News Release

Authors and literacy advocates Rosemary Wells and Jim Trelease will discuss the importance of reading to children during two lectures at the Main Library next month. Wells, an award-winning author and illustrator, will present an address at 11 a.m. on Sept. 9 in the Koret Auditorium at the Main Library as part of the Library’s Early Literacy initiative. She will talk about her latest title, My Shining Star: Raising a Child Who is Ready to Learn, an empowering book for parents, caregivers and teachers. Wells will share 10 proven principles guaranteed to help children succeed, and speak to the importance of the partnership between parents, teachers and libraries in preparing children for reading readiness and school success. The book will be available for sale and signing after the talk. Wells has written and drawn more than 150 books and is the creator of such favorite children’s book characters as Max and Ruby, Yoko and Noisy Nora.

On Sept. 19, Jim Trelease will show parents, teachers and other adults who care for and about children how they can enrich children’s lives. Using delightful anecdotes and the latest research, Trelease will explain how reading aloud awakens children’s imaginations, develops language skills and improves attention spans. He will offer tips on how to begin reading aloud to children, which books to choose, and how to lure children away from television and video games. Copies of the newly released sixth edition of The Read-Aloud Handbook will be available for sale and signing after the presentation. Trelease’s lecture will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Koret Auditorium at the Main Library. Trelease was an award-winning artist and journalist before focusing his career on education in 1979 when he began writing the first edition of The Read-Aloud Handbook. The impetus for his book came after he noticed the correlation between students’ interest in reading and the amount of time they were read aloud to by their teachers.

Since its inception in Spring 2006, the Library’s Early Literacy initiative has brought more early childhood materials such as recommended booklists for babies, toddlers and preschoolers, and programming support to all of the 27 branches. Library staff continues to receive specialized training opportunities and offer weekly early literacy enhanced storytimes. For more information on Early Literacy, please call Christy Burgess at (415) 557-4218.

These programs are free and open to the public. For more information, please call (415) 557-4277.