Booksellers were initially pleased with the team-up of First Lady Laura Bush and CBS to create a series focusing on literacy and children’s literature on the network’s Early Show. Host Harry Smith joins Mrs. B once a week at the White House, where a specific title is featured and read. Nice, eh? Nice if you’re Amazon.com, where viewers are urged to visit and donate books to literacy efforts.
Monica Holmes, President of the Association of Booksellers for Children, wrote to CBS, expressing her dismay over the exclusive promotion of Amazon.com. The sting was made sharper after the inaugural book, Book! Book! Book! featured on the June 25 segment, was returned by a Bush staffer to the independent bookstore where it was purchased. Apparently, the White House had a difficult time tracking down the 2001 title, but found it at the Alexandria, VA bookstore, A Likely Story. The store issued credit, but wondered why the White House didn’t donate the gently used book to a library. More here from Publishers Weekly.
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