The #ioleggoperché campaign continues its journey

The national reading promotion campaign, #ioleggoperché, continues to gain momentum, now in its ninth year. Organized by the Italian Publishers Association, the initiative has as its main objective the strengthening of school libraries in Italy. Until November 17, everyone is invited to visit participating bookstores to contribute with book donations to schools.

How does #ioleggoperché work?

The operation is simple and engaging: almost 4,000 participating bookstores welcome donors who can choose a book to purchase. During the procedure, each donor indicates the twinned school to which to donate the volume and can also leave a personal dedication. Each school and bookstore have the opportunity to create activities that stimulate donations for their libraries, following the theme of this year’s edition: “The future begins with a book”. In addition, ten schools of various grades will be awarded with vouchers worth 1,000 euros each, to be used to purchase books for school libraries. To encourage participation in the regions of southern Italy, an eleventh prize of equal value has been introduced for the school that will demonstrate greater involvement and creativity.

Encouraging membership data

The results so far are promising. In Campania, for example, there are 2,231 schools and 266 participating bookstores, with Naples registering 966 schools and 117 bookstores. In Basilicata there are 227 schools and 47 bookstores, while in Calabria there are 868 schools and 83 bookstores. Finally, in Sicily the membership amounts to 2,015 schools and 219 bookstores, with Palermo and Catania contributing significantly. The project benefits from the support of the Ministry of Culture through the Center for Books and Reading and is implemented in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Merit. This year it also received the Medal of the President of the Republic for its positive impact on Italian culture. The #ioleggoperché campaign has already brought over 3 million new books to school libraries since its launch. In the previous edition alone, almost 600 thousand volumes were donated, thus demonstrating the importance of reading in the future of new generations. Looking to the future, the initiative aims to continue to stimulate the love of books and promote a culture of reading that is increasingly rooted in Italian schools.