Let's Read Together
Welcome to the first edition of Leeds Libraries Readers' Group newsletter! We love books and can't wait to share lots of reading opportunities and inspiration with you.
Did you know reading groups are good for your health? Connecting with others and discussing new topics can help your mental wellbeing, in a recent survey conducted by The Reading Agency, 71% said their mental wellbeing has improved because of being part of a reading group. Now that's a great reason to discuss books and connect with people. Leeds Libraries has everything you need to start a new book group or support your established group.
 Readers' Group Support
Did you know Leeds Libraries has over 40 Readers' Groups? Here are some of the advantages of registering your book group with Leeds Libraries:
- Free information and advice about setting up a readers' group
- Access to over 130 diverse book collections
- Collections of Quick Reads, books written in an accessible and easy to read style
- An exciting programme of author events across the city throughout the year, with offers for Readers’ Group members
- A quarterly newsletter highlighting events and offering reading recommendations
- A space to hold your Readers’ Group meetings in our libraries
- The opportunity to read publications in advance and get involved with live author events
- Have your say; suggest books to add to our Readers' Group collections
If you wish to set up a new Readers' Group account, please call into any library and speak to our friendly library staff. Alternatively, you can call us on 0113 3785005 or email leeds.libraries@leeds.gov.uk and we’ll be happy to help.
For further information and to search the collections visit our website.
The Readers' Group Collection
We've re-launched our Readers' Group collection! Whether you meet in the library, at a friend's house or at the local pub, you can search through our extensive list of Readers Group collections, and reserve them for your group using your Readers' Group library card.
Follow these simple steps to reserve a collection for your readers' group
- Open the Leeds Libraries online catalogue via Library Catalogue Home Room or Leeds Libraries App
- You will find Readers' Group Collections here
- Choose the title you want for your group (please try to pick one that is in stock as this will prevent any delays)
- Reserve the collection to your preferred library using your readers group library card (this is the only type of card that can reserve a readers group collection) You can get one from your local library if you don’t already have one
- You will receive an email to let you know when the collection has arrived in your library
- When you receive the notification, either pick up the copies yourself or let your group members know they can now pick up their copy of the book from your chosen library, which will be issued to their library card rather than yours. There are no late charges on any book loans
- When you have had your meeting the books should all be returned to your nominated library so that the collection becomes available to another group
National Reading Group Day
Wednesday 14 September
National Reading Group Day is a celebration of reading groups and book clubs across the country. It's the perfect opportunity to come together with your group, bring new members, talk about your favourite books that you've read together and more!
Gillian Godden in Conversation.
Wetherby Library, Wednesday 14 September, 7pm
To celebrate National Reading Group Day enjoy a very special event with author Gillian Godden.
Gillian is an Indie author and a full time NHS key worker at a local inner city medical centre in Hull. Her first book was Francesca followed by the Gangland crime-lit trilogy Dangerous Games, Nasty Business, Dirty Dealings.
The popularity of her books and growing fan base resulted in her finding time after work to write Gold Digger, Fool’s Gold and Diamond Geezer. Rough Diamonds is the gritty new gangland thriller published by Boldwood Books in August 2022.
Borrow the books
Book your ticket.
Readers Group VIP Offer
As part of a Readers' Group you can enjoy the event for free! Just email us with your name and library card number: leeds.libraries@leeds.gov.uk
Literary Events for your Diary
Daisy Hildyard in conversation with Stu Hennigan
Chapel Allerton Library, Wednesday 30 August, 7pm
As part of our Indie publishers programme and the Chapel Allerton Arts Festival we invite you to an evening with author Daisy Hildyard. This promises to be a stimulating discussion with fellow author, Stu Hennigan. Hear their experiences of the world we live in and how it informs their writing and literature choices.
Daisy's second book Emergency explores the dissolving boundaries between all life on earth, it reinvents the pastoral novel for the climate change era.
Book your ticket.
 Queer Beyond London
Leeds Central Library, Thursday 22 September, 6.30pm
Authors Matt Cook and Alison Oram will be talking about their new book Queer Beyond London.
Two leading LGBTQ+ historians take you on a journey through four English cites from the sixties to the noughties, exploring the northern post-industrial heartlands and taking in the salty air of the seaside cities of the South.
Book your ticket.
Readers Group VIP Offer
As part of a Readers' Group you can enjoy the event for free! Just email us with your name and library card number: leeds.libraries@leeds.gov.uk
Author Talks: Chris Nickson
Oakwood Library, Wednesday 28 September, 7pm
Yeadon Community Hub and Library, Wednesday 5 October, 7pm
Headingley Community Hub and Library, Monday 17 October, 7pm
We’re delighted to welcome Leeds author Chris Nickson to three of our libraries this Autumn to will launch the newest Tom Harper mystery; A Dark Steel Death. Chris will talk about the inspiration for his new novel, his writing process and of using Leeds as his creative backdrop in turning history into fiction.
Borrow the books.
Book your tickets.
|
 Calabash Presents
Leeds Central Library, Saturday 8 October 2022, 11am
Jamaica’s much-loved Calabash International Literary Festival brings a hint of Treasure Beach vibe to Leeds for an unmissable, day-long literary take-over of the library curated by Calabash co-founders Kwame Dawes and Justine Henzell.
Internationally acclaimed Emmy Award winning writer Kwame Dawes will take to the stage in conversation with Yvonne Brewster OBE and to introduce a tribute to the late Godmother of Dub Poetry, Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze, as well as a stellar line up of writers of Jamaican heritage.
This is part of The Out of Many Festival by Jamaican Society Leeds. Find out more here.
 Time to Read
Third Floor, Leeds Central Library, every Monday, 12.00-2.00pm
Take some time out to read and relax on your lunch break in our reading retreat on the third floor of Central Library.
Bring your own book or borrow one from our inspiring displays.
No need to book, just drop in
Borrow and enjoy instant eBooks and eAudiobooks with BorrowBox. Simply head over to leeds.borrowbox.com, where you'll be able browse thousands of books. You'll discover all of your favourite books and authors available to read or listen to for free!
BorrowBox enables everyone to experience the joy of books and storytelling through its user-friendliness. Features include everything from a dyslexic font and customizable text size on the eReader, to having complete control over the speed of the audio on the eAudioplayer.
Visit our Digital Academy to find a handy user guide for BorrowBox.
 Quick Reads
We have Readers' Group collections of Quick Reads. This collection provides a route into reading that prioritises great story telling and adult-focused content while ensuring the books are written in an accessible and easy to read style. The books are written by some of the most popular authors in the UK. Including Andy McNab, Jojo Moyes, Anne Cleeves, Ian Rankin and Benjamin Zephaniah, so they can be a brilliant entry point to new genres and authors, as well as the spark to reignite or build up the joy of reading. Get in touch to find out more.
Leeds Libraries Top Ten
Do you ever wonder what everyone else is reading? These are our most popular books in August. It seems Leeds really does like a mystery!
Remember you can search by subject, pick your preferred format and view availability. Reserves are free to be delivered to your library of choice and we don't charge for late returns.
Borrow the books.
What have you enjoyed reading?
In each newsletter we will share a book review to inspire other readers. Please email us with your reviews and we will select one to share with readers within our community.
Behind The Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson
Our Librarian says "Behind the Scenes at the Museum has always stayed with me. This book has almost seemed like my own family’s history. Many of the female characters are similar to my own troubled relatives, not very pleasant! The setting in York, where my family came from, makes it even more realistic. My grandfather’s tales of the war, his losses and youth fit so well with the troubled lives in the novel, as if he could have been living next door. The novel brings life to the stuffy black and white photos we look back at and shows life was never easy or moral."
Borrow the book.
Send in your recommendations
Email us: Leeds.Libraries@Leeds.gov.uk or follow us on social media and tag us in: @LeedsLibraries #LeedsReads. We always love sharing what you are reading.
Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter. Please share the Readers' Group newsletter sign up link with others in your Reading Group, and with family, friends and colleagues.
|
