Ledyard — Reading Bill Library's newest book will require you to break a mild sweat: Starting at Liberty Square, you have to travel down the sidewalk and around the town's fairgrounds and toward the Ledyard Center School parking lot in order to finish it.

Aimed at pre-school and early elementary school kids, the "StoryWalk," as it is called, features storybook pages installed along a path.

"We're calling it a stroll, not a hike ... it's very doable, easy for strollers," said Children's Librarian Nancy Brewer, who officially opened the storywalk Thursday night as the newest addition to town center.

She and library Director Gale Bradbury hope it will connect more kids with the library.

The current installation, "Super Submarines," is meant to connect with other StoryWalks in the region, including Groton's, to celebrate the "Submarine Century" anniversary of the Naval Submarine Base and Sub School.

It emerged from an Eagle Scout project by Andrew Craig, a Ledyard resident and rising senior at Three Rivers Middle College.

Craig, of Scout Troop 12 in Gales Ferry, who participated in the summer reading program when he was a preschooler, said he wanted to do something for the town's children as his project. He consulted with Bradbury about doing something on behalf of the library.

Bradbury, who had been impressed by a similiar StoryWalk in North Conway, N.H., and thinking of ways to incorporate the region's submarine history into the library's events, brought the suggestion to Craig, who said the project appealed to him.

"I thought it was kind of a unique project," Craig said, adding that the project stuck out beyond what others already had suggested to him. "I know I would have liked that" as a kid, he said.

Before going ahead with the project, which spanned several different areas of town, Craig needed and sought out endorsements and input from the Ledyard Town Center Committee, the Parks and Recreation Department and the Ledyard Fair organizers.

Craig and Bradbury looked at a number of different locations for the walk before deciding on the route through town center, making it unobtrusive for the many other events that the grounds host, such as the farmer's market, while still making it part of one of the scenic parts of town.

In response to concerns that the posts might be knocked down during preparations for the Ledyard Fair in September, Craig added PVC piping to the holes to ensure that the posts temporarily could be removed.

The acrylic glass sheathing that holds the book pages themselves means that the stories can be changed out based on the season, or used by other town groups like the Historic District Commission, with the library's permission, Brewer said.

"I think it will add one more nice thing to making Ledyard Center a family-friendly place (and) add to the appeal," she said.

n.lynch@theday.com