When I was in the first grade, my elementary school started holding a book fair with a new, local children’s bookstore. My mother bought a bunch of books both to support the new store as well as in the hopes that I would take to reading more than I had previously. It’s not to say that I didn’t like books, but I still hadn’t caught the reading bug.
“You will read these,” I was told, and ever the obedient child, I did.
I wish I could detail the whole list but since it has been a while, the one author that stands out in my memory is Beverly Cleary. I also remember that as a pivotal moment where everything clicked and from that day on, reading was something I couldn’t do enough of and something very special in my life. Books were, and still are, something that bring me great joy.
Enter the CPSIA which, as we all know, includes ALL products for children under 12; my beloved books among them. At the height of the chaos in early 2009, libraries and bookstores didn’t quite know what to do. At the time, Esther (@melanes) provided some great insights about why libraries can’t comply.
Since that time, there have been some exemptions that provide a little relief, but many books are still in jeopardy. And when books are in jeopardy, an organization and HTA member like Children’s Book Project’s very mission and livelihood are threatened. The facts section on their home page is sobering and only continues to demonstrate that literacy is imperative. This organization is doing its part to provide books to children in need and an unamended CPSIA is making that mission more difficult at a time when children need the support most.
All children should have the opportunity to get lost in a good book, shouldn’t they?
Please continue to spread the word about the need to amend the CPSIA.
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