Cityread London announces
Rivers of London as its 2015 book
Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch (Gollancz) has been chosen as the focus of Cityread London’s
2015 campaign. The title will be the centre of a month-long celebration of reading in the capital,
starting on 30 March and running throughout April, which aims to engage London’s residents, workers
and visitors with reading for pleasure, focused around the shared reading experience of a single book.
Taking Aaronovitch’s novel as a starting point, a programme of events will take place across all 33
London boroughs in libraries, bookshops, museums and other venues including a series of interactive
theatrical performances by award winning theatre company Look Left Look Right as well as a tour by
Aaronovitch that will include a library visit or event in every London borough.
Cityread 2015 will also include a specially produced Quick Reads title aimed at engaging Londoners
who struggle with reading and will be supported by a partnership with BBC London.
Ben Aaronovitch said:
“As a native Londoner it's hard to imagine a more exciting honour than having my book selected to be
the London Cityread for 2015. Added to that is the sheer pleasure of working with and helping support
the public libraries of London. My love of reading began in my local library and I frequently find myself
drawn into the many fabulous local history libraries when researching my books - they are a resource
beyond price and their contribution to the intellectual and cultural capital of London is beyond
measure. If I have one hope for Cityread 2015 it is that many other people, young, old and those
travelling in between, who have yet to fall in love with books will find that same first love. I mean it
would be nice if it's Rivers of London. but I'm not fussy - there's plenty of books to go around.”
Andy Ryan, Director of Cityread London said:
“The world created in Rivers of London, a magical but very real modern-day capital, complete with
river spirits, vampires and a secret branch of the Met dedicated to dealing with the supernatural, makes
it the perfect Cityread title. We’re thrilled to be working with Ben and the team at Gollancz on our 2015
programme as the book presents so many exciting opportunities to bring reading to life for Londoners.
There’ll be opportunities to interact with the characters at immersive theatrical performances, and to
discuss the book with the author as Ben will be visiting each of London’s 33 library services during
April.”
About Cityread London:
Created and delivered by Stellar Libraries CIC, Cityread London is supported and funded by the
National Lottery through Arts Council England. Cityread London promotes the key ideas of reading for
pleasure, engaging new library users, enhancing the experience of existing readers, and encouraging
people to explore and celebrate London’s culture, landscape and history. Cityread London represents
culture for all, with all London library services developing a programme of reading, activities and events
using a variety of formats including ebooks, audiobooks, large print, and in translation where possible,
aimed at encouraging readers at all levels. Founded in 2012 it has featured: Oliver Twist by Charles
Dickens (Penguin), 2012; A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks (Vintage), 2013; My Dear I Wanted
to Tell You by Louisa Young (Borough Press), 2014.
Full details of all Cityread London activity can be found at the website:
www.cityread.london and at Facebook/CityreadLondon
About Rivers of London
Rivers of London is the first of an urban fantasy / crime fiction series, that follows the adventures of a
rookie copper-turned-apprentice-wizard, Peter Grant, and his boss, the last wizard in England. A
unique blend of police procedural, supernatural mayhem and threads of fascinating hidden history
woven through the very fabric of the plot, Rivers Of London is fast-moving, funny, full of warmth and
features at its heart one of the greatest and most historically rich cites in the world: London.
The fifth in the series, Foxglove Summer is published in hardback on November 13th 2014. The other
three books in the series, Moon Over Soho, Whispers Underground and Broken Homes are all available
in paperback.
About Ben Aaronovitch
Born and raised in London, Ben Aaronovitch now lives in Kentish Town. He worked as a scriptwriter
for Doctor Who and Casualty before the inspiration for his own series of books struck him whilst
working as a bookseller in Waterstones Covent Garden. Ben Aaronovitch’s unique novels are the
culmination of his experience of writing about the emergency services and the supernatural.
About Gollancz
Gollancz is the oldest specialist SF & Fantasy publisher in the UK. Founded in 1927 and with a
continuous SF publishing programme dating back to 1961, the imprint of the Orion Publishing Group is
home to a galaxy of award-winning and bestselling authors. Through their long-running SF and Fantasy
Masterworks programme, and major digital initiative the SF Gateway, Gollancz have one of the largest
ranges of SF and Fantasy of any publisher in the world. Gollancz is an imprint of the Orion Publishing
Group which is part of Hachette UK, a leading UK trade publishing group. Hachette UK is owned by
Hachette Livre, the world’s second largest trade and educational publisher.
Praise for the Rivers Of London series
“For all the murder and mayhem, this is a darkly comic read with characters you can't help but like” –
The Sunday Express
“Told in a narrative voice that seasons with laconic humour with a dash of cynicism, the novel is
fascinated with the geography and history of London. It is a rich formula with a bittersweet ending” –
The Daily Telegraph
“Witty, well plotted, vividly written and addictively readable” – The Times
“the most satisfying fantasy thriller to hit bookshelves in quite some time.” – SFX Magazine