Reviews and comment from the Demon Crew - creative writers at De Montfort University, Leicester.

Tuesday 7 March 2017

Is everybody reading?

During an informative talk on Leicester Art Festivals, I've learnt how such events do so much to share information and showcase local artists.

There were several speaker but I was particularly interested in what Juliet Martin had to say about the Everybody's Reading Festival.

She explained that when reports in 2009 suggested that primary schoolchildren weren't interested in books, Leicester schools got in touch with her company. They talked through ideas and Everybody's Reading was borm.

One of the many events held is 'Author's week' when children get to meet the authors of books they're encouraged to read. In 2016, 5000 children attended. Everybody's Reading has opened to a wider audience and now aims at anyone without access to a library. It's probably the greatest reading festival in the region.
 

In a light-hearted, the audience was asled how to market festivals to a wider public, and particularly to university students. A student in the audience brought up the issue that while many festivals have an educational purpose, as a student she'd choose a festival where she coold relax and neglect education for a while.
 

Megan Louise

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