World Book Night 2022 - info and FREE audiobooks

MONDAY may be rainy in many parts of the UK, but there’s always a good book around the corner…or chapter over the page.

As such, we wanted to round up some details for World Book Night 2022, which happens on April 23rd - UNESCO’s International Day of the Book. Including how to get a free audiobook (read on).

World Book Night is back on April 23rd, thanks to The Reading Agency

If you’re not familiar, World Book Night is an event put on each year by The Reading Agency, which itself believes in people “reading their way to a better life”.

The Reading Agency is behind loads of great work in the promotion of books and reading the UK over, and World Book Night epitomises this.

How? By celebrating books and reading, giving away free books around the country and highlighting diverse authors and varied titles that appeal to as many readers as possible.

This year, one of the featured books is Romesh Raganathan’s Straight Outta Crawley, and Romesh says this:

"It's a real honour to have my book used as a way of inspiring new readers, something I feel very passionate about. I hope that it encourages people to take up reading as a regular hobby, as well as maybe convincing my family to read it, as none of them have so far."

All the details of this year, including tickets for a live even at the British Library and more can be found on worldbooknight.org.

And yes, you can get a free audiobook - that is you can get one of four audiobooks by; Nikesh Shukla, Russell Brand, Lisa See or Jon Le Carré. Availability is limited o the UK, one per person, and availability of the audiobooks themselves is limited too - so don’t delay!

Free audiobooks? Only if you’re quick (and in the UK)

In 2022, 84,000 books will be given away in the UK and Ireland: to refugee charities, hospitals, care homes, homeless hostels, and foodbanks. Plus there’ll be events across the UK to celebrate the day itself.

The wonderful event is now in its 11th year, and Kevin has fond memories of year one in 2011 - heaving boxes of David Mitchell’s excellent Cloud Atlas to Greenwich station on the Dockland’s Light Railway. Then giving away free copies to chuffed travellers.

Books are awesome eh? Get involved on April 23rd even if it’s just by reading something you love.