It’s February 14th and time to celebrate! Besides giving chocolate or candy for Valentine’s Day, do consider joining in the International Book Giving Day celebrations and showing some love by giving a child a new, used or borrowed book! International Book Giving Day is a volunteer initiative aimed at increasing children’s access to and enthusiasm for books.
- Most children in developing countries do not own books.
- In the United Kingdom, one-third of children do not own books.
- In the United States, two-thirds of children living in poverty do not own books.
International Book Giving Day’s focus is on encouraging people worldwide to give a book to a child on February 14th. Individuals are invited to 1) give a book to a friend or family member, 2) leave a book in a waiting room for children to read, or 3) donate a gently used book to a local library, hospital or shelter or to an organization that distributes used books to children in need internationally.
In addition, people are encouraged to support the work of nonprofit organizations (i.e. charities) that work year round to give books to children, such as Room to Read, Books for Africa, Book Aid International, The Book Bus, Indigenous Literacy Foundation, Pratham Books and PaperTigers’ WaterBridge Outreach~ Books + water: nourishing the mind and body.
As soon as I frost my Valentine’s Day cake, I’ll be heading out to my local library to drop off a bag of gently read children’s and YA books. Show your love and get involved too! International Book Giving Day is truly an international holiday and last year was celebrated by people in Australia, Canada, South Africa, France, India, Ireland, Japan, the Phillippines, Spain, Turkey, the UK and the US! Visit the International Book Giving Day website, facebook page or twitter account (#giveabook) to see how others are celebrating and share your plans.
PRESS RELEASE:
International Book Giving Day (February 14th)
International Book Giving Day is a day dedicated to getting new, used, and borrowed books in the hands of as many children as possible. Tomi Ungerer, Judy Bloom, Katrina Germein and several other great authors are participating. It would be great to have you participate too!
We hope that we can connect people from around the world via International Book Giving Day’s website, facebook page, flickr group, and work together to focus on a good cause: getting books to kids.
Three simple ways you can celebrate International Book Giving Day:
1. Give a Book to a Friend or Relative.
Is there a child in your life who would enjoy receiving a book on February 14th? In lieu of or in addition to a card or box of chocolates, choose a good book from a bookstore or public library to give to your child, grandchild, friend, or neighbor.
2. Donate a Book.
Wrap up a box of children’s books that your kids have outgrown and get them in the hands of children who could really use a book or two. Donate your books to your local second hand store, library, children’s hospital, or nonprofit organization working to ensure that all kids have access to books.
3. Leave a Book in a Waiting Room or Lobby.
Choose a waiting room where kids are stuck waiting and there are few to no good books available. Purchase a good book, and deposit your book covertly or overtly in your waiting room of choice. The goal here is to spread the love of reading to kids, so choose a fun book, nothing controversial.
Let us know that you are participating, and we will add you to our list of people giving books for International Book Giving Day: http://bookgivingday.blogspot.com/2012/02/were-giving-books-for-international.html
It would be fantastic to have your help with encouraging others to participate – especially others outside of the U.S. and U.K. Please, consider inviting authors, friends, and family in countries around the world to take part in International Book Giving Day.Let’s see how many people we can get to commit to giving a book to a child by February 14th!
Organizers: Amy Broadmoore and Zoe Toft
