Toronto Public Library Announces First & Best Booklist 2010

First books you share with your child should also be the best

TORONTO, Nov. 29 /CNW/ - Toronto Public Library is pleased to announce the fourth annual First & Best Booklist 2010, a selection of the very best in Canadian books for children from birth to age five that are fun to read and also help build early literacy skills. 

The list includes some past first and best authors and illustrators, including Ruth Ohi, Marthe Jocelyn and Marie-Louise Gay, and also features some newcomers, including Jill Barber, Per-Henrik Gürth, and Andrea Wayne von Königslöw

"Building early literacy skills in preschool children is absolutely essential to their development and Toronto Public Library is happy to provide support to parents and caregivers so they begin reading to their children with the very best in Canadian books," says Jane Pyper, City Librarian. "The titles for this year's book list are selected by our expert librarians and children's services staff as being the very best for building reading readiness and reading pleasure in children five and under."

All the books in this year's First & Best list are available through the library's online catalogue and at library branches across the city. First and Best is part of the Ready for Reading program offered by Toronto Public Library to help parents and caregivers build early literacy skills in their children through fun, everyday activities at home and at the library. The program was highlighted in noted early learning advisor Dr. Charles Pascal's report, "With Our Best Future in Mind: Implementing Early Learning in Ontario," as a "parent-friendly approach to supporting children's emergent reading."

The First & Best for 2010 are:

Baby's Lullaby
Jill Barber, illustrated by HildaRose
Nimbus Publishing

Chicken, Pig, Cow Horse Around
Ruth Ohi
Annick Press

Hockey Opposites
Per-Henrik Gürth
Kids Can Press

How Do You Read to a Rabbit?
Andrea Wayne von Königslöw
Annick Press

I Like to Play
Marla Stewart Konrad
Tundra Books

Kitten's Autumn / Kitten's Spring
Eugenie Fernandes
Kids Can Press

On My Walk
Kari-Lynn Winters, illustrated by Christina Leist
Tradewind Books

A Paddling of Ducks: Animals in Groups from A to Z
Marjorie Blain Parker, illustrated by Joseph Kelly
Kids Can Press

Roslyn Rutabaga and the Biggest Hole on Earth!
Marie-Louise Gay
Groundwood Books

Which Way?
Marthe Jocelyn, illustrated by Tom Slaughter
Tundra Books

Toronto Public Library is the world's busiest urban public library system. Every year, more than 17.5 million people visit our 99 branches and borrow more than 31 million items. To learn more about Toronto Public Library, visit our website at torontopubliclibrary.ca or call Answerline at 416-393-7131.

For further information:

Media Contact:
Anne Marie aikins, Manager, Community Relations, 416-393-7212
[e-mail]