Reaching the Next Generation of Readers: Inside Children's and Young Adult Publishing Programs Across Penguin
Books for children and young adults are reaching readers of all ages everywhere. With J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter books and Stephenie Meyer's Twilight saga selling a combined 1.2 billion copies worldwide alone, the children's/young adult category crosses all borders and demographics. A recent study from Simba Information reported that one in five adults in the U.S. bought at least one children's book during the prior 12 months (this represents roughly 46.2 million adults). Also, the 2008 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) study found that the "young adult" demographic in the US showed a nine percent increase in reading books (over the NEA's 2002 report).
Penguin children's leading positions in the UK, US, Australia and South Africa, among other regions, are driven by such iconic authors as Eric Carle (this year celebrating the 40th anniversary of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, which has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide), Roald Dahl (Charlie & the Chocolate Factory and his other books selling more than 25 million copies worldwide), Mem Fox (one of Australia's most celebrated, award winning children's authors) and Tomie dePaola (the author and illustrator of more than 200 children's books, including the Caldecott Honor-winning Strega Nona) as well as new #1 bestselling authors such as Jeff Kinney (Diary of a Wimpy Kid), Sarah Dessen (Along for the Ride) and John van deRuit (Spud).
And there are Penguin's many enduring children's brands such as Winnie-the-Pooh, with Dutton Children's Books publishing the first authorized new Pooh title in 80 years this week; Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit, leading the way with its Green publishing initiatives, such as "Naturally Better"; Spot, who turns 30 years in January 2010; and Puffin Books, which will be celebrating its 70th anniversary throughout next year.
Read on for insights into these and other successful Penguin children's publishing programs and campaigns around the globe.
Penguin Australia
How Children Help Create and Define the Market for What They Read
"The success of the Wimpy Kids books worldwide has reinforced to us in our market that children themselves create a hit," said Laura Harris, Children's Publishing Director, Penguin Australia. "Word of mouth was phenomenal on these books when we first published them in Australia, and now they are a force to be reckoned with and a reminder that smart, funny, middle reader novels are the heart of children's books, and that good ones are the most difficult to find. Getting these books directly into kids' hands, appealing to them in the first instance, is paramount in our marketing, design and positioning.
How Penguin Australia is Reaching Readers of the Future
As part of its education, sales and children's marketing strategy, Penguin Australia has run a series of focus groups throughout 2009 covering young mums, young readers and teenagers to help better understand the interests, reading and purchasing habits of these groups.
"These focus groups have been particularly useful," said Kristin Gill, GM Education, Sales & Children's Marketing. "The young mum's session highlighted how challenging it is for parents to find the right books for their children — there's just so much choice out there. The overwhelming feeling was that they needed help identifying the right books for the right age groups and as time poor parents, they wanted a place to go where information regarding books according to age, gender or interest — be it pirates, fairies or dinosaurs — was clearly set out for them."
Based on much of this feedback, the team will launch a new website in the coming months www.myfirstlibrary.com.au which will be designed to be a portal for Australian parents of children 0-6, to help them make more informed reading choices for their children.
Penguin Canada
"The sales growth in the Children's program has largely been in the teen market," says Penguin Canada Sales Director Cindy Kantor. "Sarah Dessen is extremely popular in Canada. The initial ship of Along for the Ride was 50% higher than the previous hardcover, Lock and Key. Stephenie Myers' successful series has really increased sales of all teen books and in particular vampire books, like the series, Vampire Academy."
Penguin Canada's Children's Publishing Programs Take Aim at YA Fiction Market
Hiromi Goto's Half World satisfies both the dark and fantastical elements that are currently dominating the YA lit scene. Incorporating literary and graphic elements (illustrated by Skim's Jillian Tamaki) it inspired a book trailer and incredible website where readers can continue their exploration of Half World.
Comedian Seán Cullen's newest novel, The Prince of Neither Here nor There, features another popular otherworldly creature. No, not vampires. Faeries! Cullen's flighted fiends have attitude and wicked wit to add to the mix.
Another bestselling Penguin Canada YA author, Eric Walters, connects with students like no other author in Canada. He has presented to over 1,000,000 children across the country. YouTube has played a major role in Walters' visibility. Watch an address Walters did for the video for Sketches — a scene acted out from the book: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2C42NoRt9o.
Sharon McKay is a "War Artist" and the award-winning author of the recently released, War Brothers. Sharon traveled to Uganda to learn first hand what it means to be a child soldier. She spent months interviewing current and past soldiers and the tens of thousands of children who live in hiding, to avoid being recruited. Sharon has shared her stories with youth across Canada and has donated half of her royalties to organizations that work to help rehabilitate victims of this reality.
Last but not least, while dark and brooding fiction often dominates the bestseller lists, Before Green Gables is a perfect example of classic children's storytelling. In the authorized prequel to LM Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables, Budge Wilson's young Anne has been a bestseller in Canada. Both adults and children alike have been drawn in once again to the east coast of Canada to revisit their favourite red-headed heroine.
Penguin China
Children's Publishing in China Led by Foreign Titles in Translation
"The bestseller lists for children's publishing in China are dominated by foreign titles in translation — and we are therefore seeing a lot of interest in our children's publishing, right across our range," said Jo Lusby, General Manager, Penguin China.
"At present, we are focusing on the very youngest readers, hoping to capture them before they become over-burdened with school work and begin to view reading as a chore, rather than an imaginative pleasure. With all this in mind, we published bilingual Spot books in conjunction with the Year of the Dog, and our partners Jieli have sold more than a half million copies of the series. Kindergartens, play centres, and schools have organized a huge range of parties and interactive activities.
"As with other countries, In the Night Garden is proving to be a runaway success. With the start of animation broadcasts on Chinese television in May, we saw the first eight titles of the series be reprinted within two months of their publication.
"For older children, we are publishing Charlie and Lola, also in cooperation with Jieli, as well as selling our full range of English-language children's titles (in particular Ladybird) to parents here in China."
DK
With DK publishing programmes geared towards young readers, Mary Ling, DK Category Publisher, Children's 5+, said, "Seven plus is an exciting age range. Everything is new to our young readers so we seek out the WOW factor with our books aiming to make them irresistible to either them or their book buying parents."
Getting the attention of today's young readers is something the editorial, marketing and PR teams at DK always strive to do-they even go out in the trenches!
DK (US)
Sharkpedia is Jaw-Inpsiring to Young Readers
DK children's editor Nancy Ellwood was star of this year's show at Brooklyn's Explore Charter School ABC Day, an annual event held to celebrate reading and learning. Ellwood presented how Sharkpedia went from concept to printed book, while sharing all kinds of "jaw-inspiring" facts about these creatures of the deep. Photos from the event can be seen on the DK Flickr page.
Eyewitness, One of DK's Most Treasured Children's Brands, In Schools Via Whiteboard Technology
DK's signature brand, Eyewitness, has been the most trusted name in illustrated reference publishing for over 20 years with over 50 million copies in print in more than 88 countries, and with over 130 titles in the series. DK's Tom Hall recently struck a deal with Promethean to bring Eyewitness content into classrooms via whiteboard technology. Now, the DK Eyewitness brand reaches 21st-century children in multiple forms!
DK (UK)
Blast Lab Bright Ideas and Ask Me Anything Among Exiting DK Autumn Offerings
Mary Ling, DK Category Publisher, Children's 5+, said, "This Autumn we have the best children's art book ever. It's a classic-covering the world from first cave paintings to Damien Hirst and Banksy. We plan to bring it alive with a kid's art trail through the galleries of London during October half term. The children themselves will be keen to get hold of Blast Lab Bright Ideas with children's TV favourite Richard Hammond. It's a dynamic experiment book plus a brace of LEDs to light up their enthusiasm for science."
"Kids who can't imagine the world before the Internet are used to getting their information online, but nothing beats getting lost in a book,"said Laura Buller, DK Category Publisher — Children's 8+ . "Ask Me Anything, publishing in the UK this autumn, is just the book to snuggle under the duvet with a torch. Guinness may be pure genius, but we've got 20% more pages; 70% more topics, and we're 15% cheaper.
"We've also created books pitched to a couple of topics kids are already obsessive about: vampires and brain-training. The Vampire Book will lure in Stephenie Meyer fans with its cool holographic cover and modern approach. Train Your Brain to be a Genius turns the brain-training phenomena on its head with plenty of incredible reference about the amazing human brain, alongside the brain tricks and teasers."
Monster and Car-themed Digital Games Drive Young Readers to DK Children's Titles
Children use the Internet primarily for playing games, and by creating digital games for DK titles Car Science and Dr Frankenstein, DK's online marketing department was able to reach and interact with a wide number of children. To date, Car Science has achieved 75,000 page views and 45,000 visitors, and Dr Frankenstein has had 7,000 views and 4,500 visitors.
Penguin India
Puffin India Going Strong in Its Eighth Year
The most significant children's publishing story at Penguin India in 2009 has been Puffin. Sudeshna Shome Ghosh, Editorial Director, Puffin India offers insights and perspective:
"Puffin India was born in 2001 with a team of two editors and one designer. From our very first books we knew we were publishing into a market that had vast potential but was hungry for quality books with Indian content. Books like The Puffin Book of Classic Indian Stories (Meera Uberoi), The Puffin Treasury of Modern Indian Stories (ed. Mala Dayal), 101 Folktales of India (Eunice De Souza) continue to be popular even today. Gradually we added many more fantastic looking titles to these: The Puffin Ramayana, The Puffin Book of Magical Indian Myths, and the newest one out earlier this year, The Puffin Mahabharata.
"As we slowly started making our presence felt in bookstores, we published books by some of India's best-loved writers, most notably Ruskin Bond, who, even at 75, is by far the most popular Indian children's writer. Other popular fiction titles are the ones by Satyajit Ray and his series of detective fiction, and R.K. Narayan with stories of a harum-scarum schoolboy, Swami. Each year we publish some new fiction titles which range from stories of annoying monsters (Moin and the Monster, Anushka Ravishankar), talking elephants (Living Next Door to Alise, Anita Nair) to wise teddy bears (A Bear for Felicia, Jerry Pinto).
"In 2007 we started our very own Puffin Classics series, which has grown to 10 titles now. In 2009, we published our first lot of comic books! Featuring the dashing detective Feluda, we started with two titles in July (Beware in the Graveyard and A Bagful of Mystery) to be followed up quickly with more in the months to come.
"Some of our other exciting acquisitions have been Where's Hanuman, a picture book with 12 picture puzzles where the child has to spot the legendary character of Hanuman and his friends on each page; the delightful story of a monstrous toy shop owner in The Magic Store of Nu-Cham-Vu; and the Swapnalok Society series by Bollywood actress and singer Suchitra Krishnamoorthi about a bunch of intrepid kids living in a large residential complex in Mumbai and their growing pangs.
"As Puffin India celebrates its eighth birthday this year, we look forward to sustaining the quirkiness of babyhood with the originality of the teenager in the years to come!"
Penguin New Zealand
Epic Stories with Believable Characters Reach Young Readers in New Zealand
"The market for readable material in the YA market here in New Zealand is alive and well," according to Vicki Marsdon, Commissioning Editor, Children's Publishing, Penguin NZ. "The Twilight phenomenon (closely following on the heels of Harry Potter) has highlighted the fact that readers are more than willing to commit their time and their money to reading these epic stories."
"In our own publishing list we have deliberately set out to capture our share of this market with the publication of T.K. Roxborgh's Banquo's Son, planned for October. Aimed simultaneously at the YA and older audience, we feel that we have taken advantage of the market's need for epic storylines while at the same time using the marketing muscle of Penguin to drive interest in this genre through less traditional forms of marketing.
"Central to the success of these types of books is a compelling storyline and believable characters; this seems to be the message coming through from our readers: deliver us characters we fall in love with and care about, and we will support them in numbers."
Penguin South Africa
Penguin is Top Children's Publisher in South Africa
Penguin Books was the number 1 children's publisher for 2008 in the category of all children's books sold in South Africa and continues to be a dominant force in the category in 2009. Louise Grantham, Publisher, Penguin Books SA comments, "Children's fiction has outsold children's nonfiction [in South Africa]. A strong imported title will sell 1,500 copies and (apart from the Stephenie Meyer phenomenon). There are only a few authors, such as Eoin Colfer and Percy Jackson, who sell over 4,000 copies. Fantasy is a strong genre for teens and young adults while Disney books related to movies such as Hannah Montana and The Jonas Brothers also sell well. For local titles, African-themed books are the strongest within the younger (0-6) age groups.
"The growth and development of youth literacy is an important and critical issue in South Africa. Key stakeholders in the South African government, education and the private business sector continue to express their commitment to developing and promoting literacy amongst the youth. For this reason, book-buyers are becoming increasingly interested in children's books. Parents and guardians are beginning to understand the importance of fostering a love of reading in children.
"In a country with a high unemployment rate (24%) and skills shortage crisis; parents and guardians are beginning to realise that if they do not encourage their children to read, their chances of becoming a successful and resourceful adult will be limited. As a result booksellers are seeing a spike in their sales of children's titles. During this period of economic downturn and recession, booksellers have ear-marked the promotion of children's titles as a genre for potential growth and to help them generate sales and meet their budgets."
The Spud Phenomenon Continues as the Third Book in the Series Soars
The book launch of Spud — Learning to Fly featured a video including short comments from fans of author John van de Ruit and gives an overview of the atmosphere and excitement generated at the event. His book, Spud — Leaning to Fly, is the third title in the Spud series and sold over 28,000 copies within 11 days of its release on the 10th of June. The Spud phenomenon, which was originally published for the adult market, has had a huge cross-over into the 12+ age group market.
Debut by Penguin SA's Youngest Author Shortlisted for Exclusive Award
Sixteen-year-old Andy Petersen is the youngest author that Penguin Books SA has ever published. His debut, Daniel Fox and the Jester's Legacy, was released in March 2009 and has sold over 3,200 copies to date and has been short-listed for the 2009 Exclusive Books One Club Prize. Exclusive Books is the largest book retailer in sub-Saharan Africa and every year (with the help of school teachers, librarians and educators) they recruit young reader critics to vote for their book of the year through their One Club Prize.
Penguin Young Readers Group (US)
"Penguin Young Readers Group has one of the most creative and hard working teams in the industry, and at the same time, we like to have fun. We've just begun to tap into our true potential," said Don Weisberg, President of Penguin Young Readers Group, in this issue's Bird Interview.
The Penguin Young Readers Group has long been recognized for its rich, diverse, and award-winning list. A Young Readers Group priority has been attracting an audience of tech-savvy readers in an increasingly digital world, by implementing multimedia-platform marketing campaigns that spread virally, propelling titles onto the New York Times bestseller lists. The Young Readers Group has continued to successfully achieve this goal in 2009. Here are highlights from three key title campaigns:
New Winnie-the-Pooh Book Published for the First Time in 80 Years
Return to the Hundred Acre Wood, the first authorized sequel to A.A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh and The House At Pooh Corner, published by Dutton Children's Books, went on sale across the United States on October 5th. Written by David Benedictus and illustrated by Mark Burgess, this is the first new Winnie-the-Pooh book in more than 80 years. Penguin Audio also published an audio version of the book read by Grammy Award-winner Jim Dale.
On October 5th, Penguin Young Readers Group also unveiled and presented a permanent mural for the original Winnie-the-Pooh stuffed animals that inspired the books — adding another chapter to its long history with Winnie-the-Pooh and the Library. Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet, Kanga, and Tigger have lived at The New York Public Library since 1987 and currently find their home in the Children's Center at 42nd Street.
In advance of this historic launch, Penguin rolled out an extensive six-figure marketing campaign. In early September, bookstores across the country opened "Pooh-tiques", dedicated spaces for Winnie-the-Pooh and friends. With these "Pooh-tiques", booksellers invited readers to rediscover Winnie-the-Pooh's beloved adventures and return to the Hundred Acre Wood. National media coverage for Return to the Hundred Acre Wood included segments on NBC's "Today Show" and NPR's Morning Edition, features in USA Today, Parents, Parenting, Ebony, Associated Press and Salon.com, as well as national and regional television and radio interviews with author David Benedictus.
Dutton officially introduced Christopher Robin and his "silly old bear" to the US in 1926 with the publication of Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne and illustrated by E.H. Shepard. Dutton published The House at Pooh Corner, which introduced Tigger, in 1928. The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA is currently celebrating Pooh with an exhibit of original Winnie-the-Pooh illustrations by E.H. Shepard, on display from May-November of 2009. This is the first time these pieces have been exhibited together in the United States.
Greg Mortenson's Three Cups of Tea and Listen to the Wind
On January 22, 2009, Penguin Young Readers Group published two young reader's editions of the Greg Mortenson's bestselling book Three Cups of Tea. Greg and his daughter Amira embarked on a national two-week bookstore and media tour, appearing on NBC's "Today Show" and speaking to thousands of fans in cities across the country. Penguin also launched a major Community-wide read campaign positioning all three books as the perfect family reads. Both the picture book version Listen to the Wind and the young reader's chapter book Three Cups of Tea quickly rose to the #1 spots on their respective New York Times bestseller lists and inspired Pennies for Peace drives in schools across the country. Listen to the Wind has now spent more than 30 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, including 18 weeks at #1. The young readers edition of Three Cups of Tea has also spent 30 weeks on the bestseller list, including four at #1. Penguin has shipped more than 115,000 copies of Listen to the Wind and more than 300,000 copies of the Three Cups of Tea Young Readers Edition. Both books continue to sell well.
Eric Carle's Very Hungry Caterpillar 40th Anniversary Edition
This year has marked the 40th anniversary of Eric Carle's preschool classic, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Since its publication in 1969, 29 million copies of the book have sold worldwide and it has been published in over 45 languages. To celebrate the anniversary, Philomel published a special pop-up version of the book and March 20th was designated as "The Very Hungry Caterpillar Day." On this first day of spring, teachers, librarians, booksellers, and fans of the book gathered to read and celebrate the metamorphosis of this eager, insatiable caterpillar. Google presented exclusively designed Google Doodle by Eric Carle that day, seen by 128 million users worldwide, which created incredible awareness of the anniversary and was a brilliant juxtaposition of a classic brand and new technology.
Penguin spread the word with an extensive marketing and publicity campaign. Eric Carle was the special guest of honor and featured artist at the Los Angeles Times Book Festival. Marketing initiatives included major promotions with Stonyfield YoBaby Yogurt and Applebees which reached a combined total of 9.6 million consumers. Scholastic Book Fairs featured an Eric Carle Author Video which reached 28 million students, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar has been selected as this fall's 2009 Read for the Record Campaign book. Retailers have also supported the book with gift cards featuring the Very Hungry Caterpillar, activity kits and displays.
Penguin UK
Penguin Children's UK: Wherever Children Are
The new Penguin Children's UK division brings together Puffin, Ladybird, Frederick Warne and BBC children's books as one unified division. As Managing Director Stephanie Barton said in this issue's Bird Interview: "The new division will reflect the very real diversity that exists in the children's market, whether that be author-led publishing, home learning, novelty, licensing, brands, digital, media and merchandise. And there are fantastic opportunities for our content in the digital marketplace. Our strategy is this: wherever children are — online, at school, in bookstores or at festivals, alone or with friends, at work or at play — there Penguin Children's will be."
Here is a look at several book launches and campaigns that clearly demonstrate the heart of this strategy:
Young Samurai — Puffin's Latest Major Boy Brand Springs onto the Scene
Young Samurai: The Way of the Sword is the second in the gripping action-packed Young Samurai series. A major boy brand for Puffin, we promoted the publication with TV advertising on Nickelodeon, which ran for 2 weeks. This was also accompanied by targeted press advertising in children's and martial arts media and a jam-packed author tour that kicked off with The Amazing Books for Boys public event and was supported by eye-catching marketing materials.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney — the 20-million copy Bestseller Heads for UK Chart Domination
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw is the latest instalment in the bestselling Wimpy Kid series and was the perfect hit for the Summer holidays. An amazing top 5 performance, only topped by Stephenie Meyer. To celebrate publication, a brand-new website was launched at www.wimpykidclub.co.uk, with a massive pre-awareness push to consumers in the July issue of Pokemon World. Reaching a monthly readership of 150,000 with a hilarious mini-book of extracts from all the Wimpy Kid books, a pull-out A3 poster of comics and a full-page ad. Plus bespoke promotions with all the major retailers. For Dog Days, the major autumn bestseller in October, look out for unmissable pre-awareness activity including an ice-cream van tour and major schools campaign.
Move Over Vampires, the Zombies are Coming... The Enemy by Charlie Higson Launches This Autumn
The blockbuster new series from Charlie Higson, The Enemy, will launch to all existing Young Bond fans, teenagers and zombie fans everywhere. Partnering with TV music channels, we will air an incredible short film which includes the acting skills of Mr Higson himself and the make-up from the team behind Shaun of the Dead. We will hit boys in their bedrooms and fathers on the sofa with this show-stopping film as it airs at 9.30pm on TV and online the evening before publication. Sponsorship of Film4's FrightFest, a late night launch event in the London Bridge Tombs and major retailer initiatives will ensure teens everywhere want this book. See the trailer at www.the-enemy.co.uk.
Let's Get the Party Started: Celebrating the 4th annual Roald Dahl Day
Without question, Roald Dahl is the World's No. 1 storyteller, and what would have been his 90th birthday on 13 September 2006 deserved to be, without question, the first Roald Dahl Day — an annual opportunity to celebrate this amazing man and his amazing stories. Since then, this has given us the chance to create a revolutionary new kind of backlist promotion for retailers, to create a key annual 'Save the Date' moment in the educational calendar and to reach new generations of children all over the world through media partners, schools and libraries.
Fans, booksellers and gatekeepers worldwide have embraced Roald Dahl Day and seized the chance to organise fantastically outlandish storytelling, fancy dress, themed lessons, quizzes, city reads, the options are endless...all based on the downloadable materials at www.roalddahlday.info which are updated every year to give everyone everything they need to celebrate in style.
There will be numerous flagship Everything You Wanted to Know About Roald Dahl events nationwide and major retail promotions across all channels from September to November.
Turning Ahead to 2010: We'll Celebrate 70 Spectacular Years of Puffin
In 2010 Puffin Books will be 70 years old. 70 years! And as part of our BIG birthday celebrations, we want readers, bookshops, libraries, partners everywhere to join us to make this the biggest and the best celebration of books and reading ever.
We pride ourselves on having a Puffin for every child and every occasion and our list is full of quality books which can be read alone or enjoyed as a family. In short, there's a Puffin for everyone and a whole new world of excitement and wonder for every child is there to be ignited.
We're busy planning the biggest 70th birthday celebration ever, including NATIONAL PUFFIN DAY on 8 May. For regular news, updates, downloads and events, go to puffin.co.uk
Frederick Warne Plans on a Fantastic and Furry Future Looking Forward: Gearing Up to Celebrate 30 years of Spot
In January 2010, Warne celebrates 30 years of Spot! The mischievous puppy first appeared in the story, Where's Spot? and in 2008, author Eric Hill found himself winning an OBE.
The innovative lift-the-flap concept offered parents a brand new, interactive way of reading with their children — since then, Spot has come a long way, published in 60 languages, selling over 50 million copies worldwide.
Next year, to celebrate Spot's 30th anniversary, Frederick Warne will host nation-wide birthday parties, and will make event packs available to book stores and libraries. Using Google Maps, www.funwithspot.com will feature a global hunt for Spot, based on the Hide and Seek game in Where's Spot? but occurring online, all over the world. In the summer, Warne will also host a Spot birthday party extravaganza. And, families will be able to participate in a variety of competitions throughout the beginning of the year. The lucky families who win will receive golden tickets as prizes.
Pioneering Ladybird Initiatives Across Africa, Across the Universe
Key Words Project Helps Nigerian Children Learn English
Ladybird is the only consumer-facing Pearson business to have been selected to work with Pearson Education's New and Emerging Technologies team, where it takes part in a trial of a mobile phone initiative. Paired with Mobile Xcetera, Ladybird explores how to digitally deliver material, via mobile devices, to markets and customers not currently reached. More specifically, Ladybird will seek to use the Key Words Reading Scheme to deliver content to mobile users in Nigeria, and especially to schoolchildren learning English.
Decide Your Destiny: Clone Wars Online and Interactive
Ladybird is also taking a digital step in the evolution of Clone Wars with an interactive Decide Your Destiny paperback series. Hosted on the official Star Wars website, readers will get to junctures in the story where they are given options. The URL www.starwars.com/dyd will uncover a game, a video, a message or a free download, each of which directs readers back to the book. This project is a great example of using a well known and popular brand such as Star Wars to reach a new generation of readers, offering fantastic book content alongside a fun and engaging experience online.