Today is World Book Day, the annual charity event in the UK created to encourage children to read and find a love for books.

This year’s theme is ‘Read Your Way’. In 2025 the charity intends to increase reading access to children from all backgrounds as they’ve found half a million children in England don’t own a book.

We spoke to Richard Staples, the co-owner of The Blue House Bookshop in York. He shared the activities the shop is taking part in and the importance of World Book Day for children.

Alongside displaying books that can be bought with the annual charity book tokens, Richard said: “We’ve had 2-8 year-olds from St. Peter’s school come in for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week to have a look around then choose and vote on two books they can have as a class. [Today] we’re going into Joseph Rowntree school to do a pop up shop across lunchtime and we’re doing bookselling with their £1 tokens.”

World Book Day’s Strategy for 2023-27 describes their vision as: “more children, from all backgrounds, developing a life-long habit of reading from pleasure, benefiting from the improved life chances this brings them.”

Richard said: “I think the day should be important, it’s a good idea to give them something. Giving children a token for a free book which they can buy and gets them started into reading gives them something to look for and a lot of authors that do these smaller children’s books have written larger books too that the kids can go onto. I think reading’s important and I think getting kids to read as early as you can is good.”

Many schools have chosen to cancel dressing up for World Book Day this year or altering the event to only allow students to wear pyjamas or comfy clothes as a cheaper option for parents.

Richard agreed with this new change, he said: “I guess it does put pressure on parents to try and make something that looks like a character. I think that’s probably why Harry Potter characters are so popular because it’s just a school uniform. I mean I think the whole idea of dressing up is parents’ pressure and competition.”

This year World Book Day also lands on the opening day of York’s Literature Festival a month full of literary events from lectures and panels to performances and workshops held at various locations across the city.

Pictured The Blue House Bookshop in York.