The City Reads....project is an exciting venture to get the entire city of Brighton & Hove reading and talking about one book - Alice in Wonderland.

Between March and May Brighton & Hove libraries and The Word, in collaboration with Brighton Festival and other local organisations, is encouraging the whole city to read the first children’s books with crossover appeal to adults – Lewis Carroll’s Alice's Adventures In Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Lewis Carroll was a frequent visitor to Brighton from 1862 to 1885 staying with his old Oxford friend, the Reverend Henry Barclay at 11 Sussex Square. In 1887 Carroll watched the stage version of Alice being performed at the Theatre Royal in Brighton.

The City Reads was launched on Saturday 5 March at Jubilee library. Special events will be staged across the city throughout March, April and May during the Brighton Festival. So if you fancy taking part, pick up a copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and come along to a Mad Hatter’s tea party for both children or adults, join an Alice Reading Group, chat about Alice and Carroll over a drink in one of the Alice pub gatherings, take part in a children’s literature brain-teaser or listen to a reappraisal of Carroll’s work by writers and critics.

See www.thewordproject.info/bigread for details of events and further information.

The City Reads is part of the 7 cities, 7 books project organised by Penguin to celebrate their 70th year in publishing.