Books make things better – books bring joy and provide comfort during difficult times – and reading has the power to change lives. At Children’s Books Ireland, we champion every child’s right to experience the joy of reading, regardless of their circumstances. But right now, there are many children across Ireland who don’t have access to books at home .
This December, Children’s Books Ireland is gifting a bedtime story to children all over Ireland as they face into a difficult Christmas. With the support of the Arts Council and KPMG, 6,000 Irish books will be gifted to children and young people in centres of direct provision, hospitals and homeless services nationwide. There are currently over 2,100 children in .
Four libraries of at least 300 books each to be donated to schools Children’s Books Ireland is proud to announce the fourth annual Robert Dunbar Memorial Libraries, named in memory of our former patron and long-time friend of the organisation. Robert was a critic, editor and teacher, a pioneer of the study of children’s literature in Ireland and a .
Missed our CEO Elaina Ryan on Ireland AM this morning? Never fear! Here are the spooktacular books she recommends for Halloween: Have You Seen the Dublin Vampire? by Úna Woods (age 0–4) A friendly looking vampire takes a night-time stroll through the fair city’s iconic spots, hopping on the ghost bus, battling the rain and partaking in Bewley’s finest .
The Covid-19 pandemic is a considerable source of worry for children and families, and young people are having to cope with big changes at home and at school. In response, Children’s Books Ireland, in partnership with Jigsaw and ISPCC Childline, is launching Mind Yourself – the Mental Health and Wellbeing Reading Guide today (Monday, October 5th 2020). October 10th .
We are delighted to launch our latest BOLD GIRLS initiative – BOLD GIRLS meets 20×20. BOLD GIRLS addresses the gender imbalance in children’s literature. The BOLD GIRLS schools programme, in partnership with KPMG, introduces books featuring strong girls and women with agency, opinions and power to pupils in participating schools. We have brought this message of equality to hundreds .
For Culture Night 2020 (Friday, 18 September) the Arts Council and Children’s Books Ireland are encouraging families to open up Irish culture by opening a book together and sharing a story at bedtime. The campaign launches today, 14 September, with the release of the Books Make Things Better reading guide, which highlights the best Irish children’s books of 2020. .
An Post and Children’s Books Ireland, are delighted to announce the young winners of the Re-ImagineNation Competition. Working with leading children’s book artists Fatti Burke, Jennifer Farley, Tarsila Krüse and Alan Nolan, this summer the Re-ImagineNation competition encouraged children aged 6–12 from all over Ireland to re-imagine themselves as a character in a favourite book, and enter the competition .
Children’s Books Ireland is committed to actively encouraging diversity across all of our programming. In line with the Arts Council’s Equality, Human Rights & Diversity Policy & Strategy, Children’s Books Ireland’s Professional Development Course Bursary strives to respect, support and ensure the inclusion of all voices and cultures that make up Ireland today. A limited amount of free spaces .
Children’s Books Ireland and Poetry Ireland will release guiding principles for artists and programmers when delivering virtual events in the coming months. Both organisations are committed to ensuring that artists are supported to maintain their standard of excellence when working virtually and that full transparency can be achieved when it comes to rates of pay and expectations for online .