This week is Adult Learners’ Week. What’s it all about?

Adult Learners’ Week is a national celebration of the benefits of lifelong learning. We’re getting involved with writing workshops, singing, cooking, and facebook sessions – for details see our events calendar.
But why are libraries getting involved?

Join thousands of eBook readers around the world by taking part in the first ever Big Library Read of an eBook!
The Four Corners of the Sky by Michael Malone is available all library members to borrow until 1 June. So get together with your friends and family or your book group for a wild ride full of twists and turns, a story of love, secrets and the mysterious bonds of families.

Lots of activity on the book awards front over the next few weeks. First up is The Orwell Prize for political writing.

At the end of each of our Edinburgh Reads author events we ask the audience to fill in feedback forms telling us what they thought of the evening.
At last week’s event with Richard Holloway the same words kept coming up: candour, candid, openness, honesty.
People were also struck by Richard’s relaxed style, his sense of humour and thoughtfulness; but it was our speaker’s frankness that seemed to make the biggest impression.

“A classic whodunnit” Allan Massie in The Scotsman
An “always gripping and entertaining mystery” Alan Taylor in The Herald

Luisa Plaja meets the Glitz Lit group.

Shall we count the ways? First, here’s the fearless Annie Bell handing out books to unsuspecting builders and bus passengers.

Meanwhile wannabe pirates were solving a series of clues in order to locate “treasure” (books!) at a mystery location somewhere in Leith.
Several libraries were lucky enough to host visits from authors including Allan Guthrie, Andrew Greig and Caroline Dunford. At Corstorphine Library readers got together to share and swap books and reading recommendations.

Tonight’s the night. All over the country passionate readers – along with a cast of well-known authors and advocates – will come together to give, share and receive books in a spirit of generosity, passion and mass participation.
Through its unique delivery World Book Night involves tens of thousands of people in sharing the value of reading in their communities and delivers brilliant books directly into the hands of those who might never otherwise engage with books and reading.

Here’s Councillor Richard Lewis, leading a rousing chorus of Old Macdonald Had a Farm, at Craigmillar Library.

A group of British expatriates meet for their weekly Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in Rome. At first the drama is low-key, little more than the nervous chatter of dry-drunks and their less disciplined colleagues.