World Book Day was declared a worldwide celebration of books and reading by UNESCO, and is celebrated in over 100 countries in the world. However, to whom do we owe our inspiration and gratitude for this marvellous day? None other than the Catalans who exchange gifts of roses and books on St George’s Day, a tradition started more than 90 years ago.
World Book Day 2011
So, do you love reading? Do you just gobble a book and devour the pages? We’ll take that as a yes. In which case you will more than enjoy World Book Day taking place in London, Ireland and everywhere in the UK on the 3rd of March 2011.
One of the main aims of the initiative is to encourage children to explore the pleasure of books and reading however, adult readers can participate as well. There will be an array of activities and events alongside the book sales which extend to adults including Quick Reads with great and entertaining stories from talented writers.
A million reasons to read books
In addition, inspired by the success of World Book Day, World Book Night(WBN) has been launched. Through this initiative, taking place on the evening of the 5th of March, publishers aim to inspire adults to read by giving away 1m free books. The idea of the event is that keen readers over the UK and Ireland choose to give away books to people they think will enjoy and benefit from them. WBN will also be making a contribution and donating 40,000 books itself to people who might not otherwise be able to participate.
So,we suggest that you check out their respective websites for further details and to make sure you bag yourself a book!