Best-selling authors unite in mission to make the magic of reading accessible to all

A star-studded cast of award-winning authors, poets and illustrators have come to together to take part in an online children’s literature festival whose mission is to make literature accessible for all.

Reading is Magic Festival aims to promote creativity and connection through stories and shared experiences. Taking place between Monday 26 – Friday 30 September 2022 the festival is free and is packed full of magical digital events that can be beamed straight into schools and homes, making it available for all to enjoy, wherever they may be.

Inspiration for the festival came from former Waterstones Children’s Laureate Cressida Cowell’s key message: ‘reading is magic, and magic is for everyone’ and this focus on inclusivity underpins the very essence of the festival.

Lauren Layfield, TV and radio presenter at CBBC and Capital FM, will present each day of the festival and believes that events like these are crucial to make reading as accessible as possible. “An online experience can be so positive if channelled in the right way, so it makes perfect sense that instead of expecting young people to come to us, we go to them!”

Each author has their own individual sense of the value that reading can bring into children’s lives, particularly when times may not be so easy. Lauren says: “Right now I think the world news is pretty heavy and hard. Books are amazing at reminding us how wonderful the world can be.”

Miranda McKearney OBE and founder of EmpathyLab believes that reading builds empathy. Miranda comments: “We salute the festival for including EmpathyLab. This recognises the scientific research that shows us that empathy is learnable, and books are a powerful empathy building tool.”

Renowned Romani storyteller and author of ‘The Can Caravan’, Richard O’Neill comments: “Festivals like this are so important for showing rather than just telling children how magical reading can be, and in terms of diversity and inclusion seeing an author who sounds and looks like you and is from a similar background can be very empowering.”

Gareth P Jones, author of the ‘Solve Your Own Mystery’ series believes that “Festivals are a great way of bringing books to life and spreading creativity and engaging the next generation of readers, writers & illustrators.”

Helen Rutter author of ‘The boy who made everyone laugh’, agrees “It’s so brilliant that kids can engage with so many different authors and discover stories that will inspire them to read and even write their own.”

Dutch author and illustrator team Maranke Rinck and Martijn van der Linden and creators of ‘Popcorn Bob’ add that festivals like this “remove the distance between readers and authors” and inspire children to write and illustrate stories themselves.

The digital nature of the festival reinforces its mission to reach as many homes and schools as possible, and the programme has been designed to ensure that no-one misses out. All visual events have captions, a British Sign Language interpreter and the festival has worked with Bath-based The Egg Theatre’s young audio describers to advise the authors and illustrators on audio describing.

Cressida Cowell, Waterstones Children’s Laureate 2019 – 2022 adds: “Research shows that reading for the joy of it has powerful, measurable real-life benefits that can transform lives. This ‘magic’ ought to be available to everyone.” 

In her own work Sharna Jackson, award-winning author and Artistic Director, sees the value of ensuring that there aren’t any obstacles to children accessing literature. “Much of my work centres around helping kids who may feel disengaged and disadvantaged, and don’t feel that arts, culture, reading and writing is for them.”

Sharna explains that “Digital festivals like this are so accessible, no matter their circumstance, and demonstrate the diversity of literature by bringing tales from across the globe into children’s homes and schools.”

Reading is Magic Festival has partnered with festivals all over the world to make the bill of events truly international and diverse, helping to broaden children’s horizons beyond their own community. These include Ake Arts and Book Festival, Toronto International Festival of Authors, Bocas Lit Fest, New Dutch Writing, Scottish Book Festivals Network and Empathy Lab.

Ake Arts and Book Festival, based in Nigeria is one of those sharing one of its special events and believe that it’s “so important that children make that story-creator connection as early as possible so that they become aware of the limitlessness of the imagination.”

Alake Pilgrim, award-winning author of Zo and the Forest of Secrets, is taking part via Bocas Lit Festival: “Coming all the way from the Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Tobago, it was exciting to be invited by the Bocas Lit Fest, one of Reading is Magic's partners around the world, to share Zo and the Forest of Secrets with so many children.”

Alake describes the festival like “getting a backstage pass to a great concert!” She says: “Books come alive, read out loud by the authors and you hear the inspiration behind their stories. What a way to get kids interested in writing and reading.”

Schools and families can access the programme for free at readingismagicfestival.com. Events will last between 15 and 30 minutes and will be broadcast on a schools-friendly platform. Schools can view events live in UK time or on demand afterwards. Online materials and resources will support each event and book buying opportunities will be sign posted.