We’re nearly halfway through the International Literacy Day 60-for-60 challenge and had a blast with our “word of the day” activity for two weeks.

Every day social media strategist Jayme Gravell e-mailed the entire International Reading Association (IRA) staff with a word and its definition. (She also shared them via our Twitter account.) Some were obscure, some were fun to pronounce, some were downright difficult.

We made the word our own in a few different ways. Some responded to Jayme with a sentence using the word. Others took to social media to share the word of the day with friends and followers, and others worked it into conversation as much as possible, like Wes Ford, IRA digital projects manager.

“‘Hempy’ was probably my favorite word—both the sound and the definition (mischievous; often in trouble for mischief) appeal to me, being a bit hempy myself, but alas I failed to actually use it in conversation,” he said. “‘Rapier’ (extremely sharp or keen) was the one used most often the day it was announced, I think, but with a rapier wit like mine, this is not surprising.”

“Chansonette” (a little song; ditty) may have had the largest reach, spurring an extensive all-staff e-mail chain about a certain IRA director who is known for breaking into one at the drop of a hat. (Dan Mangan, we’re looking at you!)

Our challenge continues! For the next two weeks, IRA employees will be asked what sort of things they would bring if they were headed to the International Space Station for a yearlong mission. This was inspired by the “Pack It Up” activity in our 2014 kit. This week, we’re focusing on items for the Personal Belongings Locker; next week, we’ll turn our attention to the Personal Preference Kit, the items for which must be contained in a 3” x 3” bag.

The Personal Belonging Locker is tight for space, but astronauts have been known to pack books. So of course we asked our staff for three books that would be a must.

Several staffers said they would take the Bible, both for spiritual and literary reasons, in addition to selections including Shakespeare, a favorite installment of Harry Potter, Anna Karenina, and, naturally, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

Which three books would you take? Let us know at social@/.

April Hall is the editor of Reading Today Online. She can be contacted at ahall@/.