In The Financial Times, screenwriter and one-time Guild employee Claire Wilson explains how she and some friends decided to challenge the tyranny of the freesheets with Choose What You Read.
It’s quite sad to get on the tube and see the whole carriage reading the same paper. I remember when the novel White Teeth by Zadie Smith came out – everyone was reading that. You could pretty much read the whole book over a few weeks just by looking over somebody’s shoulder. That hasn’t happened for a long time. You never see everyone reading the new Booker winner, because they’re all reading Metro. We’re missing out on so much.You can find out more from the Choose What You Read Facebook Group.
I think what Claire and her friends have done is incredible on so many different levels. In one fell swoop, their Choose What You Read has restored reading for pleasure to its rightful place; it's not for profit and totally altuistic. How many more boxes can you tick? Hoorah to Claire and her friends!
ReplyDeleteI agree.
ReplyDeleteAnd I should have mentioned that the link to the FT piece came via Gail :-)