10th anniversary celebrations for The Book Bus
Friday 28th October 2016
On 27 October 2016. Quentin Blake joined the Book Bus team at the House of Lords for a celebration event to mark the 10th anniversary of the charity, which works to bring books to children in Africa and Ecuador. A supporter of the charity since its inception in 2006 - when it was founded by publisher Tom Maschler - Quentin was proud to join in the festivities to mark their successful first decade.
The charity's vehicles, buses known as 'Charlie', 'George' and 'Matilda', are decorated with Quentin's distinctive artwork which he produced specially for the purpose. Quentin also produced the '10th anniversary' logo for the Book Bus, used throughout 2016 on its website and literature.
The House of Lords event was also a chance for the Book Bus to launch their 10th anniversary literacy campaign 'I am a Reader', which aims to help 10,000 children in Zambia and Malawi learn to read and write by 2020. The campaign is a three-year programme in partnership with under-resourced primary schools in the region where each child will receive a structured reading scheme, mentored reading practice and free access to a local library. To do so, the charity needs to raise £1,000,000, through donations from its supporters. To find out more, and to make a donation, go to www.thebookbus.org