Participants in Shared Reading groups say that the experience helps them feel better, lifts their mood, or benefits their mental health. But what about physical problems – can Shared Reading help with them too? The Reader Podcast spoke to Helen Cook, who has been part of a long-running Shared Reading group for people living with chronic pain, to learn what Shared Reading means to her.

Links:

More information about chronic pain: Chronic Pain on NHS website; The British Pain Society; charity Pain Concern

Potiki by Patricia Grace

More about Shared Reading

Find a Shared Reading group near you

What is this thing we call Shared Reading? How does it work? Who is it for? What has changed in over two decades of The Reader’s Shared Reading? To help answer these questions, we spoke to a group of people who have led Shared Reading groups over many years in a variety of settings. Listen in for their honest, thoughtful and moving reflections.

It’s a bumper episode - see below for time stamps to help you navigate it:

0.00 - 12.22: Introductions to the speakers

12.23 - 51.07: The nuts and bolts of Shared Reading – how it works

51.30 - 1.02.00 The rewards of Shared Reading – who it’s for

1.02.17 - 1.12.22 How Shared Reading has changed (or how it hasn’t)

Links:

The International Shared Reading Conference at Calderstones

Find out more about Shared Reading

Find a Shared Reading group near you

Become a Reader volunteer

The founder of The Reader, Jane Davis, leads an online Shared Reading group who have met on Zoom every week for over two years to read The Prelude, a long, autobiographical poem by William Wordsworth. In this episode, members of the group explain how they came to be part of this special shared endeavour and what the experience has meant to them. We’ll hear about the early days of The Reader, and gain insight into how Shared Reading can create fellowship, powerful thoughts and feelings, and a shared sense of deeper meaning.

The Prelude by William Wordsworth (online text)

The Prelude by William Wordsworth (buy a copy)

Jane Davis reads Paradise Lost on Substack

Find a Shared Reading group near you

The Reader Bookshelf is a carefully curated collection of literature for adults and children, exploring a different theme each year. The Bookshelf includes a diverse range of stories, plays and poems which are shared across our Shared Reading movement. We join a Shared Reading group at Calderstones reading from Jhumpa Lahiri’s short story collection Interpreter of Maladies, a popular choice from last year’s Reader Bookshelf. And The Reader’s Director of Literature, Katie Clark, introduces our new Bookshelf for 2024-25, and this year’s theme of ‘Wonder’.

The Reader Bookshelf 2024-25

The Reader Bookshelf at Bookshop.org

Find a Shared Reading group near you

Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri

Hill of Doors poetry collection by Robin Robertson

In this episode we learn about the secret histories of various species of trees from around the world which now, like The Reader, thrive in Calderstones Park in Liverpool. We’ll hear from representatives of Liverpool-based groups Chinese Wellbeing and Japan Society North West about the cultural significance of species such as cherry blossom and pine, and listen to poetry which unlocks the wonder and mystery of these trees. The episode is part of our heritage project, Making Meaning at Calderstones, which is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The Reader at Calderstones

Chinese Wellbeing

Japan Society North West

Wendell Berry poetry

170 Chinese Poems, translated by Arthur Waley

The Pillow Book by Sei Shōnagon

The Reader Podcast visits the new Shakespeare North Playhouse in Prescot in Merseyside to join one of the two Shared Reading groups that take place there every week. We listened in to the group reading an extract from King Lear together, had a tour of the theatre, and Reader Leader Emily Parr told us what Shared Reading brings to this unique community space.

The Shakespeare North Playhouse

The history of Shakespeare North Playhouse – an interview with architect Dr Nicholas Helm

King Lear, Act 3, Scene 2

‘Invictus’ by William Ernest Henley

What’s on? Open air theatre at Calderstones this summer

In this episode we return to The Reader's project uncovering the heritage of Calderstones, our home in Liverpool. We’ll be visiting a very special part of Calderstones - the Garden Theatre, an outdoor stage added to the Mansion House by Liverpool Council in the 1940s. We’ll hear from audience members who have enjoyed shows on this stage, both past and present, and learn why the Garden Theatre’s long association with Shakespeare makes Calderstones the perfect home for The Reader.

With thanks to The Reader’s heritage volunteers, all the local residents who shared their memories with us, and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The Reader’s 2024 Summer Season at the Garden Theatre

What's on at Calderstones

The History of Calderstones

The Handlebards

‘After a Play’ by Elizabeth Jennings, from The Collected Poems (Carcanet)

The Storybarn is a one-of-a-kind reading retreat for children and their grown-ups. Little ones can let their imaginations run wild, discovering new stories to share, and taking part in unique experiences, alongside arts and crafts. In this episode we visit a Tiny Acorns session, a group where parents and carers spend time at The Storybarn with their newborns, picking up handy tips on reading with their little ones and enjoying Shared Reading together. We hear from the parents who attend these groups, as well as the Storybarn staff themselves, who give an insight into how the magic is made.

Visit the Storybarn page on our website

'When Giving is All We Have' by Alberto Rios