Drop Everything And Read: Around the Web

Monday, 4/12/2010

Drop Everything And Read: Around the Web

America’s favorite sisters: Beezus (Selena Gomez) and Ramona (Joey King) in the new film Ramona & Beezus in theaters July 23, 2010.

April 12th is Drop Everything and Read Day (D.E.A.R)! Inspired by Beverly Cleary’s best-selling Ramona series, D.E.A.R. Day encourages kids everywhere to drop everything and read for 30 minutes.

Ramona Quimby falls in love with reading when she first has D.E.A.R. time in school. Similarly, Joey King, the young actress who plays Ramona in the new film RAMONA & BEEZUS, is head-over-heels for books. She is the official spokesperson for D.E.A.R. Day 2010, and is doing her part to share the magic of reading.

This July, the adventures of Ramona Quimby and her big sister Beezus (Selena Gomez) will come to the big screen in RAMONA & BEEZUS. Ramona’s vivid imagination, boundless energy, and accident-prone antics keep everyone she meets on their toes. But her irrepressible sense of fun, adventure and mischief come in handy when she puts her mind to helping save her family’s home.

D.E.A.R. Day fever is lighting up the web, and here are just a handful of ways people are celebrating Ramona, Beverly Cleary and reading:

Entertainment Weekly’s Shelf Life Meets Ramona

Shelf Life interviewed RAMONA & BEEZUS star Joey King about the importance of reading and Ramona’s legacy:

“The Ramona books have a ton of history… Lots of kids through all the grades read the Ramona books, and I think they are going to love the movie. It’s exactly like the Ramona books.”

School Library Journal Interviews Beverly Cleary

SLJ wished Beverly Cleary a Happy 94th Birthday with special shout-outs from other acclaimed authors including Diary of a Wimpy Kid’s Jeff Kinney: “Happy birthday, Beverly! You’ve created so many wonderful characters that have stood the test of time. I can’t wait to see Ramona on the big screen this year!”

SLJ also scored an exclusive interview with Mrs. Cleary where she talked about Joey King’s Ramona: “The little girl who plays Ramona is excellent. She likes my books and was eager to play the part. I’m very pleased with the cinematic Ramona.”

Mental Floss’s 10 Facts about Ramona

The quirky magazine and website of intelligent and addictive facts celebrated D.E.A.R. with 10 interesting Ramona factoids.

You may not know that Klickitat St. where Ramona, Beezus and Henry Huggins live is an actual street in Cleary’s hometown of Portland Oregon; or that Ramona Quimby was never meant to be a main character. When Cleary was writing Henry Huggins, she realized all of her characters were only children, and added a little sister for Beezus.

Ramona Shows Students that Reading is Fun, Ventura County Star

Joey King, the D.E.A.R. 2010 official spokesperson, visited the students of Campus Canyon Elementary School in Moorpark, CA this week to share the gift of reading.

King was excited to “tell the kids that reading is fabulous,” and offered them a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming movie, in theaters this summer.

Education.com Creates a D.E.A.R. Reading List

Education.com honors Beverly Cleary with a selection of age-appropriate books perfect for D.E.A.R. time. Check out their complete list, and be sure to include some of Beverly Cleary’s classics like the Ramona series.

UPDATE 4/19: Joey King and Julianne Moore dropped everything and read together on the set of a new film they are working on together. Watch their video and see pictures from Joey’s D.E.A.R. day appearances on her Facebook page.

How did you celebrate D.E.A.R. Day? Share your thoughts with Walden.com!