…it shouldn’t be allowed of course. Thursday is the red letter day, when books are once again front and centre in schools, libraries and retailers online and on the streets across the country. Stories will be told, ideas will be brought into the light and characters will be given the breath of life as hopefully everyone lives a little more through their imagination. Shibboleths will be questioned, sacred cows will be put to the slaughter, dictators will be exposed to examination and preconceptions will be subject to scrutiny. It’s very dangerous – humans are usually not very good at the change-thing, we all instinctively prefer the security of what we know rather than the unfamiliar geography of someone else’s imaginary world. A journey into a foreign land and an encounter with the ‘otherishness’ of another’s invention brings an element of threat. It’s not a matter to be taken lightly.
And yet there is a huge amount to be gained, and reading makes such a difference. That’s why there was quite a bit of discussion around reading during the autumn term inspectorial visit here at Bishop’s. Reading needs to be promoted across the age range, for boys, girls and staff too. The Library should be at the heart of the school. Books are important, and not just as a crutch to support a subject specification. They help us to paint pictures of our own world and others that have never existed and, in the world of the essential and ubiquitous ‘five minute read’ they give access to a sustained challenge. Reading cannot just be about snapshots and ephemera as humans are built for more than just the immediate. Books give time for momentum to be gained and the progressive development of narratives and plot. Engaging with a book is a serious matter – you cannot merely dabble with it, and you have to start your reading knowing that you could well be swept off your feet by a torrent of words, ending up who knows where…
So Thursday is about risk-taking, trying a new challenge, bravely venturing where you may have never been before. You may feel alone, but equally you may feel a hand from the author reaching for yours to draw you in further and immerse you in their world. World Book Day is a signpost; which route will you follow…?
SDS
