The Happiest Readers On Earth

Passionate readers know there's nothing better than receiving a free copy of a favorite author's new book, so imagine how thrilled I was when a British publicist offered me a copy of Heroes of the Valley by Jonathan Stroud. I was just about to hit the "Reply" button when I noticed a small problem: the publicist could only send books within the U.K. Cursing my U.S. address, I sent him my disappointed reply. A few days later, I got another email from one Hallie Patterson, a publicist from Disney. Not only did she offer me the Stroud book, but she sent me two fat catalogs of books she had available for distribution. I started marking my selections, thinking, "There's no way Hallie's going to send me 50 books," but guess what? She urged me to request as many as I wanted. Needless to say, I went crazy. Today, a big, heavy box arrived on my doorstep. Books, books and more books. And it's only a third of the titles I requested. I couldn't be more excited. Really, I couldn't. Thanks so much, Hallie and Disney!

My 4-year-old was home when the package arrived. I ordered two of these book and magnet sets for him - the Wall E and Toy Story themes. The sets come with a book based on the movie, a set of character magnets, several backdrops, and a handy dandy carrying case. The sides of the case are magnetic, so kids can slide in a backdrop then stick the magnets on to create scenes from the film. Best of all, everything fits neatly in the case creating a portable fun center. My only complaint about the product is that my son couldn't open the case by himself. Several of the sets are available on Amazon for between $10 and $15. The price may be a little steep, but my son loved this product. I'm not sure where else you can find these - I'll check with Hallie and get back to you all.

My impatient 7-year-old has been asking me every day when "her" books were going to come in the mail. When she saw the box from Disney, she about flipped. She's now devouring her many Disney Fairies books and kits. I haven't even had a chance to look through her loot, much less review any of the products, but I can tell you that she's super excited. I think the pictures say it all!

Yay for a good mail day, and yay for an awesome company who knows exactly how to get books into the hands of eager readers.