The Reading Agency

15/06/2026

We're counting down to the 2026 Summer Reading Challenge: Read to the Beat launch event tomorrow at 9.40am!

Join us LIVE from the British Library on Tuesday as we kick off a summer of stories, creativity and rhythm.

Hosted by Andy Day and featuring a special Q&A with Sheku Kanneh-Mason, plus live performances, interactive workshops and plenty of inspiration, this year's Challenge celebrates the exciting connection between reading and music.

Whether you're joining from a school, library or home, be among the first to discover Read to the Beat! and get ready for a summer full of reading adventures.

Sign up here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-summer-reading-read-to-the-beat-launch-tickets-1991185345971?aff=oddtdtcreator

15/06/2026

Story time with Sian Radford!

Join children’s author Sian Radford for a fun, interactive reading of My Little Drummer, a joyful story celebrating imagination, creativity and neurodiversity.

Expect rhymes, rhythm, storytelling and plenty of opportunities to join in!

Perfect for ages 3–6 and suitable for classrooms or home.

Part of the official Collection for the 2026

Register now and get ready to tap along! 🎵 https://readingagency.org.uk/our-work/events/the-reading-agency-presents-marching-to-your-own-beat-with-sian-radford/

12/06/2026

The Summer Reading Challenge 2026 is coming soon!

Join us live from the next week as we celebrate the upcoming launch of Read to the Beat! with special host Andy Day and a brilliant line-up of activities, including:

📙Live performances from young musicians
📙An interactive body percussion workshop
📙A whole-audience singing session
📙A special Q&A with Sheku Kanneh-Mason and Andy Day

Whether you’re joining from school, a library or at home, this is your chance to be among the first to discover Read to the Beat and kick off a summer full of reading adventures.

Find out more and book now: https://readingagency.org.uk/our-work/events/the-summer-reading-challenge-read-to-the-beat-launch/

The 2026 launches on 20 June in Scotland and online, and on 4 July in England and Wales.

12/06/2026

📚Got a go-to feel-good read? Aged 18-25?

We're creating a new Mood-boosting Books collection chosen by Young Adults as part of the and need your recommendations!

Share your feel-good reads with us before 15 June and you could win a £30 book token:

Take this survey powered by surveymonkey.com. Create your own surveys for free.

11/06/2026

📢Just one week to go until we find out the winners of the 2026!

How many of the shortlist titles have you read, and who do you think will be crowned the winner?

Find out more and book your ticket to the event: https://bit.ly/4uz1m6O

11/06/2026

Are we facing a reading crisis, or a reading identity shift?

Evidence shows reading for pleasure among children has declined significantly over the last two decades. But young people are still engaging with stories - through audiobooks, graphic novels, gaming narratives, fanfiction and digital formats.

So the question is: how do schools, libraries and communities help build lifelong readers?

Our blog explores:
🔸What the latest UK reading data tells us
🔸How reader habits and formats are evolving
🔸What research says actually works to build lifelong readers
🔸Why choice, social reading and representation matter
🔸How programmes like the Summer Reading Challenge continue to buck national trends

The evidence is clear: reading cultures are built through access, reading role models and joyful reading experiences.

Read the full blog here: https://readingagency.org.uk/beyond-the-reading-crisis-what-the-evidence-tells-us-about-building-a-nation-of-readers/

10/06/2026

📢The next pick of the season is by Emily Howes!⁠
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An enthralling novel that reimagines the forgotten life of Catherine Dickens.
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*Discover the full article⁠: https://bit.ly/4e9ZISd
*Read an exclusive extract:⁠ https://bit.ly/4en1BLI
*Check out all of this season's picks:⁠ https://bit.ly/4mtZsRT
*Listen to the BBC Sounds podcast episode:⁠ https://bit.ly/4oeTHIw
*Apply for a book club set⁠: https://bit.ly/4xqzJPw

10/06/2026

Our upcoming State of the Nation research finds that 35% find it hard to finish what they’re reading.

That’s why we’re excited to be working with Booker Prizes to publish All Around the World: Stories by Booker Prize Writers, a new Quick Read.

10,000 copies of the book are being gifted through libraries and community partners across the UK, including Bookbanks, helping the collection reach adults facing barriers to reading, such as affordability, confidence and accessibility.

The collection will be available to buy for £1 through retailers including Waterstones, Bookshop.org and BookKind from tomorrow!

08/06/2026

For June, The Booker Prizes have chosen the 1991 Booker Prize shortlist The Van by Roddy Doyle - a comic novel which follows two old friends working in a fast-food van against the backdrop of the 1990 football World Cup.

🔍Find out more: https://bit.ly/4ulBZEE