Following on the heels of the 100th anniversary celebration of Children’s Book Week comes the preparation for next spring’s program—an initiative that is fueled by this year’s resounding success. “We have seen a substantial increase in participation each year of this celebration and will use the momentum and reach of the 100th anniversary to continue this increase in 2020,” said Shaina Birkhead, associate executive director at the Children’s Book Council and Every Child a Reader.
Slated for May 4–10, the week-long event that honors children’s books and the love of reading will continue its mission to engage booksellers, librarians, and educators with special events, programming resources, and more. Here’s an overview of the preliminary details for next spring’s festivities.
Registration Now Open. Sign-ups for the spring 2020 celebration have already begun. Interested schools, libraries, and bookstores can register online. Registration closes at the end of February. Locations that are unable to participate next spring can stay tuned for further details regarding the fall celebration, which is scheduled for November 9–15.
All Are Welcome. While the new fall CBW was largely focused on attracting educators, spring has become synonymous with bookseller participation since the celebration officially moved to May in 2008. “We do strive to create resources that can be used by booksellers, librarians, and teachers, but the spring week certainly encourages more public events that can involve whole communities and be promoted as open to the public on our event map,” Birkhead said.
Theme Set. The 2020 CBW theme, “Read. Dream. Share,” focuses on sharing the love of reading on a community level. Birkhead said, “This theme is also very actionable as we encourage kids to read a book, which we hope will influence their dreams and inspire them to share with others.”
Art Selection Committee Assembled. Tasked with the responsibilities of reviewing and narrowing down submissions for the official poster and bookmarks, this group is made up of educators, librarians, booksellers, and children’s book creators from across the country. “This is the second year that a committee has been convened to review and make these exciting decisions,” Birkhead said. The 2020 roster includes Cathy Berner, children’s/young adult specialist and event coordinator, Blue Willow Bookshop in Houston; Lisa Brown, illustrator, writer, and cartoonist; Pat Cummings, author-illustrator; Erica Dean Glenn, senior librarian, children’s services, Berkeley Public Library in Berkeley, Calif.; Steven Heller, co-chair, MFA Design at the School of Visual Arts in New York, N.Y.; Yuyi Morales, author-illustrator; and Maria Popova, writer.
Poster, Bookmarks, and Coloring Sheets. Several children’s book illustrators have been tapped to create materials for the 2020 Book Week. Children’s author-illustrator Carin Berger will design the official poster, while Vanessa Brantley-Newton, Michaela Goade, John Parra, Duncan Tonatiuh, Sydney Smith, and the Fan Brothers will create the bookmarks.
A brand-new addition to spring CBW resources is an assortment of coloring book pages available for download for participants and parents. Among the more than 20 children’s book creators producing these pages are Jessica Boehman, Katie O’Neill, Johnny Hollick, and Steve Ellis.
