Fewer than one in five 8-18-year-olds in the UK read something daily for pleasure, marking a 36% decrease since 2005, according to National Literacy Trust (NLT) data released in 2025.
A Declining love of Reading
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A new initiative aims to reignite a passion for books among young people in the face of growing digital distractions.
- The National Literacy Trust found reading enjoyment among UK children and young people is at a 20-year low.
- The NLT is launching the National Year of Reading in 2026, aiming to distribute 72,000 books to children in need.
- New books will focus on children’s passions, from sports and history to art and film.
- A new illustrated guide to women artists encourages interactive art projects to foster engagement.
A girl on the cusp of adolescence gazes down at a book, her left hand resting against her flushed pink cheeks, her right clutching the pages. The American-born impressionist Mary Cassatt perfectly captured the all-consuming sensation of being submerged in a story – the feeling that the world dissolves around you. It’s a striking image that evokes the power of reading, a power that feels increasingly threatened in today’s world.
The Allure of the Page
Cassatt, who worked in Paris during a time when women were gaining acceptance as artists, was celebrated for her intimate portrayals of women and children, emphasizing their intellect and ambition. Her “Young Girl Reading” is a poignant example, prompting thoughts of classics like Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women, published nearly three decades earlier.
My reader is encouraged to make “wish trees” in the manner of Yoko Ono.
Today, that immersive experience is frequently enough replaced by the pull of social media, a distraction that can hinder the growth of crucial literacy skills. But the NLT is fighting back with the National Year of Reading in 2026, a campaign designed to distribute 72,000 books to children in need and to foster a renewed love of reading.
Inspiring Creativity Through Art and literature
The initiative will focus on books that reflect children’s interests, encompassing everything from sports and history to art and film. A new illustrated guide to women artists, for example, aims to inspire creativity by encouraging interactive art projects. Readers are invited to respond to art in their own way: to write poems inspired by paintings, to create collages based on favorite books, or, inspired by 17th-century painter Clara Peeters, readers are challenged to conceal a self-portrait within a still life. Inspired by the collaboration between Joan Mitchell and James Schuyler, readers are encouraged to create artwork inspired by their favorite poems.
georgia O’Keeffe, before achieving fame in New York City, taught art in Amarillo, Texas.Her biographer, Roxana Robinson, noted that O’Keeffe brought “a clarity and an attention” to her teaching that students found exhilarating. O’keeffe herself said: “I enjoyed teaching people who had no particular interest in art.”
With free access to permanent collections in UK museums,opportunities abound to foster a love of art and reading. Whether it’s a painting of a favorite author or a work exploring technology or the habitat, there’s something to spark every imagination. The hope is that 2026 will be a year when young people of all backgrounds feel welcome in museums, discover books that resonate with them, and experience the joy of reading – just like the girl in Cassatt’s painting.
books and art stimulate the mind, allowing us to dream, imagine, and explore worlds beyond our own. They teach us about others and, in doing so, reveal something about ourselves. Ultimately, they demonstrate that the human imagination is a superpower that no machine can replicate.
