{"id":632085,"date":"2026-10-16T05:14:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T05:14:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/632085\/"},"modified":"2026-10-16T05:14:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T05:14:17","slug":"lee-child-backs-launch-of-reading-scheme-to-send-prisons-half-a-million-books-books","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/632085\/","title":{"rendered":"Lee Child backs launch of reading scheme to send prisons half a million books | Books"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nearly half a million books will be distributed across prisons in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland this autumn, in a campaign backed by bestselling thriller writer Lee Child<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The initiative, delivered by the Reading Agency charity as part of its Quick Reads programme, will see copies of 11 short books distributed, with titles selected with input from prisoners as well as staff. A book will be distributed to every cell across the prison estate, as well as stock sent to prison libraries.<\/p>\n

Child, the UK\u2019s first prison reading laureate, said the initiative was intended to address the \u201crevolving door\u201d \u2013 people leaving prison but struggling to cope outside and returning to custody.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can stop one in 10 of those people from coming back, that would be a major achievement,\u201d he said. \u201cIt would be good for society as a whole, not just for that individual prisoner and their future employer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ministry of Justice statistics for 2024-25 show that 65% of initial-assessment results across public prisons in England, based on tests taken when people entered custody, were at entry levels 1-3, below the standard<\/a> expected of a typical GCSE student.<\/p>\n

Child said people who wanted to turn their lives around after prison could face compounded barriers if they had difficulty reading. \u201cThe obvious beneficiary will be somebody who is [in prison] due to some kind of mistake or unfortunate circumstance that they regret, and who wants to go straight afterwards and never come back,\u201d he said. \u201cBut they face the problem of finding a job if they\u2019ve got a conviction, and on top of that, if they\u2019ve got poor literacy skills.\u201d<\/p>\n

Everyday tasks could also become obstacles, he said. \u201cYou can\u2019t read a lease if you want to rent a flat; you can\u2019t deal with utilities or a TV licence if you can\u2019t read the official notices.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Quick Reads collection spans crime and thrillers, memoir, wellbeing, and a creative writing guide. Fiction titles include High Heat by Child himself; Cell One, a Lagos-set thriller by Leye Adenle; and Darkness Rising, from Bradford-based crime writer AA Dhand\u2019s Harry Virdee series. Other books include Lemn Sissay\u2019s memoir My Name Is Why<\/a>, Andy McNab\u2019s Today Everything Changes and Dr Alex George\u2019s The Mind Manual. Authors featured also include Dreda Say Mitchell, Fiona Cummins, Cathy Rentzenbrink and Alex Wheatle<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Child, who has made between 30 and 40 prison visits since beginning his work as laureate last year, said one of the most common explanations he heard from people who did not read was that the books they had been given at school were boring. Quick Reads, he said, offers an alternative. \u201cThey are proper books, proper storytellers, and there\u2019s nothing simple or childish about them, they\u2019re just short.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that improving access to books should be understood not as a soft approach to criminal justice but as a practical way to support rehabilitation and reduce reoffending. \u201cThe problem with public reaction to this kind of thing is a rather kneejerk reaction of \u2018soft on crime\u2019,\u201d he said. \u201cMy point is that no, it\u2019s actually hard on crime. It is focusing on where the budget and attention should really be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alongside distributing the books, the Reading Agency will organise author-led workshops, creative writing activities, content for National Prison Radio and resources for prison libraries, education teams and peer supporters. The initiative is funded by the Henry Smith Foundation, a poverty-focused non-profit.<\/p>\n

AA Dhand, whose Darkness Rising is among the selected books, said: \u201cBooks should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their circumstances or their previous relationship with reading.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Reading can build confidence, create empathy\u2019 \u2026 AA Dhand.<\/p>\n

Dhand added: \u201cIn prison, reading can provide far more than temporary escape. It can build confidence, create empathy and give people the opportunity to see the world and themselves differently. If the right book reaches the right person at the right moment, it can open a door that may otherwise have remained closed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Karen Napier, chief executive of the Reading Agency<\/a>, said the programme was built with the intention of giving people in prison choice over what they read.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we put a book directly into someone\u2019s hands, we are offering more than words on a page,\u201d she said. \u201cReading can offer escape, connection and space for reflection, while supporting wellbeing, confidence and learning. We want as many people as possible to have the opportunity to find a book that grabs them and discover where reading might take them.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nearly half a million books will be distributed across prisons in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland this…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":632086,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[156,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-632085","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-entertainment","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632085","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=632085"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632085\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/632086"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=632085"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=632085"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=632085"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}