Hawkins, Norton and Wheatle to pen Quick Reads 2022 titles

Novelists Paula Hawkins, Graham Norton and Alex Wheatle are among the authors writing short, accessible titles for the Quick Reads literacy programme for 2022.

Also penning titles for the 2022 list targeted at less confident readers will be M W Craven, Ayisha Malik, Santa Montefiore, Kate Mosse and Lemn Sissay, the Reading Agency said.

For the first time, the Quick Reads titles will also feature among the titles made available for donation on World Book Day (23rd April 2022), also run by The Reading Agency.

Girl on a Train (Transworld) and Blind Spot (Transworld) author Hawkins (pictured above) will write a "chilling story of revenge", while Hodder author Norton's offering will be "an intriguing tale of romance and danger". Constable's Craven will explore a "gruesome" new case for her crime-fighting duo Poe and Bradshaw and there will be a specially abridged version of Sissay's memoir My Name is Why (Canongate).

Meanwhile, Headline Review's Malik will provide a catch-up with her "Muslim Bridget Jones" heroine Sofia Khan, Simon & Schuster's Montefiore will offer "a fable of family dynamics and deception" and Mosse of Pan Mac's Mantle imprint will write a historical drama set against the backdrop of Tenerife. Serpent's Tail author Wheatle's story will return to the streets of a familiar setting in his work, the North Crongton estate.

The eight Quick Reads titles will be published on 14th April 2022 and will be priced at £1 each in bookshops, as well as loaned through libraries.

Karen Napier, c.e.o. of the Reading Agency, said: "We are incredibly excited to reveal the extraordinary list of authors working with Quick Reads to publish a bitesize book next year — and thank them for their support to this life-changing programme. We are thrilled that these titles will form part of our World Book Night 2022 booklist, allowing us to explore new ways of engaging a wider audience so that more and more readers will be able to discover the pleasure and benefits that come from reading."

The World Book Night development follows on from the success of the "buy one, gift one" campaign held earlier this year to mark Quick Reads' 10th anniversary, which saw publishers donate a copy of each title to match each title sold before the end of July.

The Reading Agency said more than 35,000 donated copies of Quick Reads titles were now being distributed via library authorities, prisons, adult learning organisations and community-based charities, including work with food banks, local refugee groups and those supported by homeless shelters. 

Napier said: "Working closely with our wonderful publisher partners, the success of this year's innovative 10th anniversary 'buy one, gift one' campaign has enabled The Reading Agency to distribute thousands of free books into the hands of those that need them most, who struggle with reading, or have limited access to books."

Since launching in 2006, Quick Reads titles have been loaned out over six million times and over five million copies have been distributed with the support of publishers and donors, the Reading Agency said.

A full list of the World Book Night 2022 titles will be revealed later in the year.