James H. Billington

Jon Scieszka is on a mission—a mission to get more kids reading. In January, Scieszka, a veteran author of several best-selling children’s titles, including “The Stinky Cheese Man” and “The True Story of the Three Little Pigs,” was named the first National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature by Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. Committed to a two-year term in his new role, Scieszka will travel the country and speak as an advocate of youth readership. The Library of Congress’ Center for the Book, the Children’s Book Council (CBC) and the CBC Foundation created the new Ambassador position. The initiative is financially supported by

Librarian of Congress James H. Billington has appointed children’s book author Jon Scieszka as the first National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. The appointment was announced yesterday at the Mulberry Branch of the New York Public Library. The National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature initiative was created by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, the Children’s Book Council (CBC) and the CBC Foundation, and is financially supported by a variety of sponsors, including publishers Scholastic Inc., Macmillan, Candlewick Press, HarperCollins, Random House, Penguin and others. The new ambassador position, according to the organizations, is intended to raise national awareness of