Australia was one of many countries where bookstores participated in the Global Book Crawl from April 21-27 to "unite independent bookshops worldwide in a celebration of local literature, community, and culture." Books+Publishing reported that overall, booksellers deemed the event a "success," with Letita Davy, manager of Sydney's Gleebooks, saying: "We had people from all over Sydney visiting us with their Global Book Crawl passports ready to be stamped. Significantly, we saw lots of new faces, with many participants visiting our Dulwich Hill bookshop for the very first time. Some people were attempting to visit all 15 Sydney bookshops over the week, which just goes to show how passionate Australian readers are about books and bookshops."
Alison Rogers of Readers Retreat in Port Stephens noted: "As a small business on a peninsula, it was great to strengthen the connections between myself and the other larger bookshops that have been established for a lot longer.... Combined with the super-dooper tourism season we experienced with the two long weekends, I had my biggest trading days since Christmas and a large increase in social media followers.'
Jing Xuan Teo, co-founder of Amplify Bookstore in Melbourne, commented: "The book crawl was huge! It was so lovely to see the book community show up and supporting local bookstores. There were also quite a lot of tourists who participated, which was such a good way to see the city."
Readings chair Mark Rubbo said many of the Readings stores reported large numbers participating: "Our preliminary results for Melbourne are that around 1,500 people completed the book crawl; that means 1,500 people made the effort to visit the 12 participating bookshops in Melbourne."
As for the possibility of a Global Book Crawl 2026, Davy said, "The collaboration across Sydney bookshops to make this event happen was inspiring--and I think this is just the beginning."
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On April 22 in Brazil, Rio de Janeiro hosted the opening ceremony for its year as the UNESCO World Book Capital City, succeeding Strasbourg, France, the International Publishers Association reported. Held at the Carlos Gomes Theater, the event was attended by authorities, UNESCO representatives, and prominent figures of Brazilian culture.
At the ceremony, Dante Cid, president of the Sindicato Nacional does Editores de Livros (National Union of Book Publishers), said, "The opening of Rio World Book Capital marks a new chapter for Brazil--a chapter that celebrates the book as a bridge, as a seed and as a meeting. At SNEL, we reaffirm our commitment to a plural, accessible and lively publishing industry. Our work begins when a book meets a reader, anywhere: at school, on the street, in the library or in the heart of a new idea. May this year be of fertile encounters, transformative readings and words that lead us to a fairer, more critical and more sensitive society."
In a social media post, Hubert Alquéres (curator of the Jabuti Award and president of the Paulista Academy of Education) and Sevani Matos (president of the Brazilian Book Chamber) commented: "The former capital of the country also stands out for the vigor of its popular and community libraries, spread over several regions of the city. These spaces play an essential role in the democratization of access to books, promoting cultural activities, meetings with authors and reading mediation actions that contribute to the formation of critical and socially engaged readers. Alongside them, the classic bookstores of Rio de Janeiro--such as Argumento, Travessa and Blooks--resist with vitality, which have reinvented themselves as vibrant cultural poles, meeting points for intellectuals, artists and lovers of literature. These are places that keep the city's literary tradition alive, reaffirming its commitment to reading and thinking." --Robert Gray