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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

World Book Day - heaven or hell?

89 replies

Wnikat · 25/02/2021 15:23

Just wondered how the balance swings on World Book Day.

YABU - I love World Book Day and relish sourcing costumes for my children, which I do well in advance and actually relate to a book they like rather than whatever is lying around.

YANBU - Arghh how does it come round so often where did I put the sodding Harry Potter glasses

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 25/02/2021 15:24

So glad our school didn't participate

Popcornriver · 25/02/2021 17:39

Love world book day, it's an excuse to get lots of new books. Luckily our school have always suggested a very easy non uniform, costume or pyjamas. Turnout is usually a mix of all three and most costumes are the supermarket type. School always does a book sale and tries to get a children's author in.

Skigal86 · 25/02/2021 17:43

Love it! This year is my daughters first WBD at nursery and I’m so excited to sort her costume! However I love fancy dress generally and I won the staff WBD fancy dress prize at the school I used to teach at!

pinktophat · 25/02/2021 17:46

I have no understanding how anyone can have these feelings towards it.

Parent and teacher - hate it.

Dauphinois · 25/02/2021 17:48

Hell. I'm sooo over it.

HaggisTheGreat · 25/02/2021 17:50

Utterly indifferent to it. Don’t see why it’s such a big deal for some - one way or the other. We have a small selection of fancy dress bits accumulated over the years and DC just sort something out from that + their own clothes. No bother for me.

Pinkybike · 25/02/2021 17:52

Absolutely detest it!!

iceicesunsun · 25/02/2021 17:52

Hell. Hell for the parents who can't afford it, hell for the children who can't afford it, hell for those who dislike dressing up, hell for the staff who can't afford it and have to buy something to wear.

The best WBD event I have seen was when the children (and staff) at my DC's old primary school chose a favourite book from the school library/took a book to school and then did a range of activities with an hourly 'stop and read' where they shared their book with the person nearest to them. No dressing up required.

Angel2702 · 25/02/2021 17:57

I love books and reading but WBD is just an expensive dressing up hell. Our school do a dress up day for every new topic and it just seems relentless.

It should be less about a fancy dress party and more to do with developing a love of books.

Ilovemaisie · 25/02/2021 18:00

I mostly enjoyed it (daughter no longer at primary so those days are beyond us).
The biggest issue was the lack of confirmation from the school whether dressing up was happening, was there a theme, was it on the actual day. But the school were bad at that for any events. It certainly wasn't a book day issue.
What I always thought was sad was how many of the children didn't use their vouchers to claim the free book. There is an independent book shop a 5 minute walk from the school - practically next door to the supermarket and Poundland so most of the children would regularly walk past the shop. They always had piles of the books left. I sometimes asked the children in my daughter's class which free book they choose with their voucher. Often the reply was "what voucher" (answer - "the one your teacher handed you"). Half the vouchers seemed to end up abandoned in the playground. Even parents I spoke to would say "oh I can't be bothered with that".

Manteo · 25/02/2021 18:01

Love it! I only have one child though so that might make a difference. I've been known to read certain books with DD in the lead up to WBD in the hopes it will influence her choice of costume Blush

Daffodilsarehere · 25/02/2021 18:02

I'm completely over it now

shittingthreeeyedraven · 25/02/2021 18:05

Love it! But I make my costumes so it’s not throw away flammable tat. Makes me sound like a dick but hey ho

PinotAndPlaydough · 25/02/2021 18:15

Love it.
My two really get into and it becomes a little project for us to do. We usually make everything and source clothes etc from what we have, friends and family and occasionally the charity shop.
However I only work part time so I have the spare hours to do this sort of stuff and I generally love a good craft anyway. If the kids weren’t fussed I wouldn’t object at all to just raiding the dressing up draw.
This year will be slightly different, eldest child’s sensory issues mean that what they’ll actually wear is now limited to about 4/5 items of clothing so we’ve opted for pjs with a bandage and they’ll be a character from the midnight gang.

Mochudubh · 25/02/2021 23:00

What I object to is the term "book" is interpreted so loosely. My DC is grown up now but half the kids at their school were dressed as power rangers or ninja turtles.

I imagine now it's all Paw Patrol or Fortnite.

elliejjtiny · 25/02/2021 23:30

I don't mind either way as long as the school give us enough notice. We usually use costumes we already have.

bellropes · 25/02/2021 23:35

My children are grown up now, but I absolutely hated it as it represented another thing to worry about and have to prepare for. I used to keep them off sometimes if I couldn't face it. Ds2 is autistic and refused point blank to dress up anyway. It's stupid and doesn't even encourage them to read books anyway.

Aroundtheworldin80moves · 25/02/2021 23:39

Love it as long as it isn't just costumes. One year my DDs school had a book week. Whole week of story writing, learning plays, sharing books... Not a costume in sight.

I am a bit sad it's before schools 'reopen'.

Norwaydidnthappen · 25/02/2021 23:41

I’m surprised there are so many threads about it this year with it falling before schools officially reopen. It’s the first year I haven’t felt obliged to source a costume for years! We’re going to have a madhatters tea party for lunch and make a cosy book corner.

Marzipan12 · 26/02/2021 05:54

Thankfully my kids are hIgh school age now. It was ok in nursery and reception, we already had grufalo and hungry caterpillar costumes. After that they wore which ever super hero costume they had as I couldn't justify paying out for a costume they would wear for 1 day. By year 4 they had outgrown dressing up and it was a complete pain.

PracticingPerson · 26/02/2021 06:07

Is bearable when you have free choice over which book as Percy Jackson wears a hoody.

Is fucking unbearable when school chooses Alice in Bastard Wonderland on your behalf with less than a weeks notice when both parents work full time.

Being a parent with kids in primary is shit tbh, some of the overexcited teachers drove me to distraction.

ouchmyfeet · 26/02/2021 06:11

@PracticingPerson

Is bearable when you have free choice over which book as Percy Jackson wears a hoody.

Is fucking unbearable when school chooses Alice in Bastard Wonderland on your behalf with less than a weeks notice when both parents work full time.

Being a parent with kids in primary is shit tbh, some of the overexcited teachers drove me to distraction.

It's the school's admin of it that drives me crazy too. Always last minute so you can't plan anything in advance. 2 FT working parents is hard enough to manage without piss poor planning and communication from the school
MinnieMountain · 26/02/2021 06:20

I don’t mind but DS’s school generally avoids compulsory dressing up. This year it’s stories over Zoom whilst the children sit in dens.

tulippa · 26/02/2021 06:32

I hate it. It's got nothing to do with books. It's just supermarkets selling costumes for whatever TV series is popular with kids at the moment.

I got an email from H&M the other day advertising their WBD costumes and I felt so glad that my DCs are secondary age now so don't have to bother.

PorcelainCatStack · 26/02/2021 07:04

Loved it! DD used to love dressing up and always know what’s she wanted to go as and I used to try to make her costumes and accessories. It was just so much fun for us.