US Edition 
World Book Night 2014: where to join in
Book giveaways, readings and family events are taking place across the country for this year's World Book Night
Tonight is World Book Night 2014, when 250,000 books, consisting of 20 specially selected titles, will be handed out by a network of volunteers and institutions in the hope of reaching the 35 per cent of the population who, for whatever reason, do not read for pleasure.
Special events will be taking place across the country in local libraries, bookshops and workplaces, with national flagship events in London and Birmingham. Other organisations getting involved this year include homeless hostels, prisons, hospitals, schools and charities.
The results of The Reading Agency’s recent survey on men’s reading habits revealed that nearly three quarters of men would rather see the television or film adaptation of a book than read the original, while 63 per cent of men admit they don’t read as much as they think they should.
With this in mind, the 2014 World Book Night list has been chosen specifically to appeal to people who have either gone off or not yet discovered reading for pleasure, with a particular emphasis on books for men and young adults.
World Book Night events:
Canongate and Southbank Centre, London: Letters Live event inspired by Simon Garfield's To the Letter and Shaun Usher's Letters of Note, celebrating the enduring power of literary correspondence, with readings by Caitlin Moran, James Rhodes, Philip Pullman, Andrew Motion, David Nicholls and Kerry Fox.
Library in Birmingham: Bestselling authors Ben Aaronovitch, Matt Haig, Jane Fallon and Adele Parks will give live readings in the city’s impressive new library.
Woking Library: A Night of Shining Stars with authors Peter James, Salley Vickers and Nicholas Owen.
Glass Mill Leisure Centre, Lewisham: A night of spoken word and book swaps with Dreda Say Mitchell, Nadeem Masood, Sarah Mussi and Sheila Bugler.
Worksop Library, Nottinghamshire: A Girls’ Night Out evening of wine, books and chat with fiction writers Kerry Young and Emma Lannie.
Manchester Central Library: An evening of poetry and music with Tony Walsh and Steph Pike and local band The Slow Readers Club.
The Hive, Worcester: Sports-themed fun with special guests, a silent disco and World Book Night games.
Pickering Library, North Yorkshire: Family event Rediscover the Magic of Reading, a film screening and Q&A with author Linda Green.
Gateshead Central Library: Discussions with local author David Almond and The Reading Agency’s young Reading Activists, as well as book readings and a quiz.
Mitchell Library, Glasgow: Events in partnership with HMP Barlinnie and author Karen Campbell.
Edinburgh Central Library: Evening with 59 Seconds author Richard Wiseman (sold out).
Prestatyn Library, Denbighshire: A family Dr Who event followed by a Murder in the Library event with crime authors Margaret Murphy and Cath Staincliffe.
Verbal Arts Centre, Dublin: A host of local authors giving readings online and in the library, with a book swap in the cafe.
Exeter Central Railway Station: Exeter library staff will be handing out books to the public as they pass through the station. Watch out for a special World Book Night flash mob performed by students from Exeter College.
For more information and events listings visit worldbooknight.org