Read Hour 2022 is almost here! On 8 September, it’s again time to sit down and read – with eyes, ears or fingers – for just one hour. Read Hour, which started as a local Finnish initiative, has now started growing into an international movement with a bit of Moominous help. Check out our list of Read Hour 2022 events, the lovely pedagogical material based on the Moomin story of the invisible child, and challenge your friends, family and colleagues in one hour of reading!
Read Hour is an initiative by The Children and Youth Foundation in Finland to celebrate the UN’s International Literacy Day on 8 September by holding a joint reading time. During Read Hour 2022, readers from the UK, Sweden, Norway and Estonia are participating in the celebrations. We’ve gathered a list of Read Hour 2022 events and happenings from all the different Read Hour countries. Moomin Characters is one of the main partners of Read Hour, as a part of the global literacy initiative Reading, Writing and the Moomins.
The overall theme for Read Hour this year is peace and friendship, which will be reflected in some of the events and can inspire the choice of reading – for example, Tove Jansson’s short story The Invisible Child or other suitable Moomin stories.
Free pedagogical material based on The Invisible Child
This year, also younger children are invited to take part in Read Hour through inspiring, free pedagogical material based on Tove Jansson’s Moomin short story The Invisible Child, developed by the Finnish Children and Youth foundation.
Children are invited to explore the feelings of invisible Ninni and the Moomin characters with the help of their teacher or parent through different activities. The materials include the short story to read, a teacher’s guide, colouring pages and crossword puzzles, which can be printed out and sent home with the children or used, for example, during reading time.
Read Hour 2022 in the UK
Read Hour 2022 is celebrated across the UK, with a widening network of partner organisations as well as support from a fantastic group of celebrities and authors, including Matt Lucas, Greg James, Sam Sedgman, Esther Freud, Chris Smith, Rob Biddulph, Lydia Monks and Andrew Donkin. The official Read Hour UK will be held at 2pm-3pm local time, but anyone unable to take part then is encouraged to hold their own Read Hour at any time that suits them on 8th September. Reading alone and reading together with a family member, friend, classmates or colleagues are equally encouraged. Participants are invited to share their Read Hour activities under the hashtag #ReadHourUK.
Children’s Bookshop in Muswell Hill, 11 am & 4 pm
The first of the two events on September 8 is with storyteller Liz Fost, who will bring the Moomin tales and characters to life at 11 am.
The second event begins at 4 pm with author Anna James for the publication of her new book, The Tree House Library. She will be reading and sharing her writing process and signing books later in the day.
Bags of Books in Lewes, Sussex
Liz Fost will also be making her way to Sussex for another storytelling session on September 8 at 4 pm at Bags of Books in Lewes.
Chiswick Book Festival, Sep 10 at 10 am.
A fun-filled storytelling session to stimulate young imaginations with authors Chris Smith and Greg James at Chiswick Book Festival at 10 am on Saturday, September 10.
Read Hour 2022 in Finland
Read Hour is celebrated across Finland for the fourth year in a row, with tens of thousands of students participating. Author Lotta-Sofia Saahko and psychotherapist Ville Merinen encourage participants to read or listen to books with the theme of friendship or peace. Finland takes a pause in order to read for one hour at 7 pm local time, but you can take part at any time during the day if that doesn’t suit your schedule. Participants are welcome to share their reading activities under the hashtag #ReadHour.
Read Hour Live, Sep 8 at 10 am
The 45-minute Read Hour event on Youtube brings students from junior high schools to share their thoughts and inspire others to read more. Last year as many as 35 000 students participated! Actress Krista Kosonen (who also played Tove Jansson’s lover Vivica Bandler in the recent biopic ‘Tove’) will share her best reading tips. Viewers will also get a sneak peek of a new Moomin play, Kris och katastrof i Mumindalen, based on Tove and Lars Jansson’s Moomin comics and directed by Jakob Höglund.
Events in libraries and workplaces around Finland
Read Hour is celebrated in Finnish libraries across the country through workshops and reading events. Also, workplaces can participate in the event, for example during a coffee break. Read Hour is also on Jodel, where chatters are invited to discuss reading and give their best reading tips.
Read Hour 2022 in Sweden
Swedes are encouraged to stop what they are doing and grab something to read for one hour at 7 pm local time on September 8 (but naturally, you can participate anytime during the day). Läsrörelsen (the Reading Movement) coordinates Read Hour in Sweden, which is celebrated with the help of Reading Role Models of all ages and backgrounds.
Read Hour Sweden has gathered impressive supporters, like the Swedish teacher foundation, Lärarstiftelsen, The Swedish Academy and Microsoft. Also the Swedish National Agency for Education encourages schools to participate in Read Hour. Participants are welcome to post their reading activities on social media with #ReadHourSverige and #ReadHour for international visibility. Visit readhoursverige.se/ for more information.
Read Hour 2022 in Norway
Norway is celebrating Read Hour 2022 for the first time with the help of Association Read! (Foreningen !les). Norwegians are encouraged to read together during “Lesetimen” with children, family members, friends, neighbors, colleagues or by themselves at 7 pm local time (or any time suitable time) and post their reading activities with the hashtags #Lesetimen #ReadHour.
There will be a number of activities in public spaces, where old phone booths play an integral role. The phone booths have been turned into reading booths for book swapping. By the booths, you can listen to well-known writers who read their stories aloud or sit down to read for yourself with a piece of pizza. Other activities include a special event for youngsters with an immigrant background, reading aloud relay and much more. More information can be found here.
Read Hour 2022 in Estonia
Tarto, Sep 8
Youngsters in Tarto have started sharing book tips with the hashtags #diggilooyouth, #lugemistund and #ReadHour. Other activities in Tarto include:
- Morning Read Hour events in the Tammelinna library
- 1 pm local time: joint reading session for schools and general public at the town hall square
- 4 pm: reading event at the youth center
Also, the Finnish Institute in Estonia together with The Year of the Libraries will organize Read Hour programme.
Nothing going on in your country during Read Hour 2022? No worries – anyone is free to join the global Read Hour movement by posting your reading activities in social media with the hashtag #ReadHour. Why not send a Moominous greeting while you’re at it?
Oh joy! Free printable #MoominABC activity pages for all ages
These free, printable activity pages are perfect for any Moomin fan of any age include crossword puzzles, word searches and wordokus.
Moomin ABC colouring pages are here to delight – Download and print for free!
These Moomin ABC colouring pages include a vast set of letters, numbers and words waiting to be coloured by young artists – or by adults!
This is how books were read in Tove Jansson’s family
Tove Jansson’s niece Sophia Jansson writes about the role and importance of books and reading in the Tove Jansson family.