Canadian publishers with their plaques

Literacy and book donation agency First Book Canada today celebrated the five millionth book it’s distributed to young people across the country. Alberta children’s author/illustrator Mike Boldt presented a copy of his and Dev Petty’s picture book I Don’t Want to be Big – forthcoming in October from Doubleday Books for Young Readers – to a second-grade Fort McMurray student. The gift was part of the agency’s Fort McMurray Book Lift project‚ through which 22,000 books were sent to the Alberta region following the devastating wildfires, which devastated the area in May.

Publishers that have participated in First Book’s donation endeavours, including Annick Press‚ Kids Can Press‚ Dundurn Press‚ and Scholastic Canada, were honoured with plaques to commemorate their ongoing support at an appreciation night in Toronto on Sept. 15.