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Hachette c.e.o. David Shelley pledges to support reading for pleasure in end-of-year letter
Hachette UK and Hachette Book Group c.e.o. David Shelley has pledged to support reading for pleasure among children in his end of year letter to authors, illustrators and translators.
To support his pledge, he announced the launch of a new scheme called Raising Readers, which will mean including a page at the back of many of Hachette’s black-and-white adult books "talking about the value of fostering a lifelong habit of reading for pleasure and tips on how to do so".
Shelley explained that the "letter would be signed by whoever created the book, either based on a template we’ll provide or in your own words" and authors would have the option to opt-in to the venture.
In the letter Shelley wrote: "Of course, you don’t have to be included in this venture, and everyone can opt into it. It’s purely voluntary, but my hope is that many of you will want to engage."
Authors who want to be involved have been invited to sign up and Shelley explained that Hachette would follow up with more details for everyone who signs up in the new year.
Due to the number of books – 220 million books a year (across print, e-book and audiobook formats) – sold by Hachette, Shelley said he hopes that the "reach of this campaign could be very wide".
He added that the letter will be included in print and e-book formats alike, as well as audiobook editions.
Shelley said: "There are many big issues out there for our industry, but this decline in reading for pleasure among kids is one of the most serious, especially as it appears that reading for pleasure among kids also correlates with socioeconomic background."
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As well as introducing the Raising Readers venture, Shelley said that Hachette’s book sales have been remarkably resilient in 2024 and in the industry generally, adding: "Book publishing remains one of the most successful creative industries."
He said: "However, given the trend we are seeing in relation to kids reading for pleasure, we can’t rely on
this continuing to be the case if we don’t nurture the readers of the future. Kids need to read for their own enjoyment if they’re to read for enjoyment as adults."
Shelley said the idea for Raising Readers came from Megan Tingley, president and publisher of Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and was sparked by the National Literacy Trust’s research. The research showed that reading for pleasure among children is at a 20-year low.
He said: "I know I’m preaching to the choir here, but we also know from a vast amount of research that reading for pleasure in children increases empathy, promotes social mobility and, ultimately, increases opportunity. So, as well as being concerned for the future commercial health of the ecosystem of which we’re all a part, the overwhelming concern is that this trend is going to negatively affect the life chances of a great many kids."
In the letter, Shelley also said the company would "continue to oppose attempted book bans in the US and elsewhere", as well as backing the creation of school libraries everywhere.
He ended the letter, writing: "I hope you all have a restful holiday season and a great 2025. It’s been a privilege helping to bring your books to as many readers as possible this year, and I hope we’ll be able to continually improve what we do and reach even more people with them next year. And, as ever, please do feel free to be in touch with me with any questions or thoughts you have – I always value hearing from you."
