Can an epa and some pizza make young people start reading books?
Yes, in any case in the small community of Svenstavik in Jämtland, where the unique project Epa Book Club has been a success and increased the love of reading among young people.
– Before this, I had barely opened a book, now I have started to enjoy reading, says Elias Englsperger, who is one of the teenagers who participated in the project.
At the mountain high school in Svenstavik, as in many other places in the country, they have problems getting young people to read books.
To reverse the trend, they came up with the idea of Epa book club, a book club on the young people’s terms.
– Reading has received such incredible competition, there are so many other media to get information through. So reading becomes, as it were, secondary and then you have to find other ways. And a path is motivation, and motivation increases if you get to read about something you’re interested in, says Kristina Göransson, pedagogue at Fjällgymnasiet and one of the initiators of the Epa Book Club.
“It’s absolutely fantastic”
Since there is a great interest in epa in the village, the book club focused on the author Per Sahlin’s books that deal with epa life in particular. That, together with the lure of pizza and a meeting with a popular motorcycle-oriented YouTuber, created an interest in reading among a large group of young people in the town.
– It’s more fun to read about something you care about, otherwise it just gets boring, says Herman Göransson, one of the participants.
Several of the young people say that their interest in reading has now developed and that they have now even broadened their book choices and are reading other books that are not about epa vehicles.
The rumor about the epa book club has now spread in the village and caused new young people to queue up to participate.
– It is absolutely fantastic that there is a whole new batch of students now who are curious about the book club. We are so happy about this, says initiator Kristina Göransson.