National Literacy Month: McDonald's To Distribute 20 Million Books In Spanish, English In Happy Meals

Research by the American Academy of Pediatrics shows that reading daily to young children stimulates early brain development and helps build key language, literacy and social skills. In celebration of National Literacy Month in September, McDonald’s USA is inviting families to celebrate the joy of reading with the launch of the latest Happy Meal Books promotion. Happy Meal Books will be available in restaurants nationwide from September 5-18 helping spread the gift of reading to families across the U.S.

In celebration of its 200th anniversary, HarperCollins Publishers, one of the leading publishers of children’s books, is joining forces with McDonald’s USA to bring families a collection of four Happy Meal-sized books featuring popular titles – “Pete the Cat’s Got Class” by James Dean, “Amelia Bedelia’s First Day of School” by Herman Parish, “Just A School Project” by Mercer Mayer and “If You Take a Mouse to School” by Laura Numeroff. Books are available in English and, in select restaurants, in Spanish.

“HarperCollins is pleased to be part of McDonald’s Happy Meal Books promotion again this year to place beloved books in the hands of millions of children,” says Suzanne Murphy, President and Publisher, HarperCollins Children’s Books. “Reading has a profound impact on the educational development of a child and through this program along with our donation to Reading is Fundamental, we hope to make book ownership for children more accessible.”

McDonald’s is also a proud supporter of Reading is Fundamental (RIF), the nation’s largest children’s literacy organization, which seeks to promote literacy by making it easier for children throughout the country to have access to interesting, captivating reading materials. By 2018, McDonald’s will have donated approximately 400,000 books from the Happy Meal Books promotions to RIF literacy efforts and programs across the country.

McDonald’s Happy Meal Book promotion is among a list of the company’s actions supporting a commitment to promote children’s well-being by inspiring kids to engage in active and imaginative play in a fun way and help develop a sense of community.

Through McDonald’s partnership with RIF, families can extend learning after reading “Pete the Cat’s Got Class”, “Amelia Bedelia’s First Day of School”, “Just A School Project” and “If You Take a Mouse to School” through Literacy Central. This new, free digital portal, will feature lesson plans, puzzles, activities, and leveled reading passages designed to help build literacy development in children with a focus on the books from the Happy Meal Books program.