UK Schools refuse gifts of ‘boring’ classics

Dozens of schools have rejected gifts of free classic books because today’s pupils find them too ‘difficult’ to read, it has emerged.

Around 50 schools have refused to stock literary works by the likes of Jane Austen, William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens after admitting that youngsters also find them boring.

The worrying figures were released by the Millennium Library Trust, which donates sets of up to 300 books to schools across the country.