Celebrating and promoting the joys and benefits of reading and literacy
Across Australia there are many great festivals and events that celebrate writers and writing but not so many that are focused on, and celebrate, readers and reading (even though writers are readers, too). Read Tasmania is the product of reading addicts coming together to celebrate and promote the joys and benefits of reading and literacy.
In January 2018, Read Tasmania co-founder Kate Harrison began hosting monthly silent reading parties in venues across Hobart. The events were hosted in partnership with Rachel Edwards of Transportation Press and the two were pleasantly surprised by their popularity. The reading population of Hobart embraced every opportunity to go to a bar and sit quietly reading for up to two hours in the company of fellow booklovers.
Later in 2018, award-winning author Jane Rawson moved to Tasmania. Jane was a founder of Melbourne-based reading event, Storytime for Grownups and the adult readathon, Just Read. It was inevitable Kate and Jane would meet up. Once they had bonded over their mutual love of the same football team, they were ready to start planning a Tasmanian reading festival.
And so Read Tasmania was born.
The aim of Read Tasmania is to connect readers, booklovers, libraries, literacy groups, bookshops and book clubs across the state. This began with the Weekend of Reading festival, held in Hobart from 11–13 October 2019.