A rare book from the 1700s with watermarked pages, a delicate binding and a cryptic dedication on the inside cover. A cherished classic you have read many times over the course of your life, only to discover new things each time you return to it. A book you loved as a child – and which you can’t wait to read together with your own child, grandchild, niece or nephew once they are old enough. READING is personal, but it also reminds us of how much we are a part of history, with books that survive generations and stories which have already inspired our ancestors.

We love how books don’t have an expiry date, how they become fascinating artifacts with still so much to teach us even when they are a little dated. We think authors deserve to be celebrated way more, since they are the ones making our reading life possible. And we want independent bookshops to flourish in every town, small and large.

That’s what we mean by READING:

Certainly not sticking exclusively to hardcover books from the literary canon. READING includes literacy, genre fiction, celebrating debut writers, exploring established authors and discovering new voices beyond what’s featured on bestseller and awards lists. We believe how much joy a book brings you matters more than what genre it is, what format you read it in or how it was published. No matter if you get your books from the library, as an audio book, an eBook, or from a used bookseller, reading is reading and taking in books in whatever format suits your needs best is what counts. READING covers book collecting to celebrate books as the precious objects that they are and (re-)discovering stories from the many different eras of literature, from all corners of the globe. Plus, READING is also about visiting bookshops and libraries and how to enjoy a bookish lifestyle with bookmarks and bookplates.

We are building an arts & letters directory

We want to help you find new things to read. We want you to discover new book genres and authors. We want to showcase bookstores and libraries for you to visit. We want to give you ideas for events to attend where books are celebrated among fellow readers in the community. And we want to help you find useful book-related supplies which will bring joy to your reading life.

While our directory is only just getting started, this is what we have planned for the theme of READING:

How to add your organization to the Young W directory

Are you a bookshop, author, library or any other organization which fits into one of the categories above? Check out the Get Involved page for details about how to get your organization added to the directory.

 

We sell fiction, reading-inspired art, bookmarks, literary candles and more.