Record numbers sign up for World Book Night

 | By Joshua Farrington

World Book Night has had a record number of givers sign up, with more than 23,000 people volunteering to hand out books in their communities.

More than half of the applicants have never taken part in the event before, with people applying from across the country, including the Scilly Isles and Outer Hebrides.

Taking place on April 23rd, World Book Night will see delivery service Yodel distribute 400,000 books to giver collection points, while a further 100,000 books will be sent directly to hospitals, prisons and care homes in an attempt to reach communities with low literacy levels.

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Nominations open for World Book Night 2013

20.07.12 | By Joshua Farrington

Nominations for books to be given out for free at next year’s World Book Night will begin on Monday (23rd July).

Members of the public will be asked to choose up to 10 of their favourite books before the closing date at the end of August. A final list of 20 titles will be then be chosen from the suggestions by a panel of judges, chaired this year by journalist and presenter Mariella Frostrup.

World Book Night said the judges would be looking for books that are “narrative-driven, ideally not too long so as to be accessible to all”. They must have been published in paperback in the UK.

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WBN authors’ recommendations revealed

 |By Charlotte Williams

Brighton Rock, The Moonstone and Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit are among the titles to be recommended by the World Book Night 2012 authors, with Stephen King’s recommendation of The Iron Will of Shoeshine Cats leading to its acquisition by Hodder imprint Mulholland Books.

An extract from the recommended titles will be included within the WBN edition of the matching title. WBN c.e.o. Julia Kingsford said: “Asking our World Book Night authors to recommend something seems like the perfect way to introduce new books and writers to readers, and encourage people to keep on reading.”

King, whose book Misery is among the WBN 2012 picks, selected The Iron Will of Shoeshine Cats by Hesh Kestin, which had not been published in the UK.

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World Book Night confirms US launch

| Charlotte Williams

World Book Night will launch in the US in 2012, with the States confirmed as the event’s first international partner.

HarperCollins vice-president retail marketing Carl Lennertz has been appointed chief executive to the US division of WBN, taking up the post on 1st September. WBN US will aim to give away one million books across the country, with Lennertz supported by a cross-industry steering committee currently being set up.

Lennertz said: “I have loved everything about my time at Harper . . .  I am very sad to leave, but I couldn’t pass up this chance to be a part of such an exciting venture as World Book Night in the US.

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More than 3,000 titles suggested for WBN 2012

| Charlotte Williams

More than 1,500 people have nominated titles for World Book Night 2012, with over 3,000 titles put forward just over a week after the ballot opened.

At the moment, titles such as To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, American Gods by Neil Gaiman and The Lord of Rings by J R R Tolkien are among the most popular in the top 100, having all gained a “large number of nominations” in just over a week.
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Public vote for WBN titles opens tomorrow

24.06.11 | Charlotte Williams

World Book Night is calling for the public to submit their nominations for WBN 2012 titles, with the ballot opening tomorrow, 25th June, coinciding with National Reading Group Day.

The ballot will run on http://www.worldbooknight.org until 31st August, with readers asked to submit their top 10 favourite books. As with WBN 2011, 25 titles will ultimately be selected to be given away.

WBN c.e.o. Julia Kingsford said: “We are delighted to be launching with a public ballot for WBN 2012 and will publish a top 100 list in September leading to the next phase in the selection of the 2012 titles.”

The final list of 25 titles, as decided on by the WBN panel, will be announced mid-October.

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Plans revealed for WBN 2012, Kingsford to head

By Charlotte Williams and Graeme Neill

World Book Night organisers have unveiled future plans for the event, which is scheduled to take place on 23rd April 2012. Foyles marketing manager Julia Kingsford has been appointed WBN chief executive.

A board has also been set up, with artistic director of London’s Southbank Centre Jude Kelly to chair, and other members including Little, Brown c.e.o. Ursula MacKenzie, poet Lemn Sissay and BBC presenter James Naughtie.

WBN founder Canongate m.d. Jamie Byng confirmed that WBN will be annual from now on. Kelly added the change of date from March was partly “a way of distinguishing between World Book Night and World Book Day, because each of those has its own story”.

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