Happy #WorldBookDay from Special Collections!

Author
micheledrisse
Published Date
March 6, 2014

It’s #WorldBookDay: a day to celebrate everything book and reading related, from authors to illustrators to publishers…

Since 1995, the first Thursday in March has been celebrated as World Book Day, with school children across the UK being given book vouchers and many given the opportunity to go into school dressed as their favourite character from a book.

On this day of celebration we thought we would bring you a few highlights from our Ladybird and Children’s Collections. Enjoy!

Come to the Farm [CHILDREN’S COLLECTIONS 360 GUN]
A History of a Banbury Cake, 1835
Books are Exciting, Ladybird, 1979, World Book Day
Princess Naska, by Stirling, Talwin Morris binding, 1899

Claire (Graduate Trainee)

Published Date
April 27, 2026

The immortal legacy of James Joyce

A review of the University of Reading Special Collection’s exhibition James Joyce: Enigmas and Puzzles, which ran from October 2025 to February 2026, by Jared Geraghty, undergraduate in Art.

Bookshelves with leather bound, 19th century books.
Published Date
March 24, 2026

Finding primary sources to study the transatlantic slave trade

What is a subject explorer for? Subject explorers support students by suggesting primary sources as jumping off points for their dissertation research. The…

Published Date
March 9, 2026

Visualising class, disability, and race on the Victorian stage

This post introduces, via sheet music covers, a few more real individuals whose stories can be used to explore histories of marginalised people. With only 800 of the covers catalogued so far, there are sure to be countless stories still waiting to be rediscovered.  

Published Date
February 23, 2026

Challenging our view of rigid Victorian gender boundaries through music covers

In the first of two blog posts showcasing the research potential of our Spellman Collection of Victorian music covers, we…

Published Date
February 13, 2026

Mills & Boon: The Surprise Archive 

Having long been a lover of a good romance novel, it was a dream come true to be granted permission…

Published Date
February 2, 2026

Festivals of the Imagination: early editions of novels and poetry by James Joyce 

In 2020, Stephen James Joyce, Joyce’s grandson, bequeathed the Solange and Stephen James Joyce Collection to the University of Reading Special…

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