Young bookworms are being invited to celebrate World Book Day 2021 with a week of events and activities organised by the City of Wolverhampton Council's Community Language Learning team.
They are being urged to put down their screens and read on World Book Day, which takes place on Thursday March 4. And throughout the week, the council has organised a series of live events with children's authors via Microsoft Teams which schools and families are encouraged to join.
They include Elizabeth Laird who has written numerous books, mostly set in Africa and tackling issues such as war, the life of a refugee, courage and perseverance. Her session takes place on Monday from 1.30pm-2.30pm.
Lela Burbridge was born in Uganda and now lives in Britain. Her first book is about a little girl who gets a book for her birthday but can’t yet read. It is aimed at younger children and promotes the great importance and value of education.
On Wednesday from 10.30am-11.30am, there is a session with stand-up comic, author and poet Ian Billings. He has written lots of fiction and poetry books for children. Also on Wednesday, there is a Teams session with Natalie Pritchard, the author of the Sea School Stories. Her books aim to develop emotional intelligence in children while being fun and magical at the same time. Her live session takes place from 1.30pm-2.30pm.
Councillor Dr Michael Hardacre, Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, said: "Getting into the reading at an early age instils a life-long love of books.
"It's great that we've been able to arrange these sessions which will enable children and young people to meet inspiring authors over Teams, and we're encouraging schools and families to get involved. And if you can't join one of the sessions, please make time to take a break from the screen and settle down with a good book.
"If you are inspired to read this World Book Day, why not become a member of Wolverhampton's libraries? It's free to join and will give you access to a huge range of books, DVDs, eBooks and eAudiobooks." To find out more about World Book Day, visit: www.worldbookday.com.
