Thousands of votes shape Stoke 100 Reads as city’s favourite children’s books revealed

Stoke-on-Trent’s favourite children’s books have been revealed after more than 3,317 submissions from people across the city.

The city’s library service has launched two Stoke 100 Reads book lists, created in partnership with the National Literacy Trust from recommendations gathered during last year’s Centenary celebrations. By putting local recommendations at the heart of Stoke 100 Reads, the libraries aim to help more children discover books they genuinely enjoy.

Suggestions were made by children and families, teachers, librarians and speech and language professionals. Overall, 3,317 votes were received which has helped shape the two lists:

• A primary list (children aged 0-5 & 6-11)
• A secondary list (children aged 11-16)

They contain diverse books and cover a wide range of genres, including action, horror, romance and fantasy. There is also space for poetry, nonfiction and graphic novels. This comes as this year has been designated the National Year of Reading, which is encouraging people of all ages to fall back in love with reading.

The lists were launched on Tuesday 3 March at the City Central Library in Hanley and resources will be made available in the city’s libraries.

“The Stoke 100 Reads list contain a wide variety of stories for children to fall in love with and enjoy. What makes them extra special is that they have been selected by local people, meaning they are personal to what Stoke-on-Trent enjoy reading. I can’t wait to see children across the city engage with the lists, discover new stories and lose themselves in the joy of reading.”

— Councillor Sarah Hill, Cabinet Member for Finance, Anti-poverty and Corporate Services

The project—made possible through funding from Arts Council England—has already made an impact. As part of the nomination process, schools across the city took part in classroom challenges. In one class, a pupil receiving extra support with early reading began reading comics at home with a family member and grew in confidence as a result.

“Reading for pleasure is one of the most important indicators of a child’s future success, however we know that it is currently at crisis point in the UK. By creating a beautifully designed book list which has been made by Stokies, for Stokies, we hope to encourage more children to pick up a book and immerse themselves in a world of stories.”

— Lois Bateman, Manager for the National Literacy Trust in Stoke-on-Trent

To see the full lists, visit here:https://www.stoke.gov.uk/stoke100reads