A new report released by BookNet Canada revealed that some 60% of Canadians are actively seeking out diverse reading material, which includes stories about or written by under-represented minorities, such as BIPOC, LGBTQ+, disabled or differently abled, and minority religious groups.
The survey is based on responses from 500 English-speaking Canadian readers from late 2018. The study also revealed that nearly a third — 31% said they would read more diverse books if they had access to them. Among readers who self-identified as belonging to a minority group, such as one of those listed above, 13% "strongly agreed" they found it difficult to find diverse books in the marketplace.
The release of the report comes just as the news that Greg Younging, the publisher of Theytus Books, the oldest Indigenous publishing house in Canada and a powerful advocate for fostering diversity in publishing, passed away on May 3.
