The final day of London Book Fair saw a much more relaxed crowd of students and industry professionals calmly enter the gates of the Olympia. Printed passes at the ready, no-one scrambling for their lanyards in the bushy-tailed panic of day one. All attendees calmly navigating the now familiar grounds, identifying which talk to attend with the full knowledge of which room to go to, what path to take, and the location of the nearest coffee stand or washroom facility. As the thousands of attendees steered off their separate ways to listen to CEOs and Managing Directors discuss their views on Artificial Intelligence and the struggles of the distribution of translated works, one question seemed more vital and pressing than ever.

What is it all for?

In an industry dependent entirely on readership, conferences and seminars outlined the most substantial areas of concern. ‘Creating a Culture of Reading for Pleasure’ was one such seminar in which the panel expressed the urgent need for creating spaces and initiatives to aid children’s interest in reading early on. In one of London’s largest event venues filled with over 30,000 publishing professionals and 1000 exhibiting companies, 550 international rights tables and approximately a hundred content seminars, the recent decline in children’s interest in reading for pleasure was discussed as a prominent threat to the industry at the very heart of the conference.

The seminar outlined the fundamental components of cultivating lifelong readers and ways in which we can enhance children and young adults’ engagement with books in an ever-rising digital setting. The panel discussed how judgement and expectations are putting children off reading in both an academic and leisurely setting, the skills agenda woven so tightly into the way we learn how to read at school age presenting as a deterrent for individuals struggling to keep up with their peers. The education system’s implementation of ‘reading levels’ to gauge if a child is developing on par with the speed of the curriculum was something the panel seemed strongly against. Individuals, as pointed out by the speakers, are more likely to feel too stigmatised to pick up a book designed for a lower reading level, but the industry’s ability to thrive depends entirely on people reading in the first place, and not what they are reading. The stigma around adults reading YA titles, or teenagers reading ‘childish’ picture-books is stopping many from reading for pleasure entirely.

Cassie Chadderton stated that many parents have asked for guidance on getting their children reading ‘proper’ books instead of comics or the likes of ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’. The panellist’s response of ‘any book is a proper book’ made the room smile in unison. In an individual’s early developmental years where their love for reading is slowly being fed and discovered it is the publishing industry’s duty to free readers of judgement. National Literacy Trust CEO Jonathan Douglas emphasised the generative implications of digital reading as a gateway, especially for teenage boys who are one of the toughest demographics according to Douglas. The socio-economic barriers to reading are lessened when digital reading is introduced and so utilising this to the industry’s advantage is truly in its best interest.

The panellists were excited to share ideas on how to help boost reading for pleasure. From integrating reading as a functional skill from an early age (in recipes, road signs and toy/game instructions), to discussing strategies to help disadvantaged communities with necessary literacy skills, the ideas were plentiful and optimistic. After all, if we do not make reading accessible and free of judgement for the new generation, we may not be squeezing into the halls of London Olympia to buy overpriced coffees for much longer.

Image: Syd Wachs, via Unsplash. Available at: https://unsplash.com/photos/macro-photo-of-five-assorted-books-slItfWbhijc [accessed 12 April 2024].