A new survey from the National Literacy Trust in the U.K. has found a "shocking and dispiriting" fall in children reading for pleasure, with only 35% of eight- to 18-year-olds enjoying reading in their spare time, an 8.8% drop from last year to the lowest figure yet recorded, the Guardian reported.
The NLT said the results are part of a broader downward trend since 2016, when almost two-thirds of children said that they enjoyed reading. Reading frequency is also at a historic low, with 20.5% of those surveyed reporting reading daily in their free time, compared to 28% last year. The gender gap has also widened, with 28.2% of boys now saying they enjoy reading in their free time, compared to 40.5% of girls.
"For a report focused largely on reading enjoyment, much of this is not an enjoyable read," the report noted. "The declining levels of reading enjoyment and reading frequency are, frankly, shocking and dispiriting."
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Thalia, Germany's largest bookseller, is taking over online bookseller buecher.de, effective immediately. DPA International (via Yahoo News) reported that all employees will be taken on and will keep their jobs under the same conditions. No purchase price was revealed.
Buecher.de currently belongs to the Weltbild Group, which filed for bankruptcy in June, pushing other companies in the group into insolvency. Thalia said the purchase price will be paid to the insolvency estate, from which the creditors will receive their stake at the end of the proceedings.
Thalia chief executive Ingo Kretzschmar described buecher.de as "an excellent addition to the Thalia Group," adding that the online company "has loyal customers and will remain as a brand in the future."
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Applications have opened for the third RISE Bookselling Conference, which will take place March 23-24, 2025, in Riga, Latvia. The first two conferences were held in Prague and Lisbon. Places are limited and you can register here.
The Rise Bookselling Conference gathers some 300 booksellers from Europe and the world, as well as representatives and industry experts from the entire sector (authors, publishers, distributors, etc.). This third edition of the conference is "dedicated entirely to the bookselling sector. Meet booksellers and book trade professionals from all around the world, and enjoy a packed two-day program of discussion panels, presentations, workshops, keynote speeches and networking opportunities! Discover new ideas to implement in your bookshop, learn how the bookselling business works in other countries, and make new friends," the organizers said.
In addition, on Saturday, March 22, participants have the opportunity to explore Riga and visit some of its bookshops.
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Staff meeting, NZ style: New Zealand bookseller Wardini Books, Havelock North, shared a video of the shop's "staff meeting at Wardini Towers with surprise guest--our Phoebe! She's back from the U.S. for a quick visit and executed her surprise in true Phoebe style." --Robert Gray