Reading Hour – Sept 14 – celebrates books and reading
May 2, 2017
In an historic first for the Australian book industry, five major organisations have come together to connect Australian writers with their audiences through The Australian Reading Hour.
The Australian Reading Hour’s premise is simple. It’s about picking up a book and reading for an hour anytime during the day or night on Thursday September 14, 2017. It will be supported by a huge promotional campaign and it is hoped that it will encourage people, both young and old to either rediscover their love of reading or introduce them to the joys of storytelling and learning.
The Australian Reading Hour builds on the success of the Reading Hour,
Photo: Gavin Jowitt
an event run by ALIA’s Australian Public Library Alliance from 2012 to 2016. And is supported by the Australian Society of Authors, the Australian Publishers Association, Australian Booksellers Association, Australian Library and Information Association and the Copyright Agency.
The Australian Reading Hour will also support the Copyright Agency’s Aussie literature hub Reading Australia, which is a terrific touchstone of some of Australia’s best-loved stories and the authors and illustrators behind them. All lovers of books should head to the site to see how many of the works listed they have read.
CEO of the Australian Society of Authors, Juliet Rogers, said, ‘The ASA is very excited about this new cross-industry promotion, which celebrates Australian authors and their work. Australian stories reflect our world: our humour, our values, our attitudes…and we are delighted to introduce more readers to the wonderful work of our very own writers.’
The Australian Reading Hour is also searching for two ambassadors (an adult and children’s author) to be the public faces of the campaign. Publishers can nominate suitable authors to Cheryl Akle at cheryl@trustandc.com.au.
CEO of the Australian Booksellers Association, Joel Becker said, ‘The Australian Booksellers Association and our hundreds of member bookshops are delighted to be a part of this collaborative program connecting bookshops, libraries, authors and publishers with readers. Whether it is in bookshops, libraries or other community spaces, we look forward to experiencing the joy of engaging with readers reading books by our wonderfully diverse range of Australian writers.’