Booker prize launches new Quick Read in effort to boost adult reading crisis

An initiative that aims to widen access to Booker prize-winning authors is set to launch this week, as research finds that more than a third of UK adults find it hard to read books through to the end. The Booker Prize Foundation is launching a short story collection entitled All Around the World, including works by the Booker prize winners Anne Enright, David Szalay and International Booker prize nominee Nadifa Mohamed. The collection was curated by another former winner, Roddy Doyle. Data from the forthcoming State of the Nation’s Adult Reading report shows that 55% said they read less than they intend to, while 19% of 16- to 24-year-olds said they could not “easily find themselves or their culture represented in books”. The Reading Agency is expected to publish the full report later in the summer. All Around the World will be distributed as part of the Quick Reads initiative, which is in its 20th year of seeking to improve adult literacy. Readers will be able to pick up the book for £1 from Thursday and the Booker Prize Foundation will donate 12,000 copies to people who face barriers to reading. The book will also be delivered to the foundation’s prison reading programme, Books Unlocked. The collection will be made available as a free digital and audio download for readers of this week’s Big Issue, and 300 physical copies will be distributed via vendors of the magazine. …