It’s time to put ‘a book on every bed’

Dear Readers: This is a special day for me, because this is the day I take a break from hosting your questions in order to advocate for a cause near and dear to me: literacy.

In my long career as a writer and reader, I have volunteered in classrooms, libraries and prisons, reading with others and sharing the work of writers important in my own life. Reading unlocks worlds of imagination and creativity. Literacy imparts real power, and this is especially important for people who feel powerless. The magic of literacy can happen at any time, but it is especially important in childhood.

Today, in memory of my mother on her birthday, I joyfully share a simple idea that adults can easily adopt to give the children in their lives the gift my mother gave to me, by putting “a book on every bed.”

On Christmas morning (or whatever holiday you celebrate), make sure that each child in your household wakes up to a wrapped book at the foot of their bed. After the child unwraps the book, the most important aspect of this gift is unveiled, when the parent sits and shares it with the child. The sad fact is that more than a third of families in the United States do not regularly share books with their young children.

This year I am partnering with Children’s Reading Connection, a national early literacy initiative founded in my hometown of Ithaca, N.Y. Their advocacy focuses on the importance of helping families to share books with babies and children. Even babies too young to talk tune in, in a deep and abiding way, when they are held and read to.

This is an important prescription for health and success in growing brains — and sharing a book is a wonderful way for families to connect. Every year I hear from teachers, librarians, church groups, parents and grandparents who tell me they have adopted the “book on every bed” tradition in their homes. I can think of no nicer way to kick off a busy Christmas morning than by snuggling up with a book before opening other gifts.