PaperTigers’ Global Voices: The Canadian Children’s Book Centre (Part 2)
The Canadian Children’s Book Centre’s TD Grade One Book Giveaway Program~ by Holly Kent, Sales and Marketing Manager, The Canadian Children’s Book Centre
(Part 2 of 3. Read Part 1 “The Canadian Children’s Book Centre Presents TD Canadian Children’s Book Week” here)
The largest print run in Canada isn’t a holiday bestseller, winner of the prestigious Giller prize, or even the newest Robert Munsch book. It’s a paperback re-issue of a Canadian children’s picture book, a different title each year, and it’s given to every Grade One student in Canada by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre. The TD Grade One Book Giveaway distributes over 500,000 books, in English and French, to students across the country. Due to a new promotion by TD Bank Group, the title sponsor that fully funds the program, 700,000 copies will be printed this year and an additional 200,000 will be distributed in bank branches across the country.
Sometimes this book ends up being the first book a child has ever owned. That’s why it’s such an important program. Studies show that the mere presence of books in the home gives children an enormous advantage in school.
This fall, Grade One children nation-wide will take home I’ve Lost My Cat, written and illustrated by Philippe Béha, and published by Éditions Imagine. This book was originally published in French as J’ai perdu mon chat and will be distributed in its original language to French language schools.
It’s the charming story of a young boy who loses his cat – he’s round, he’s cute, he’s yellow, black and white, and his name is Greyling. The boy’s friends all try to find Greyling and they bring the young boy all sorts animals that somewhat match the description of his cat. They bring him a leopard, a pig and an elephant… but none of them are Greyling.
An important component of the TD Grade One Book Giveaway is a national tour. Philippe Béha will be traveling across Canada this fall to speak to students and celebrate the distribution I’ve Lost My Cat.
The 
Canadian Children’s Book Centre (CCBC) is a national, not-for-profit organization founded in 1976. We are dedicated to encouraging, promoting and supporting the reading, writing, illustrating and publishing of Canadian books for young readers. Our programs, publications, and resources help teachers, librarians, booksellers and parents select the very best for young readers.
At the heart of our work at the Canadian Children’s Book Centre is our love for the books that get published in Canada each year, and our commitment to raising awareness of the quality and variety of Canadian books for young readers.
Our programs, such as TD Canadian Children’s Book Week and the TD Grade One Book Giveaway, are designed to introduce young Canadian readers not only to the books all around them, but to the authors and illustrators that create them. Our quarterly magazine Canadian Children’s Book News and the annual Best Books for Kids & Teens selection guide are designed to help parents, librarians and educators discover the world of Canadian books and to help them to select the best reading material for young readers.
We are thrilled to have The Canadian Children’s Book Centre join us as PaperTigers’ Global Voices Guest Blogger for the month of August. Part 1 of the series “The Canadian Children’s Book Centre Presents TD Canadian Children’s Book Week” was posted here. Part 3 will be posted on August 22nd.
