Katherine Paterson replaces Jon Scieszka as national Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, a two-year position created to raise national awareness of the importance of lifelong literacy and education.

“Katherine Paterson represents the finest in literature for young people,” said Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. “Her renown is national as well as international, and she will most ably fulfill the role of a national ambassador who speaks to the importance of reading and literacy in the lives of America’s youth.” Paterson has chosen “Read for Your Life” as the theme for her term as Ambassador.

Paterson has won the National Book Award for The Great Gilly Hopkins (1979) and The Master Puppeteer (1977). Other awards include the Hans Christian Andersen Medal and the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.

The Library of Congress’s Center for the Book and the Children’s Book Council  are the sponsors of the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature.