National Reading Day 2022 is coming up! Here’s how to get involved….
For many of us, reading was the thing that got us through lockdown. The escapism, the losing ourselves into a good story, the forgetting about the craziness happening around us 24/7…it was exactly what we needed when we didn’t have some of our usual outlets to turn to.
But since lockdown and restrictions have essentially ended, many of us have lost our drive to complete our reading goals – whether that was a book a week, a month, or even just to up our reading game at all! Life has gotten busy again, and we have to go out and live it, but we do miss our cosy evenings tucked in with a good book.
Libraries Ireland is now giving us an opportunity to rediscover that passion for reading, with their ‘Squeeze in a Read’ campaign that’s building up to ‘National Day of Reading’ on Friday February 25th. The ‘Ireland Reads’ campaign is asking everyone to ‘squeeze in a read’ before that date and are providing lots of information and resources to help you do just that! By teaming up with lots of publishers, booksellers, authors and others for the campaign, they launched their website irelandreads.ie to reach out to people and get the nation reading!
The website allows you to pledge to read a certain amount on the 25th and has so far had 34,160 minutes pledged! The challenge is open to all ages and stages of reading, with a personalised book recommendation suited to a person’s interests and the time they have available. There are more than 800 recommendations from librarians all around the country in the database, so you know it’s only the best books being put forward.
Not only do they provide a recommendation, but they make every resource to get your hands on the book available in-site. With links to your local library and local bookstore that supplies the book, you can start reading right away! If you’re not comfortable going to a right now, library members can use the library’s Borrowbox service online and choose from more than 44,000 eBooks and 33,000 eAudiobooks.
If you’re not already a member or you haven’t yet used these services, find out how to join and start using online services right now.
With lots of big names and experts on board, this campaign promises to be a winner. Marian Keyes, one of the campaigns ambassadors this year said ‘I was an anxious, lonely child, but when I read my first Enid Blyton book (‘The Twins at St Claire’s’) my mind was blown. Suddenly, I had a gateway to another world – to infinite worlds. I was able to escape the discomfort of being me by immersing myself in the lives of others…
‘Since then, reading has been my saviour. No matter what was going on for me, books comforted me, befriended me, made me laugh, made me think, gave me a breathing space and cocooned me from the world.
‘The ability to read is my superpower.’
Claim your superpower today by pledging to read this February 25th on irelandreads.ie!
