Star Wars Reads Day: October 6, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LUCASFILM LTD. AND PUBLISHING PARTNERS ANNOUNCE STAR WARS READS DAY
Bookstore and Library events throughout the US to be held October 6, 2012

SAN DIEGO, CA., July 13, 2012 – Lucasfilm and its publishing partners announced today a national Star Wars Reads Day to be held this October 6, 2012. Star Wars Reads Day is a multi-publisher initiative that celebrates reading and Star Wars. On October 6, events will take place at hundreds of bookstores and libraries across the United States. Participating publishing partners include Abrams, Chronicle Books, Dark Horse, Del Rey, DK, Scholastic, Titan Magazines, and Workman.

Officially participating bookstores and libraries will receive a Star Wars event kit (free of charge). The kit includes: an exclusive Star Wars Reads promotional item (25-50 per event); raffle prizes; promotional giveaways; a packet of event ideas, reproducible activity sheets and trivia; and more. The events will have the PR and marketing support of the eight participating publishers and Lucasfilm.

If your store or library would like to participate in Star Wars Reads Day on October 6, please sign up at http://us.dk.com/SWRDevent. Volunteer costumers can sign up at http://us.dk.com/SWRDvolunteer.

Follow Star Wars Reads Day on Facebook!

ABOUT ABRAMS:
Founded by Harry N. Abrams in 1949, ABRAMS is the preeminent publisher of high quality art and illustrated books. Now a subsidiary of La Martinière Groupe, ABRAMS is the publisher of bestsellers such as the wildly popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney and The Origami Yoda series by Tom Angleberger, the award-winning cookbooks of Alton Brown, and the stunning photography of Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s Earth from Above. ABRAMS publishes books in the areas of art, photography, cooking, interior design, craft, fashion, sports, pop culture, as well as children’s books and general interest. The company’s imprints include Abrams; Abrams Appleseed; Abrams ComicArts; Abrams Image; Abrams Books for Young Readers; Amulet Books; Stewart, Tabori & Chang; and STC Craft/Melanie Falick Books.

ABOUT CHRONICLE BOOKS
One of the most admired and respected publishing companies in the U.S., Chronicle Books was founded in 1967 and over the years has developed a reputation for award-winning, innovative books. Recognized as one of the 50 best small companies to work for in the U.S. (and the only independent publisher to receive this award), the company continues to challenge conventional publishing wisdom, setting trends in both subject and format, maintaining a list that includes much admired illustrated books and gift products in design, art, architecture, photography, food, lifestyle, pop culture, and acclaimed children’s titles. Chronicle Books’ objective is to create and distribute exceptional publishing that’s instantly recognizable for its spirit, creativity, and value. For more information about Chronicle Books, visit www.chroniclebooks.com.

ABOUT DARK HORSE:
Founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator-friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent such as Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Brian Wood, Gerard Way, Felicia Day, and Guillermo del Toro, and comics legends such as Will Eisner, Neal Adams, and Jim Steranko, Dark Horse has developed its own successful properties, including The Mask, Ghost, Timecop, and SpyBoy. Its successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Mass Effect, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan, Emily the Strange, Tim Burton’s Tragic Toys for Girls and Boys, Serenity, and Domo. Today Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic book publisher in the US and is recognized as one of the world’s leading publishers of both creator-owned content and licensed comics

ABOUT DEL REY BOOKS:
Del Rey Books (http://www.delreybooks.com) was founded in 1977 as an imprint of Ballantine Books, a division of the Random House Publishing Group, under the guidance of the renowned Judy-Lynn del Rey and her husband, Lester del Rey. Del Rey publishes the best of modern fantasy, science fiction, and alternate history.

ABOUT DK:
DK Publishing is the New York Times bestselling publisher known for its distinctive, highly visual books, ebooks and apps that inform, inspire and entertain readers of all ages. DK also publishes the award-winning Eyewitness series for children and Eyewitness Travel Guides. Alpha Books, BradyGames and Rough Guides are also available from DK, a division of Penguin Group. http://us.dk.com

ABOUT SCHOLASTIC:
Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) is the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books and a leader in educational technology. Scholastic creates quality educational and entertaining materials and products for use in school and at home, including children's books, magazines, technology-based products, teacher materials, television programming, film, videos and toys. The Company distributes its products and services through a variety of channels, including proprietary school-based book clubs, school-based book fairs, and school-based and direct-to-home continuity programs; retail stores, schools, libraries and television networks; and the Company's Internet site, www.scholastic.com.

ABOUT TITAN MAGAZINES:
Titan Magazines is the largest and most experienced publisher of licensed entertainment magazines and comics in the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Licensing partners include: Aardman - ABC - BBC - Bongo - CBS - DC - Disney - Hasbro - LucasFilm - MGM - NBC - Nickelodeon - Paramount - Twentieth Century Fox - WWE - Mattel. For more information, visit: http://titanmagazines.com/

ABOUT WORKMAN:
Workman Publishing Company, a medium-sized independent publisher, is the creator of award-winning calendars, cookbooks, parenting/pregnancy guides, and fun, educational children’s titles, as well as gardening, humor, self-help, and business books. From our What to Expect series and Page-A-Day Calendars to the iconic 1,000 Places to See Before You Die and Gallop!, the one-of-a-kind, moving picture book for kids, our products inspire readers and other publishers alike. The Workman Publishing Company also includes Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, Artisan, HighBridge Audio, Storey Publishing and Timber Press. In addition, Workman is the distributor for Black Dog & Leventhal, Greenwich Workshop Press Fearless Critic Media, and The Experiment.

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