People encouraged to celebrate Queen’s Platinum Jubilee with great reads by authors from the Commonwealth

Being supported by Staffordshire Libraries and Arts service, the campaign, called Big Jubilee Read, will help celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

Seventy titles have been chosen, ten for each decade of the Queen’s reign and they showcase the breadth and depth of writing across the nations involved.

The campaign hopes to promote a love of books and reading and to connect a broad audience of readers of all levels of ability.

Books chosen for the campaign include the Wide Sargasso Sea, Wolf Hall and the Remains of the Day.

The county’s libraries will also be hosting a series of activities and displays to encourage customers to reflect on their favourite Jubilee Big Read.

Victoria Wilson, cabinet member for communities and culture at Staffordshire County Council, said: "This is a great way of celebrating the Queen’s 70 year reign and what better way to spend it than with a good book from your local library.

"We know that books and reading are great activities and amazing ways of uniting people and communities.

"This is a wonderful list of titles and they are all great reads from a diverse and representative range of authors from across the Commonwealth.

"There’s a great mix of fiction, poetry and graphic novels. I would encourage people to have a look through the list of books and also check out what else is happening at their local library."

The Big Jubilee Read is being organised by The Reading Agency, with funding from the Arts Council and support from Libraries Connected, the Booksellers Association and other key partners.

People can find out more about the campaign at readingagency.org.uk and further information on Staffordshire libraries is also available at staffordshire.gov.uk/libraries.