'Booktrust is nourishing children's imaginations'

Alistair Burtenshaw, Viv Bird, Jacqueline Wilson and Miriam González Durántez at Lancaster House

8 October 2012

Last week, we celebrated 20 years of Bookstart with a reception at Lancaster House hosted by Bookstart supporter Miriam González Durántez.

The reception was attended by a host of Bookstart partners and supporters of the Bookstart 20 campaign, including former Children’s Laureates Anthony Browne and Jacqueline Wilson, authors and illustrators such as Shirley Hughes and Michael Foreman, TV presenter and historian Bettany Hughes, and actress Susan Hampshire.

The newly-appointed chair of Booktrust’s Board of Trustees, Alistair Burtenshaw, welcomed guests to the reception, paying tribute to the vital support of publishers, Arts Council England and local partners such as libraries, health visitors, local authorities and schools, in helping Booktrust do its work.

Alistair said:

A love of books unites all of us here tonight - and we want to share that gift of reading with others. That's what Booktrust is all about, and if there's one thing I'd like to achieve as chair, it would be to rally all those who are passionate about books and reading, here and across the country to support our work... so that with their support we can carry on the vital work that Booktrust does in getting 5 million books a year to children across the country.

Booktrust’s Chief Executive Viv Bird also gave an inspiring speech about the impact of Bookstart, and Booktrust’s other free books programmes, which are more important than ever in challenging times:

Bookstart is about reading and literacy but it is also about so much more - bonding in families, involving mums and dads... parents becoming confident because they meet other families at Rhymetime sessions at the local library. As a literacy professional, I know the challenges that many face, yet also the difference that literacy confidence and skills can make to individual lives.

Miriam González Durántez shared some personal stories about the impact reading has had on her own life recalling her early memories of falling in love with Britain through reading Enid Blyton’s stories. She spoke movingly about how her grandfather’s few books - a collection of six Pulitzer prize-winning novels - had pride of place in his rural home.

As the mother of three boys, she acknowledged the pull of TV and other screen-based entertainment competing for children’s attention, but spoke passionately about the value of reading and the important role that Booktrust plays in getting books into children’s hands. She ended her speech by quoting from Roald Dahl's Oompa Loompa song from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory:

So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.

'Little black words making magic on the page'

Jacqueline Wilson, former Children’s Laureate and patron of The Letterbox Club was the final speaker of the evening, reminding guests that although no one in the room needed to be convinced about the importance of reading, there was still an enormous challenge to meet, as ‘most people think books are boring’.

She spoke about the current climate for books and reading, drawing attention to the closure of bookshops and libraries, and pointing out the difficulty of turning disengaged adults into keen readers. ‘You have to start with babies. Babies love to be held close. They love to see images on the page,’ Jacqueline said. Through enjoying sharing books from the earliest age, children learn to associate reading with ‘happy feelings’ and by the time they reach school, they are already very familiar with ‘little black words making magic on a page’.

Recalling her own childhood, Jacqueline recalled how toddlers had once been given free orange juice and cod liver oil to nourish their bodies. Today, ‘Booktrust is nourishing children’s imaginations.’

We would like to thank all the partners and supporters who have helped us nourish imaginations for the past 20 years, and who have joined us to help celebrate Bookstart’s 20th birthday this year.

Watch a video about Bookstart, which was screened at the event

Read a blog post of the event by Kate Wilson, managing director of publisher Nosy Crow