BookTastic Barrow

19/08/2026

A taste of how wonderful our week of book joy is!
Thanks to John Rennie for helping us show people what a fabulous thing BookTastic Barrow is!

07/07/2026

A fantastic choice, a wonderful champion for children and stories!

🎉 We are delighted to announce that the brand new Waterstones 2026-2028 is the marvellous Patrice Lawrence!

We are so excited that Patrice will be taking on the role... and she has some fantastic plans.

During her Laureateship, Patrice will focus on the role books can play in helping children to find their place in the world.

❤️ She'll be working with a number of different communities across the country to investigate how story sharing can support wellbeing, relationship building and community connection - stay tuned for more info on that soon!

For now, please join us in welcoming Patrice to the League of Laureates ✨

Go All In 2026

04/07/2026

😍

📚❤️ There's nothing better than seeing children discover the joy of comics.

After our recent visit to Booktastic, we're delighted to see pupils at Cambridge Primary School enjoying their new comics and getting stuck into reading.

Moments like these are exactly what Barrow's Comic Book Town is all about—making reading fun, accessible and inspiring for every child.

30/06/2026

Hannah makes the space magic, and helps create more. She is an absolute wonder!

30/06/2026

Thanks for joining us!

28/06/2026

Love to see it 📚👏

28/06/2026

A little taster of our week…

27/06/2026

A top draw office… missing it already.

26/06/2026

Day 5 is done. BookTastic Barrow has been tidied away for another year…
It has been a week of brilliant book joy. We have navigated some rough waters, but our team has resolved each one and delivered. The hard work that goes into the week is made possible by people going over and above, thank you to the wonderful humans that make it all happen. Making sure the buses are booked, the books ordered, the town hall look like a palace for books and extremely importantly making sure we have an author/illustrator in our little corner of the world to wow the kids. Passion, time, effort, patience and determination all on display. Have a wonderful weekend everyone and on to 2027!

26/06/2026

Over 1,700 pupils take part in Barrow book festival: https://cumbriacrack.com/2026/06/26/over-1700-pupils-take-part-in-barrow-book-festival/