Lit & Lively, the school’s staff book club, is embracing the shadows this month with a gothic themed gathering titled April After Dark. This month’s meeting is centred around gothic literature, inviting staff to explore darker moods, mysterious settings, and stories that linger long after the final page. The format is welcoming and flexible. Staff read one shared text together, giving everyone a common starting point for discussion, before branching out into a range of gothic titles from the library collection. Each participant received a carefully prepared book pack, lovingly packed with the novels, a tea bag, and a chocolate biscuit, turning the reading experience into a small but meaningful indulgence during the autumn break.
April After Dark has also been a practical and creative way of using class sets that usually sit out of season. By repurposing these texts for staff reading, the library is reintroducing overlooked titles and highlighting how versatile the collection can be. Many participants have discovered books and genres they might never have explored without a themed invitation. It also reflects an important part of the Teacher Librarian role, which is not only to support students, but to guide and encourage staff in their own reading journeys and engagement with literature.
Through Lit & Lively, staff are gaining a deeper understanding of the breadth and depth of the school’s collection and reinforces the library as more than a curriculum support space. It is a place for curiosity, enjoyment, and reading for pleasure, modelling the reading culture we encourage in students.
There is also a strong wellbeing element. Reading for pleasure can act as a form of bibliotherapy, offering comfort, escape, and emotional renewal. Teachers often have little opportunity to read during the term, and the autumn break provides a rare pause to do so. Finally, Lit & Lively celebrates the social side of reading. Book clubs create space for conversation, shared reflection, and connection, reminding us that reading is often richest when it is shared.
As April grows darker, April After Dark reminds us that reading together can be restorative, enriching, and deeply human. Lit & Lively continues to affirm that teachers deserve time to read, reflect, and reconnect too.
Learning through the Library 