Families can redeem their €1.50 token in lockdown OR hold on to it to use later.

Children can use the ‘Look Insides’ on each of the €1.50 book pages on our website to choose their €1.50 book and parents can use the €1.50 token when they collect essential shopping.

The World Book Day €1.50 books are a gift from booksellers, who fully fund the cost of the €1.50 book token redemptions. Bookshops are offering new ways to make the €1.50 books available, and bookshops will welcome families when they open again (the tokens will be honoured beyond 28 March – while stocks last. 

World Book Day’s €1.50 books can be found in major supermarkets as well as bookshop chains and hundreds of independent booksellers. Please check https://booksellers.org.uk/wbd for information about retailers open near you and contact them for information about ways to redeem the token before you visit.

Children and families can start using their €1.50 Book Token from Thursday 18 February.

To ensure that children have more time to use their token, participating bookshops will honour tokens beyond the 28 March, whilst stocks last. Each retailer will decide whether they are able to offer €1.50 off other children’s titles.

World Book Day’s €1.50 books can be found in major supermarkets as well as bookshop chains and hundreds of independent booksellers. A full list is available here:

https://booksellers.org.uk/wbd

Bookshops will have different measures in place to make the €1.50 books available. Contact your local bookseller for information about their opening times and ways to redeem the token before you visit. 

If you are a school or nursery/pre-school and would like to register for the digital token, registration is now open – please click here to register. 

All nurseries and schools can register. Once registered, you will receive an email with links to a PDF of the token. This same link can then be sent out to families via school communications and newsletters to parents.

The lockdown means doing things differently, so we have some amazing resources to help.

A full list of free resources for nursery, primary and secondary level is available on our schools’ hubs including audiobooks, activity sheets, discussion guides, and brand new Author Academy learning videos with our €1.50 authors and illustrators. 

You can take part in Show Your Shares on social media, celebrating the joy of reading together.

And, remember, World Book Day can be any day! Your events – including virtual events for 2021 – such as author visits, library trips, fun school activities can happen at any time of the year. Our resources are here to support you all year round.

Do organise a virtual event and help us celebrate World Book Day and continue the work over the 20 years that has seen World Book Day promote reading in Ireland, celebrating books and opening up the benefits of reading for everyone. If you have any photos of the events you organised last year please email them to worldbookdayireland@gmail.com and we will post them on our Facebook page.

This year has been challenging for so many families; we want to make sure that World Book Day 2021 sends a powerful and positive message about books and reading, and that we do all we can to make sure that children have access to books, especially in lockdown. 

We all hope schools and high streets will be open in February and March, but if you’d like to postpone your children’s events and activities until later in March, or even later in the year, please do.

We’re asking families to hold on to their tokens to use later. Please honour them when you’re open again (until stocks of the books last, and with €1.50 off other titles at your discretion).

Contact local schools and tell them how children and young people can redeem their tokens – pop-up bookshops in schools, or arrange visits for when schools are fully open again.

Our full guidance for booksellers can be found here.  

Do organise a virtual event and help us celebrate World Book Day and continue the work over the 20 years that has seen World Book Day promote reading in Ireland, celebrating books and opening up the benefits of reading for everyone. If you have any photos of the events you organised last year please email them to worldbookdayireland@gmail.com and we will post them on our Facebook page.

This year has been challenging for so many families; we want to make sure that World Book Day 2021 sends a powerful and positive message about books and reading, and that we do all we can to make sure that children have access to books, especially in lockdown. 

We’d like to support libraries to use World Book Day to promote reading and library membership across the UK.

We hope libraries will be open in February and March, but if you’d like to postpone your children’s events and activities until later in March, or even later in the year, please do.

Our support and resources for libraries can be found here.     

Do organise a virtual event and help us celebrate World Book Day and continue the work over the 20 years that has seen World Book Day promote reading in Ireland, celebrating books and opening up the benefits of reading for everyone. If you have any photos of the events you organised last year please email them to worldbookdayireland@gmail.com and we will post them on our Facebook page.

Our World Book Day plans may change to respond to the most recent news and government guidance. The best place to seek out regular, live news from us is via our social media. You can follow us on Twitter (@WorldBookDayUK), Instagram (@worldbookdaysocial) and Facebook (@worldbookdayUK).  

Our main FAQ will also be updated on a regular basis to reflect the most recent developments.   

Keep up to date and follow World Book Day Ireland on Twitter and Facebook @WorldBookDayIE

Please also note that our Irish Helpline operates for a limited period around World Book Day – please contact it on: worldbookdayireland@gmail.com

Material, including Euro Book Tokens, is sent in bulk to Ireland and is despatched to schools by the Irish Department of Education. We would like schools in Ireland to help ensure that the list used for dispatch is completely up to date. Please visit the site registration section or contact the main Helpline at wbd@education.co.uk.

The Irish Helpline operates for a limited period around World Book Day – please contact it on: worldbookdayireland@gmail.com

A comprehensive mailing list is used to distribute material. If you would like to check that your school’s details are correct, including contact name and roll numbers, please contact the World Book Day Helpline: wbd@education.co.uk

All material, including Euro Book Tokens, is sent in bulk to Ireland and is despatched to schools by the Irish Department of Education. All Primary and Secondary schools in Ireland automatically receive tokens. There is no need to register. 

Other establishments, including Nurseries do not receive tokens automatically. There is limited stock available on request via the Irish email: worldbookdayireland@gmail.com. This operates for a limited period around World Book Day.

You should also use this email address if you do not receive enough tokens for your school.

Please note, if as a Primary or Secondary school, you have previously opted out of receiving mailings from The Education Company, WBD’s mailing house based in England, you will not receive any WBD material. To rectify this situation, please contact the Helpline at wbd@education.co.uk

There is limited stock available on request for late registrations via the Irish email: worldbookdayireland@gmail.com. This operates for a limited period around World Book Day.

For World Book Day 2021, we’re working with teachers to provide the printed token (for those children still in a school setting) and a new single-use digital version, that can be printed at home or shown to booksellers on a phone or tablet screen. 

If you are a school or nursery/pre-school and would like to register for the digital token, registration is now open – please click here to register. 

We also have an Irish Helpline which operates for a limited period around World Book Day – please contact it on: worldbookdayireland@gmail.com

In 2021, registered childminders and home educators can also register for our digital token. Registration is now open – please click here to register. The digital token will be emailed to you and can be used by all the children educated by you.

For physical tokens, registered Childminders, Home Educators, and other registered individuals should send in a stamp-addressed envelope to receive tokens. The outer and inner return envelopes must have valid stamps for the correct value. The outer envelope should be addressed to:

EdCo – World Book Day SAE

Denne Court

Hengist Field

Oad Street

Borden

Sittingbourne

ME9 8LT

Please write the number of tokens you require in the top right-hand corner of your return envelope. If you do not enter a value we will only send you 1 token.

You must fix the correct value, 1st or 2nd class stamp to both the outer and your return envelope.

Envelopes which do not have the correct payment on the outer envelope will not be delivered to us by Royal Mail. If there is no stamp on your return envelope, unfortunately we cannot process your request. Postage on your return envelope must be enough to cover the weight of the number of tokens sent, otherwise you may incur a surcharge from Royal Mail. Each token weighs 2 grams.

Any request received up to the 31st January will be stored and despatched after that date. For requests received after the 31st January, please allow up to 14 days for this process.

In 2004, we extended the reach of the World Book Day initiative into the pre-school sector. For further information on this activity please visit the registration section of this site where establishments can register their details. Individuals and childminders are ineligible for this service, due to the potential cost.

Booksellers will have limited quantities of the €1.50 books exchangeable for the WBD €1.50 Book Tokens, and are neither obliged nor able to supply large quantities of €1.50 books in exchange for bulk quantities of Book Tokens. You are urged to bear this in mind when planning for your pupils to celebrate World Book Day, as any misunderstanding can lead to disappointment.

Early contact with your local bookseller is recommended to find out what their plans are for €1.50 Book stock. You can find your local bookseller here: https://booksellers.org.uk/wbd

You may wish to consider contacting your nearest bookshop to find out if they might be able to help you.

You may also wish to organise a book club or fair; please note that Book Clubs and Fairs do not stock the €1.50 Books.

Please visit https://booksellers.org.uk/wbd

Details are given so that you can check before travelling to make your purchase.

Please check before making a journey that your local store is participating.

Registering pre-school establishments – see the pre-school section on this site.
Exclusion Units/Individuals educating excluded children.
Hospitals, hospices or other settings educating children in long term care.
Immigration and asylum units that educate children internally

Sunday Schools, after-school clubs, school reading clubs or organised groups such as Brownies and Guides.

We encourage you to contact your bookseller, many of whom will be running exciting World Book Day events and activities that you could get involved in. Find your local bookshops here.

We’d like to support libraries to use World Book Day to promote reading and library membership across the UK. Our support and resources for libraries can be found here.  

You can take a look at World Book Day’s impact here.

Our aim is to create a list of books that will appeal to the widest number of children and young people possible, ensuring there is a representative list with something to appeal to all ages and stages.

Each year publishers suggest titles that they believe will encourage a range of children to read for pleasure. A selection panel involving a wide range of expert voices (including libraries, those working directly with children and families in communities, colleagues from partner charities, as well as retailers) chooses a long and shortlist from these submissions. The final decision on the €1.50 books rests with WBD’s trustees.  

There is an exclusive Irish title each year which is created in collaboration with O’Brien press.

The charity is funded by a wide selection of publishers, as well as a sponsor, National Book Tokens and booksellers nationwide.

The World Book Day €1.50 books are a gift from booksellers, who fully fund the cost of the €1.50 book token redemptions.

 You can see more about our team here.

World Book Day aims to change lives through a love of books and shared reading. We encourage children to use their imagination and engage with the world of books creatively. Children can do this in any way they like, including bringing their favourite book characters to life in a range of ways. Some ideas can be found here.

Alongside activity on World Book Day itself, the World Book Day website www.worldbookday.com is constantly updated with reading recommendations, ideas, resources, activities and competitions for children of all ages all year round.