Children's Books Take Morning TV Stage
by Shannon Maughan -- Publishers Weekly, 7/21/2003
Following in the footsteps of Oprah—and her many imitators—on June 25, CBS-TV's The Early Show launched a book club for children and their parents, the first of its kind.
The Early Readers Club picked up some steam July 11 with appearances by four children's book authors and illustrators. Alan Katz sang songs from his books Take Me Out of the Bathtub and I'm Still Here in the Bathtub. Laurie Keller, creator of Arnie, the Doughnut, and Kate and James McMullan, author-illustrators of I Stink!, read from their works. And Carla Hayden, executive director of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore and newly elected president of the American Library Association, spoke about the importance of reading.
Like its adult counterparts, the Early Readers Club has a simple premise. Club segments featuring readings by noted children's authors will air during The Early Show every other Friday through September. Those who wish to "join" the club can read the books featured in the author segments or choose from a suggested list of age-appropriate titles that appears on The Early Show's Web site.
As a second component of the club, a variety of experts will provide parent tips and additional book lists, sometimes airing during The Early Show's regular Monday parenting segment. The Early Readers Club also has a donation component, which right now consists of a pro-bono partnership with Amazon.com to secure book donations for national literacy organization First Book, which supplies books to disadvantaged children.
First Lady Laura Bush helped kick off the Early Readers Club June 25 by speaking on-air about various literacy initiatives (including her own "Ready to Read, Ready to Learn") and reading the picture book Book! Book! Book! by Deborah Bruss, illustrated by Tiphanie Beeke.
Senior Early Show producer Nanci Ross said that the club is a work in progress, inviting participation from the children's book community. "We welcome anyone who wants to be involved," she said. CBS is currently considering titles on the Association of Booksellers for Children Choices List as potential additions to the Early Readers Club selections. "The literacy problem is so large that there is room for everybody," Ross added.
She emphasized that the club is still in its infancy but that it has "huge potential to grow. I've been most thrilled with how quickly people came on board for this, especially the First Lady and Jeff Bezos at Amazon. We're going to gauge how it's going during the summer and this may turn into a year-long thing if there is enough interest. We already know that we'll be doing a back-to-school round-up in September, and in the spring we are hoping to partner with Starbucks in their annual book drive. We have plenty of events through The Early Show, like our concerts on the plaza, where we could work with other partners and organize book drops."
Authors scheduled for future appearances include Marc Brown (D.W.'s Guide to Preschool) on July 25 and Tomie dePaola (Trouble in the Barkers' Class) on August 8. Authors Meg Cabot (The Princess Diaries) and Mary Pope Osborne (The Magic Tree House series) have also been confirmed to appear, though specific dates have not been finalized.
