This year's annual World Book Day celebrations invite everyone to join the biggest celebration of books and shared reading, whatever the circumstances, on 4 March, with a busy programme of digital events featuring children's favourites and fun online learning opportunities.
This year's featured Irish title is Lily and the Lissadell Ghost by Judi Curtin, published by O’Brien Press, while another Irish favourite, Derek Landy, makes the WBD list with Skullduggery Pleasant: Apocalypse Kings.
World Book Day's new initiatives for 2021 include:
-Fully digital Share a Story Live events, featuring children’s authors including Humza Arshad, Alex Bellos, Sita Brahmachari, Joseph Coelho, Jonny Duddle, Tom Fletcher, Jess French, Fiona Lumbers, Ben Lyttleton, Zanib Mian, Lydia Monks and Katherine Rundell
Audiobooks are a great way to #ShareAStory on #WorldBookDay or any day! Check out our brand new free selection here: https://t.co/RAzpcw1JxC pic.twitter.com/UIm8BDwQRY
— WorldBookDayIE (@WorldBookDayIE) February 26, 2021
The Authors and Illustrators Academy – a suite of fun tutorial videos from World Book Day authors and illustrators
-The Show your Shares online campaign, which will see World Book Day champions, authors and children and families post photos of themselves sharing a story together on social media
TEACHERS - looking for a fun event for your class to celebrate @WorldBookDayIE #WorldBookDay - we have just the event for you - Animal Crackers! You can book the video + activity sheet from @riverbankarts + watch it with your class from 1-26th March. @VoiceforTeacher #edchatie pic.twitter.com/X8EnSmaZvA
— Sarah Webb (@sarahwebbishere) February 25, 2021
-A suite of online toolkits including activity sheets and discussion guides for teachers, parents and carers
-Share a Story YouTube readings, featuring World Book Day authors, champions, and influencers
With bookshops currently closed under lockdown, World Book Day has introduced a single-use digital token, giving schools a lockdown-friendly option to distribute tokens to families. The charity is working closely with booksellers on creative ways to get World Book Day titles to children across the country. Booksellers will honour the tokens beyond 28 March, while stocks last.
Find out more about World Book Day Ireland 2021 (and this year's featured books) here.
