News Release

98-07

National Library of Canada launches 1998 edition of Read Up On It

Ottawa, September 27, 1998 ¾ The National Library of Canada launches its Read Up On It kit this morning in five cities across Canada: Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa and Halifax in conjunction with The Word on the Street literacy and reading festivals.

Read Up On It, in its tenth year, is an annual bilingual guide to the best in Canadian literature for children and young adults, based on the National Library of Canada's children's literature collection (www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/childrenliterature/index-e.html). The free kit is designed to encourage Canadian children to read, to read with their families' and to read Canadian books.

Entitled "Experience the Adventure!", the 1998 kit contains a list of Canadian children's books with a mystery or adventure theme. National Librarian, Dr. Marianne Scott, notes the popularity of Read Up On It is no mystery, "The quality of Canadian children's publishing is exceptional and young readers will find plenty of reading adventures awaiting them in this year's Read Up On It."

The National Librarian and well-known children's book illustrator Werner Zimmermann, whose artwork is featured on the kit cover, bookmarks and poster, will be on hand at the National Library booth at the Ottawa site of The Word on the Street. Mr. Zimmermann will sign copies of the poster and meet the public.

Copies of the kit will be available today at the booths of the following public libraries which will be exhibiting at The Word on the Street festivals across the country: Vancouver Public Library (Vancouver), Calgary Public Library (Calgary), Toronto Public Library (Toronto), and Spring Garden Road Memorial Public Library (Halifax).

Throughout the year, Read Up On It will be delivered to over 25 000 groups and individuals across Canada, thanks to the sponsorship of Canada Post.

In addition to Canada Post, the National Library of Canada recognizes, with appreciation, the other major contributors who made the 1998 edition possible: National Literacy Secretariat (Human Resources Development Canada), Canadian Library Association, ASTED (L'Association pour l'avancement des sciences et techniques de la documentation), and the Canadian Federation of University Women.

The electronic version of this year's and past editions of Read Up On It can be found on the National Library's website at www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/read-up-on-it/index-e.html.

Free copies of the 1998 Read Up On It kit are available from the National Library of Canada, Marketing and Publishing.

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For more information, contact:

Céline Gendron
Canadian Literature Research Service