Raising Readers – News and Events

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Storey Publishing, Running Press Kids, Union Square Kids, Workman Kids, and WorthyKids, Come Together for Hachette Book Group’s Inaugural Tri-State Children’s Book Buzz

The Hachette Book Group hosted their first Tri-State Children’s Book Buzz at its New York office for leading educators and library professionals from across the tri-state area for an exclusive preview of upcoming children’s and young adult titles from across all of HBG’s imprints. 

For the first time, Hachette Book Group united for a single, comprehensive showcase, including Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Running Press Kids, Storey Publishing, Union Square Kids, Workman Kids, and WorthyKids. This collaborative event offered attendees a streamlined opportunity to discover the breadth and depth of HBG’s publishing program in one dynamic presentation.Publishing leaders shared insights into forthcoming titles, themes, and the stories they believe resonate most with young readers in the year ahead.  

As part of the showcase three HBG authors— Diana Peterfreund author of Ellen Poe: The Forgotten Lore (Running Press Kids), Kate Micucci author of The Monster and Puppet Show!- Elephant & Piggie Like Reading (Union Square Kids), and Naomi Danis author of Kindergarten Gets Ready (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)— discussed their engaging new titles with attendees.  

The program also featured remarks from HBG’s CEO David Shelley, who spotlighted HBG’s social impact campaign, Raising Readers. 

Hachette Book Group Sponsors Asian American Journalists Association’s 2026 National Convention with Raising Readers Activation Featuring Workman Kids Author & Illustrator Vicky Fang

Hachette Book Group proudly returned as a sponsor of the Asian American Journalists Association’s (AAJA) 2026 National Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota, June 24-June 28, 2026, where top Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) journalists charged ahead with the conference theme of “Deep Roots, New Routes.” 

AAJA is a membership nonprofit whose mission is to increase AAPI perspectives and representation in newsrooms, media, and storytelling as well as ensure fair and accurate coverage of communities of color.  

“We are so pleased to welcome Hachette back to our convention and share in the mission of uplifting AAPI voices in media and literature,” said Naomi Tacuyan Underwood, the executive director of AAJA. “We commend Hachette’s dedication to making sure our society continues to encourage voracious readers to tap into the stories of our communities.” 

Hachette English Language Holds Global Volunteer Day Benefiting Raising Readers Social Impact Campaign 

Hachette English Language employees from across the globe came together on July 9 to volunteer with organizations advancing children’s literacy and love for reading in partnership with more than a dozen organizations and 170 bookstores.

On Thursday, July 9, employees across all Hachette English language offices, including the US, the UK, Germany, Ireland, India, Australia and Canada, volunteered their time in service of Raising Readers, Hachette’s urgent and long-term campaign to raise awareness about the alarming decline in children reading for fun. Across all locations, employees dedicated their time to supporting children, parents, and caregivers while helping spread the importance of reading and inspiring a lifelong joy of books. In addition to volunteering, Hachette Book Group donated thousands of books to our Raising Readers partners through these volunteer opportunities. 

The Raising Readers campaign is a call-to-action to highlight the importance of reading for pleasure with kids and to encourage adults to make reading part of our children’s daily lives. Research indicates that reading for pleasure and entertainment has a significant impact on a child’s future happiness and success. Even more than family circumstances, parents’ educational background, or income, reading impacts academic results, emotional well-being, economic security, communication skills, and ambition. 

Hachette CEO, David Shelley in the Los Angeles Times: The global reading crisis that started with smartphones

There’s a simple statistic that often stops people in their tracks.

It is this: Reading for pleasure as a child is the factor that studies show is more closely correlated with future success than anything else — even more than family background, wealth, schooling or peer group.

But in America right now fewer children than ever are reading for pleasure: The percentage fell from 53% in 2012 to 39% in 2022, according to a study by the National Endowment for the Arts. This mirrors data from the National Center for Education Statistics and from around the world. Levels of reading for pleasure among children were solid in every report until 2011, when they started to see a precipitous decline.

Hachette Celebrates 200th Anniversary with Little Free Library Through Largest-Ever Publishing Collaboration  

Historic Anniversary Marked by Installation of 200 Library Boxes in Book Deserts Across U.S. and Canada  

Hachette Book Group (HBG) and Little Free Library announced their largest-ever publishing collaboration: the installation of 200 library boxes in book deserts across the United States and Canada. The initiative commemorates HBG’s 200th anniversary, advances the company’s Raising Readers campaign, and coincides with the official 2026 Little Free Library Week. 

“For Hachette’s 200^th anniversary, we wanted to mark the occasion by helping more kids to discover the magic of reading and providing access to books for those in book desserts,” said David Shelley, Hachette Book Group and Hachette UK CEO. “We’re proud to be partnering with Little Free Library and assisting with the extraordinary work that they do.” 

The first set of library boxes is expected to be installed in June with continued placements of 50 boxes per month through September. The library boxes will be distributed in locations determined by the Little Free Library’s Impact Library Program, which focuses on book deserts and areas where book access is scarce in the United States and Canada. This will allow HBG to circulate thousands of children’s books this year.   

Free Children’s Book Giveaway

Hachette Book Group is thrilled to welcome community members to our annual $1.00 book sale and children’s book giveway, with a chance to choose from thousands of favorite books. And to celebrate the New York Times bestselling book, It’s My Bird-Day! by Mo Willems, a pigeon will be present to hand out free books.

Rain or shine, join us on Saturday, June 13, 2026, 8 AM – 9 AM at our distribution center in Lebanon, Indiana. Learn more here and register for the event at the button below.

To serve as many families as possible during our one-hour event, we are using family ticket preregistrations to keep the line moving.

How it Works:

• One Ticket Per Family: To keep things simple, you only need to register for one “Family Pass.” This single ticket covers all the children in your immediate household.
• Check-In: Please have your digital or printed QR code ready to scan as you reach the front of the line. We will scan your family pass once, and then each child in your group can head in to receive their book!

Hachette Celebrates Raising Readers & World Book Day with an ACLU Banned Books Partnership

Hachette Book Group (HBG) proudly joined the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to mark World Book Day and Bring a Child to Work Day, kicking off the groups’ powerful collaboration on Hachette’s Raising Readers campaign. The effort is Hachette’s global social impact initiative aimed at tackling the concerning decline in children’s reading for fun and entertainment.  

HBG was pleased to support the ACLU on April 23 in its launch of Know Your Rights University, a multi-episode animated series created for children and adults to make learning their rights fun and empowering. The short-form series offers engaging, age-appropriate content that helps children and their parents understand First Amendment rights, core civics concepts, and other legal protections. 

HBG donated a library of 200 banned children’s books to the Know Your Rights University event, which was held at an educational center in New York City on World Book Day and Bring a Child to Work Day on April 23. HBG staff also attended the event, which featured a library of The ABCs of Black History, The ABCs of Queer History, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Sold, Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe, and The Family Book. 

Read more in Publisher’s Weekly.

Hachette Book Group Partners with Read Ahead

Hachette Book Group (HBG) partners with Read Ahead to host a Raising Readers Holiday Gift Book Wrapping Event in December at HBG’s New York City office.

Read Ahead is an organization that equips elementary students with opportunities to unlock their full potential through reading-based mentoring that supports social-emotional skills essential for academic and life-long success. 

During the event, HBG and Read Ahead volunteers and supporters will wrap 1000 children’s books donated by HBG for under-served NYC students during the holiday season.

Hachette Marks 200th Anniversary with $200,000 Fund to Provide Curated Classroom Libraries to 200 Underfunded Schools and Education Programs

HBG’s $200,000 Raising Readers fund will be dedicated to social impact initiatives embedded within its urgent and long-term Raising Readers campaign. Raising Readers strives to raise awareness of the decline in the number of children reading for fun and encourages everyone to make reading for enjoyment part of children’s daily lives. Reading for fun impacts academic results, mental health, wealth, communication skills, happiness, and ambition. 

A Message from Reese Witherspoon