Civil Society and Reading: A Roundtable Discussion
Addressing the current rate of 40% functional illiteracy in Canada is not enough. We need people at all ages and at all levels of society to be active, engaged readers who can experience the joys and pleasures of reading, the intellectual sustenance that comes from encountering ideas, arguments and information that comes from books and goes beyond the short, simple, and possibly inaccurate information available on the ubiquitous web. What are countries around the world doing in the pursuit of national reading strategies?
Jane Pyper, City Librarian and CEO of Toronto Public Library, Patsy Aldana, publisher of Groundwood Books and president of the International Board on Books for Young People and Raymond Mar, professor of psychology at York University, present ideas about laying the groundwork for a national reading strategy. They will explore the theme of “what would it take to transform Canada into a reading society?” Chaired by Bill Richardson, writer and broadcaster.
