YALSA welcomes Mirrorstone’s return as Teen Read Week™ Corporate Sponsor for second year

Stephanie Kuenn


YALSA Communications Specialist


312-280-2128


skuenn@ala.org

NEWS


For Immediate Release


September 9, 2008

CHICAGO - Mirrorstone , an imprint of Wizards of the Coast, is the 2008 Corporate Sponsor of Teen Read Week™ (TRW), announced the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA).

Founded in 2004, Mirrorstone publishes fantasy fiction for children and teens, with the goal of turning reluctant readers into lifelong readers, which meshes well with TRW’s mission to encourage teens to read, just for the fun of it.




“Mirrorstone supports Teen Read Week because its whole premise is to get teens reading for fun,” said Nina Hess, Mirrorstone senior editor. “Studies show that kids who read for fun tend to have higher reading scores—not to mention it’s just plain fun to get lost in a story you enjoy. We know the important role libraries play in reaching young adult readers and feel that Teen Read Week is a fun way to spark what we hope to become a lifetime of reading for each teen. YALSA supports that goal not just during TRW, but year-round.”

Mirrorstone’s generous support will fund a number of TRW initiatives, including a Best Teen Read Week Celebration Contest, cosponsored by YALSA and Adlit.org, in which librarians could win a visit from Kimberly Pauley, author of “Sucks to Be Me: The All-True Confessions of Mina Hamilton, Teen Vampire (Maybe)” or Geno Salvatore, co-author of “The Stowaway.” Details on the contest can be found by visiting
www.ala.org/teenread. Entries are due to the YALSA office by Nov. 7.

“Mirrorstone's continued support shows a real commitment to YALSA and teen readers,” said Sarah Cornish Debraski, YALSA president. “Teen Read Week is a nationally recognized event with staying power, and its growth and success is due in part to generous sponsors like Mirrorstone. We appreciate all the support they’ve given to librarians and Teen Read Week during our partnership.”

Now in its 11th year, Teen Read Week is a national literacy initiative aimed at teens, their parents, librarians, educators, booksellers and other concerned adults. The purpose of the event is to increase the number of teens who are regular readers and library users. It began in 1998 and is celebrated the third week in October. The 2008 theme is “Books with Bite @ your library.” Teen Read Week 2008 will be Oct. 12–18, 2008. For more information, visit the Teen Read Week Web site at
www.ala.org/teenread.

For more than 50 years, YALSA has been the world leader in selecting books, videos, and audio books for teens. For more information about YALSA or for lists of recommended reading, viewing and listening, go to

www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists , or contact the YALSA office by phone, (800) 545-2433, ext. 4390, or e-mail:
yalsa@ala.org.