Young People's Poetry Week, a new annual event sponsored by The Children's Book Council (CBC), will be observed April 12-18, 1999. This week-long celebration of poetry for children and young adults will encourage more librarians and educators to include reading and writing poetry in their libraries and classrooms. The CBC will coordinate promotional efforts with the Academy of American Poets, the sponsor of National Poetry Month in April, and the Center for the Book in The Library of Congress.

Plans for Young People's Poetry Week will include an inaugural program in cooperation with the Center for the Book and the Poetry and Literature Center at the Library of Congress as well as a bibliography of new poetry books of young people. The CBC will offer new poetry products, featuring esteemed contributors: Dr. Bernice E. Cullinan, noted educator and poetry expert, author and illustrator Chris Raschka, and the poetic talents of Arnold Adoff, Eloise Greenfield, Lee Bennett Hopkins, and Karla Kuskin.

Poetry material will be available in its full-color catalog and on its web site: www.cbcbooks.org. The poetry products include a classroom poetry kit, bookmarks, and a poster, available individually or as a kit, and Book Poems: Poems from National Children's Book Week, the collected poetry celebrating books from National Children's Book Week for the last four decades.

You may contact JoAnn Sabatino-Falkenstein at (212) 966-1990 ext. 305; by fax at (212) 966-2073; or by e-mail joanncbs@aol.com.