Yesterday, July 24th, saw the birth of the first ever ‘Global Read In Bed Day’, an initiative of mine to raise funds for literacy charities (and give participants an excuse to spend a relaxing day curled up with a good book!).

The GRIBD Facebook group has around fifty members so far, and I hope this will grow as word gets out, so the next time we have another ‘Read In Bed Day’, even more people can participate!

But what’s this about reading in bed being an extreme sport? Well, throughout the day, injuries, exhaustion, and obstacles were reported.

Injuries: I fell down the stairs on one of my ‘reading breaks’, resulting in a swollen wrist and aching leg muscles (I have been hobbling around today as though I’m ninety-five!).

Exhaustion: Some participants reported almost falling asleep, and one (yours truly) actually did.

Obstacles: Some participants had to navigate around work committments, taxi duties, parenting responsibilities, and the dreaded ‘that-which-must-not-be-named’ (aka: housework), in order to have a few minutes here and there of reading time. One participant even had the distraction of being in the beautiful South of France. Talk about difficult!

Who said Reading In Bed was easy? If you’re planning on participating in the next event, do so at your own risk!

Some of the books read by participants included:

Just Breathe, and Lakeshore Christmas, by Susan Wiggs.

Sushi For Beginners, by Marian Keyes.

Books by Agatha Christie and PD James.

The Bet, by Jennifer Crusie.

Nadia Knows Best, by Jill Mansell.

Alice Bliss, by Laura Harrington.

The Good Girl’s Guide To Getting Lost, by Rachel Friedman.

Something Borrowed, by Emily Giffin.

Even the Sunday newspapers and a writer’s work-in-progress got some love!

To join the Global Read In Bed Day Facebook group, click here and log into your Facebook account.