Every year on April 2, the birthday of the great Danish storyteller Hans Christian Andersen is celebrated. International Children’s Book Day (International Children’s Book Day) to awaken the love of reading and draw attention to children’s books.

Andersen born in 1805. He wrote poetry, plays and vaudeville at the beginning of his career, then novels, but his writings were not popular at the time. In 1835, Andersen wrote the fairy tale “Flint”. Soon the first collection of his tales was published. Since then, the heroes of the creative fantasy of the Danish writer have traveled the world, winning the hearts of millions of readers.

to the best fairy tales Andersen includes The Steadfast Tin Soldier (1838), The Nightingale (1843), The Ugly Duckling (1843), The Snow Queen (1844), The Little Match Girl (1845), The Shadow (1847), and others.

International Children’s Book Day was established in 1967 by the International Board of Books for Young People (IBBY). The starter of this holiday it happened German author, founder of IBBY Jella Lepman.

One of the national chapters of IBBY each year gets Honorary right to be international sponsor of International Book Day. It defines the theme, invites a writer from the host country to write a message to children, and a well-known illustrator to prepare a poster for the international day. These materials are used to popularize books and encourage reading in the future.

In 2023, Greece is the organizer of the International Children’s Book Day. The theme of the holiday is “I am a book, read me”.

The International Council of Children’s Books awards the Hans Christian Andersen Award every two years to an author and illustrator whose work has made significant contributions to children’s literature. The award has been given to the author since 1956 and to the illustrator since 1966. The award consists of a gold medal and a diploma. The award ceremony is held on April 2, International Children’s Books Day.

The winners of the award are selected by an international jury of children’s literature experts. Selection criteria include the aesthetic and literary qualities of writing and pictures, as well as the ability to see events from the child’s point of view and develop the child’s curiosity and imagination.

award in 1976 considered worthy Representative of the USSR, children’s book illustrator Tatyana Mavrina. In 2018, Russian illustrator Igor Oleinikov was awarded the prize.

2020 US Children’s Writer Awarded Jacqueline Woodson and Swiss artist Albertine Zullo.

Award winners in 2022 become French writer Marie-Aude Muray and South Korean artist Susie Lee.

Russian Children’s Book Council Created in 1968 on the initiative and with the participation of the poet Sergei Mikhalkov as a national section of IBBY. Since it has the exclusive right to represent Russian children’s books in IBBY international programs, the council provides the opportunity to participate in international creative competitions and exhibitions for Russian cultural figures associated with their professional and creative activities with children’s books.

In Russia on the International Day of Children’s Books seminars are heldroundtables, exhibitions and other events in the field of modern literature, book art and book culture for children.

According to the Russian Book Chamber, the most published children’s author in Russia in 2022 is Korney Chukovsky, and the author has held the lead for several years. Webb Holly is in second place and JK Rowling is in third. top ten The most popular authors also include Elena Ul’eva, Alexander Pushkin, Eduard Uspensky, Alexander Volkov, Nikolai Nosov, Astrid Lindgren and Viktor Dragunsky.

According to a study conducted by VTsIOM commissioned by the Russian State Children’s Library, reading print books (53%) is among the top 3 most common leisure activities among young students. The vast majority (89%) of children aged 7-10 read independently. More than two-thirds (69%) of children aged 7-10 reported being read aloud at home, compared to 77% in 1st grade and 58% in 4th grade. As the young audience ages, reading loses its popularity. Reading printed books as a leisure activity, 5-9. attracts the attention of 36% of the students in the classrooms. At the same time, 95% of adolescents read in addition to the school curriculum during the summer months, and 29% of them read 1-2 books. At the same time, the larger the class, the less young people read: if the share of those who read only 1-2 books during the summer among the fifth graders is 21%, then in the 9th grade their number increases to 35%. .

45% of young people choose books they are listening according to parents, 42% – friends. About half (47%) of the respondents are registered in the school library, and about a third (35%) are registered in the city.

In the 11 to 15 age group, JK Rowling’s books about Harry Potter top the list of favorite works – while answering an obvious question, they were named 10%. The top spots also include Mark Twain, Antoine de Saint-Exupery, Ivan Turgenev, Daniel Defoe, Alexander Pushkin, Alexander Volkov, Nikolai Gogol and Ray Bradbury.

The material has been prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources.