Foreword

by Ed Balls MP, Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families

As almost every parent knows, there is something truly magical about the moment when a young child first understands what a book is.

This happens long before the child becomes a reader. It starts with the child engaging with the shapes and textures, the colours and the pictures; getting the feel of the pages as they fan out; sensing that every book has a beginning, a middle and an end. Finally it becomes clear that the words of the story link somehow to those strange shapes on the page - that there's a mystery here just waiting for the child to grasp it. And that's when whole new worlds open up.

Every child deserves the chance to be exposed to good books from the earliest age. Parents are constantly beset with advice these days, but I dare to say that the single best moment in the day could be reading with their children. It's a unique shared experience, which creates moments which neither side will ever forget. And it can start as early as you like - this is one activity for which there is no minimum age limit. Early reading, whether by parents at home or with staff and volunteers in an early years setting, opens up the power of imagination.

So I am delighted to welcome the School Library Association's new list of "Riveting Reads", targeted at children from birth to seven years old.

The books have been selected to have a very wide appeal. They include old and new classics, and every style of writing imaginable. I defy anyone to run through this list and fail to find books a-plenty to spark any young child's imagination.

I am very keen that these marvellous books should be available to as many children as possible - both at home and within early years settings. So my Department is funding "Book Ahead", a new scheme to allow public and school library services across England to acquire up to half a million books from this list, which they can offer on extended loans to each early years setting in their area. The details of that scheme are for local determination, so please contact your local library service.

Meanwhile the list itself, and the excellent guidance which accompanies it, are a resource freely available to everyone - parents, children, teachers, carers, friends and family. I hope you enjoy it and find it useful.

Ed Balls MP
Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families.