Put a Book in the Hands of a Child

Posted on February 3, 2015 by Jennifer Jensen

This is the third year for the holiday, and the goal is to get English Rhymes & Lullabies books into the hands of as many children as possible.  And surely that’s something we can all help with!

First, if you aren’t familiar with International Book Giving Day (I wasn’t), here are some ideas:

1. Give a Book to a Friend or Relative.

Celebrate International Book Giving Day by giving a child a new, used or borrowed book.

2. 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.

3. 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 shelter. You could also donate your books to an organization working within the U.S., such as First Book, Reading is Fundamental or Reach Out and Read.  If you want to go international to get books in the hands of kids, try Books for Africa,  Room to Read or Book Aid International.

But Wait . . . There are Extra Goodies!

Generous picture book artists  Anna Walker and Gus Gordon have designed a bookmark and bookplate for International Book Giving Day 2015.  Click on each picture to download the pdf, then print off a few and tuck them into the books you’re sharing!

Next, head over to BookGivingDay.org to put your name on the participant list.  They’ve also got any other information you might be looking for.  Oh – and don’t forget to tweet (#giveabook) or share on Facebook!

Now what am I going to do on February 14th?  Well, I l-o-v-e the idea of surprising an unsuspecting child with a book of his or her own!  So I’m going to take a few gently-used children’s books to a health clinic in the city to do just that.  I think I’ll also give a copy of Through the Shimmer of Time to my local library, plus leave a copy of Shimmer in the library for a child to take home.  Hmm . . . I’ll have to figure out how to do that without it getting re-shelved!

What about you? How will YOU put a book in the hands of a child?

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