Clarion will publish a series of Ms. Paterson’s essays on writing and literature for young people in digital format. Collectively entitled Read for Your Life: Speeches and Writings of Katherine Paterson, the essays will be available through all major online book retailers and will be compatible with a variety of different digital reading devices.

“I woke up one morning and realized that what I wanted to say to everyone — children, young people, adults — was this: read for your life,” says Ms. Paterson, who was named National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature in January of this year. “Your life means not just your solitary life but your family and your classroom and your community and your world. It’s about the importance of literature for our lives and for the general good.”

Read for Your Life will feature essays written by Ms. Paterson over the course of her 40-year career in writing for children. Some were previously published in collections now out of print; 20 percent of the essays are new material. The subjects of the varied pieces in Read for Your Life include writing tools for children’s book authors, the wonder and imagination found within great books, common questions novice writers ask and Ms. Paterson’s own personal experiences with literature throughout her historic career. The first essay available is “Confusion at the Crossroads,” which was Paterson’s inaugural speech as the National Ambassador. Other chapters include “Fellow Travelers,” which discusses the correspondence between Paterson and a young soldier stationed in Afghanistan who had a powerful reaction to her books, and “Building Bridges,” a speech about adults’ role as necessary bridge builders between reluctant readers and literature.

“We’re delighted to make these meaningful essays available again to a wide audience,” says Betsy Groban, Senior Vice President and Publisher of the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children’s Book Group. “As with everything from the pen, or in this case, the keyboard, of Katherine Paterson, each piece is incredibly wise, moving and thought-provoking.”

Clarion will publish the essays on a monthly basis over the course of Ms. Paterson’s two-year tenure as ambassador. Readers will have the option to purchase essays individually, for 99¢ each, or to purchase a subscription for $7.99 and receive all 24 essays as they are released each month.

At the conclusion of the two-year project, all 24 essays will be collected in one volume and offered in a paperback edition as well.

In celebration of Children’s Book Week (May 10 – 16, 2010), the first essay in Read for Your Life, “Confusion at the Crossroads,” is available now for free. Readers can download it at the website of the Children’s Book Council and Every Child a Reader (www.cbcbooks.org) or access it through Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s website at www.hmhbooks.com/readforyourlife. The free download will be available May 10 – 24.

Educators, children’s book enthusiasts, writers and anyone who loves a good story will appreciate these nuggets of wisdom from one of the world’s most beloved creators of young people’s literature.

Katherine Paterson’s international fame rests not only on her widely acclaimed novels but also on her efforts to promote literacy in the United States and abroad. A two-time winner of the Newbery Medal ( Bridge to Terabithia and Jacob Have I Loved) and the National Book Award ( The Great Gilly Hopkins and The Master Puppeteer), she was the 1998 recipient of the Hans Christian Andersen Medal and was given the Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts by her home state of Vermont. Ms. Paterson is also the recipient of the 2006 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, which celebrates her life’s work. In January 2010, she was appointed National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. For more information, visit www.terabithia.com.

Launched in 1974, Clarion Books is a publisher of award-winning books for young readers. Its authors include Karen Cushman, Russell Freedman, Mary Downing Hahn, Jim Murphy, Linda Sue Park, Katherine Paterson, Gary D. Schmidt and David Wiesner.