MORE than 53,000 free books are to be sent to secondary schools across Britain, with each school receiving 15 books as part of a scheme that is intended to get more pupils interested in reading, according to the Guardian.
The scheme, called Everyone’s Reading, will cost ￡50,000 ($80,200). It is jointly run by the British Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and the School Library Association. Some 260 different titles will be on offer, ranging from classics such as Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bront and Dracula by Bram Stoker to educational titles such as Bill Bryson’s A Short History Of Nearly Everything and sports books including Cup Final Day by England goalkeeper David James.
The DCSF said the list had been specially designed to include up-to-the-minute titles as well as “modern classics in new guises” and a few “tried and tested favorites”. There is material aimed specifically at boys and at girls as well as books that target reluctant and struggling readers, and for students for whom English is not the first language.
