What Is International Children's Book Day?

Question: What Is International Children's Book Day?

Answer: International Children's Book Day is an annual event, which is held on around April 2, the birth date of Hans Christian Andersen. It is sponsored by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY). According to the IBBY Web site, "International Children's Book Day (ICBD) is celebrated to inspire a love of reading and to call attention to children's books."

Each year, one of the 70 National Sections of the IBBY around the world serves as the international sponsor of ICBD. It selects the theme and oversees the development of promotional materials for ICBD. The materials are then used to promote reading and children's books. Often, schools and libraries hold events in conjunction with International Children's Book Day.

The 2011 international sponsor is Estonia and the theme is "The Book Remembers." You can see the stunning 2011 International Children's Book Day poster here. The theme of the 2010 International Children's Book Day, which was sponsored by Spain, was "A book is waiting for you, find it!" The 2009 international sponsor was EBBY, The Egyptian Section of IBBY, and the 2009 theme was "I am the World." See the 2009 poster above. The theme of the 2008 International Children's Book Day, which was sponsored by the Thailand IBBY National Section, was "Books Enlighten: Knowledge Delights."

There are wonderful children's books being published around the world. ICBD is a good time to make a point of sharing books originally published in other countries with your children.