World Book Night Again!

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Three things happened recently to inspire me to write a new column on World Book Night: one, I got an email from the WBN organizers telling me that 14 book givers would be picking up their book boxers at From My Shelf this year; two, I went to find the article I wrote for last year's WBN only to realize that two years have flown by; and three, I was speaking to a fellow Chamber of Commerce member about national literacy programs we are pleased to have the opportunity to partner with, and found myself explaining, once again, about the wonders of WBN.

Many community members, Gazette readers, business owners, teachers, and parents in our area may not know about World Book Night, even though it is the third year Tioga, Potter, and Bradford Counties have participating "givers", even though they themselves are well-read and put a high value on the importance of reading. You yourself may have missed any references to WBN over the past two years it has been celebrated in the US, and in our region, simply because we lead our lives at such a breakneck pace, bombarded by information, always hearing little blurbs about this cause or that. It is precisely because of this frenetic pace, this overload of information which too often leads to a contradictory disconnect, that World Book Night is so wonderful. If you remember other missives about WBN, then bear with this short review, or better yet, share it with someone who doesn't know about it, and discuss some of the books, or the subject of community literacy. If you'd like more details about this, the third annual World Book Night USA, then read on. 

WBN began in the UK & Ireland in 2011, migrating to the US the following year. For each year's WBN celebration, 20 to 35 authors and publishing houses agree to donate all the expenses and royalties on a specially-printed WBN edition of their books. Givers apply months ahead of time, selecting their top three choices from the list of 30+ WBN selections for the coming year's donation night. On April 23, 2014, those givers – over 30,000 people from coast to coast as well as Alaska and Hawaii – will go out in their communities armed with twenty free copies of a book they are enthusiastic about sharing with people who currently don’t read much. The goal of World Book Night is to start conversations about books, between people who have been inspired by books, with folks who may think books don’t have much to say to them. Like the “one book, one city” programs sponsored by libraries, World Book Night gives us an opportunity to foster community literacy, communication, and the kind of conversation that comes out of people talking about a story that touches them.

In looking over this year’s list of thirty books, it is obvious how the choices match the mission statement for “accessible” stories: many aren’t “literary classics” in the traditional sense, but are instead contemporary books with appealing plots, intriguing characters, and realistic dialogue, across a broad spectrum of topics. (This is not to say that we shouldn’t read, or wax enthusiastic, about “literary classics”, which is one reason these works are taught in school.) World Book Night seeks to appeal to non-readers or light readers who need other books, or places besides school, to draw them in to quality writing and the joy of books.

The choices for World Book Night USA, 2014, include female and male authors, target both young adult and adult audiences, and were published as early as the 1800s and as recently as 2012. They and their authors have won several awards; some have been made into movies and TV shows; a couple are regularly banned from school curricula or libraries; a couple have been dismissed by academics as “just popular fiction”; some have been touted by talk show hosts or TV book clubs. These books cover every topic from the barrios of Puerto Rico to forest fires, from the Kindertransport to endangered owls in Florida. Chosen from every genre from memoir to short story anthology, fairy tales to the science of plant reproduction, there truly is something for everyone. We, as readers, can honor the donations and efforts of all involved by reading these books ourselves, and joining the conversation. To see a list of the books for World Book Night 2014, as well as the ones from earlier years, visit http://www.us.worldbooknight.org/. Technically, the spots for givers this year have all been filled, but if you are interested in helping distribute some of this year's books to reluctant readers in our community, contact us at From My Shelf immediately!!!

Kasey will be giving this book out this year: