Reflecting on World Book Day
World Book Day (WBD) this year is on Thursday 5th March. As it is the National Year of Reading, this year’s special day to celebrate the fun and joy of reading feels extra special. As such staff and students at the University of Northampton reflect on what WBD means to them, as well as considering the crucial as well as controversial role it can play in children’s journey to literacy.
So what exactly is World Book Day and why do we need it? WBD is an annual charity event held in the United Kingdom and Ireland. On this day, every child in full-time education at participating schools is provided with a voucher to spend on books. It was first celebrated in 1998. For many schools the day involves encouraging children to come to school dressed as their favourite character or author, as well as participating in book inspired games, activities, competitions, and a focus on communal reading. The charity behind the event describes itself as “the reading for fun charity” aiming to inspire “every child to enjoy the life-changing benefits of reading for fun.” [1] The aim of WBD is to make reading both a fun and a social activity noting that “young people are more likely to read if they see it as a fun, entertaining and social thing to do.”[2] But is there any value in children reading for fun, as opposed to just as part of their studies? Well arguably, yes, as research suggests that children who read for fun are much more likely to have positive outcomes later in life, in fact reading for fun “seriously improves lives”, with research noting that “it’s the biggest indicator that a child will grow up to enjoy a happier and more successful future.”[3] Yet, despite these proven benefits, “only one in three children likes reading” and a “significant number feel discouraged from following their own tastes”[4] and as such “[d]espite the many benefits, reading for fun is in decline.”[5] Therefore, the aim of WBD is to change this in order to “transform lives.”[6]
Students at the University of Northampton certainly appreciate the transformative potential of literature, especially those studying on the BA English programme, and many have fond memories of WBD from their childhood. Olivia Lockie (Second Year BA English student) recalls that she won a prize for her costume as Matilda, noting “I loved World Book Day.” But for Olivia, it wasn’t just a chance to dress up as she also remembers how important it felt to be able to choose what she wanted to read. Similarly, Lydia Bodnarczuk-Stamp, who is also in her second year of study on the English BA programme, “loved being off timetable for the day and snuggling up in sleeping bags to read all together in the school hall”.
On WBD this year, students on the Centre and Margin Module on the BA English programme will be studying Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of a Dog in the Night-Time which tells the story of a young protagonist, Christopher Boone, who experiences the world slightly differently to those around him. He struggles to process his and other people’s emotions. He also loves routines and solving maths problems. The novel tells the story of Christopher solving the mystery of who killed his neighbour’s dog, Wellington. In solving this crime, Christopher undergoes a process of writing his own murder mystery novel. As the story unfolds, we learn that the reason for Wellington’s murder is tied up with complex adult emotions (I won’t spoil the ending for you by saying any more). However, what is significant is that it is through the power of storytelling that Christopher goes on a journey of self-realisation. He finds out that he is capable of travelling to London and talking to strangers, things he previously would not have dreamt of being able to do. By the end of the novel Christopher is happy and looking forward to a future studying at university. As such, Christopher’s story reflects what pursuing the stories you love, in Christopher’s case, detective fiction, can do for you. Reading and writing fiction can help us to find out about ourselves, uncover our dreams, interests and aspirations. Eris Clarke (a third-year student on BA English) reflects on the power of reading to shape our paths in life as she recalls how “on WBD I really enjoyed the Murder Most Unladylike series by Robin Stevens. I read it when I was younger, and now I’m studying one of the books for my dissertation”. Therefore, just like Christopher, we can see the power of inspiration and acceptance, and how interests nurtured through childhood reading can have profound impacts later in life. Paulina Hawrysio (a first-year student on BA English) similarly has positive memories in relation to self-acceptance because of WBD, in part initiated as a result of some confusion over her costume, she reports: “I remember dressing up as Hermonie Granger from Harry Potter. But I wear glasses, so everyone thought I was Harry Potter for some reason. Which I accepted because I didn’t mind.”
For some people WBD has clearly enabled them to celebrate their passions, find new interests, and even helped them to overcome personal challenges, all through the thinking and self-perception enabled by their reading. Yet despite some of the obvious benefits, it is also important to be cognisant to the challenges with the events of WBD itself. Dr Laura-Jane Devanny, Senior Lecturer in Education at the University of Northampton, notes the pressures that can be attached to it as “[t]he build-up to the day for children and their families tends to revolve around choosing a fictional character and then sourcing an appropriate costume”. Similarly, the pressure can be felt by teachers, as Dr Devanny notes: “a day’s worth of intensive school-wide reading activities involves an incredible amount of work and preparation for a relatively short-lived experience”. As Dr Devanny observes, often the aims of WBD can thus become lost as the costume becomes something “based around what they know from TV and film rather than engagement with books”. The subheading from a Guardian article in 2024 foregrounds how something aimed at inspiring reading for fun can sometimes have more negative consequences: “Tears, fancy-dress tyranny and tedious discourse: it can only be World Book Day”[7]. Therefore, inevitably we need to ask ourselves, does this day have any value, or has it become a marketing device to sell more fancy dress?[8] As Dr Devanny notes, if the costume becomes the main focus we need to question “how impactful all of this is in the longer term” in relation to the wider impact on “young people’s attitudes and enthusiasms for reading”. She goes on to suggest that “perhaps the focus needs to move away from costumes and dressing up towards creating a more embedded reading culture to inspire a love of books every single day.” Significantly, the next generation of teachers are also worried about the lasting impact of WBD as a third-year student on the Initial Teacher Training programme (who wishes to remain anonymous) echoes Dr Devanny’s thoughts, suggesting “some schools/parents miss the point and see it as a film/tv dressing up day!” However, this teacher in training also notes that there are solutions to this problem, arguing that “when schools use the day as a way of championing and celebrating reading, I think it is a fantastic way of encouraging RFP [Reading for Pleasure]”. The concerns about confusing messaging are clearly widely shared, as The Guardian reports this year that ‘[s]chools in England [are] sidelining dressing-up”, a shift in focus initiated in part as result of concerns around cost, but also “fears [that] costumes can detract from reading for pleasure”.[9] These are certainly concerns that both staff and students have expressed at the University of Northampton.
As this is the National Year of Reading, perhaps what is needed this WBD is a return to the primary focus of the day. As Dr Devanny notes, at its best WBD can be “fantastic” because it can facilitate “a love of literature” as well as being able to “provide positive role models around reading”. If we want to encourage children to read for fun, and to have the chance to explore and find the things they love in the pages of books, surely this can be achieved in part by a WBD which prioritises a focus on exploring all the things literature has to offer, the many and diverse tales to be told and read, as opposed to concerns over costume. Research shows that inspiration is one of the biggest barriers to reading: “more than a third of children cannot choose what they want to read, and one in five feel judged for what they do read” [10]. Therefore, as Dr Devanny notes “sharing recommendations to inspire and enthuse children, all whilst raising the profile of literature” and celebrating the joy that can be found in settling down with a good book is arguably a more important aspect of the day. Dr Phillippa Bennett, the BA English Programme Leader also reminds us that there is more to WBD than a costume, as recognising and celebrating the power of reading is so important: “I think World Book Day is essential to remind us that in a world which can sometimes seem bewildering, chaotic and disempowering, reading gives us the chance to imagine other ways of living and being in the world.”
The benefits of reading for pleasure are clear, and as such perhaps retreating to time spent reading this Thursday can do us all some good, child and adult alike. One way to celebrate and even demonstrate the transformative power that stories can have on us can be via the visual medium of costume, but it can also just be through reading our favourite books and sharing our love and passion for texts with others. That’s why this WBD the English team at the University of Northampton have decided to celebrate the day by collecting thoughts, feelings, recommendations about reading from our staff and students (as well as donning the attire of your favourite literary character, should you so wish). We will share these with you across our social media channels, but to kick us off, here is Dr Bennett’s recommendation: “The book I keep turning to at the moment when the world seems a crazy place is ‘Devotions’, a collection of Mary Oliver’s poems. Oliver’s poems are full of wonder and hope, and she reminds us that we all have our place ‘in the family of things’.”
Happy World Book Day!
- [1] https://www.worldbookday.com
- [2] https://www.worldbookday.com/
- [3] https://www.worldbookday.com/
- [4] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/mar/07/world-book-day-finds-children-are-put-off-reading-for-pleasure
- [5] https://www.worldbookday.com/about-us/our-approach/
- [6] https://www.worldbookday.com/
- [7] https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/mar/07/world-book-day-fancy-dress-costume
- [8] https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/mar/07/world-book-day-fancy-dress-costume
- [9] https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/mar/03/schools-england-dressing-up-world-book-day-mps-
- [10] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/mar/07/world-book-day-finds-children-are-put-off-reading-for-pleasure
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