer, there's something for every reader these summer holidays."