Five-Millionth Book

On March 5, we celebrated a huge milestone: the five-millionth book given away since Page Ahead’s founding in 1990!

We marked the occasion at Rising Star Elementary in Seattle, with a joyful all-school assembly where pre-school students received their February Story Leaders title, Jabari Tries by Gaia Cornwall. Each copy featured a special bookplate identifying it as Page Ahead’s five millionth book and went home with each of the students to help them build excitement and confidence as they prepare for kindergarten.

To make the day even more memorable, every student at Rising Star Elementary was invited to choose a brand-new book to take home and keep forever, ensuring the celebration reached the entire school community.

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson helped kick off the festivities with a special read-aloud of Buffalo Fluffalo, written by Bess Kalb and illustrated by Erin Kraan. A Washington State Children’s Choice Award winner, the story had students laughing along—and they were thrilled to be read to by the Mayor herself.

Student performances followed, bringing the spirit of the day to life. Rising Star’s after-school theater group presented a short play about Page Ahead’s history, helping the audience imagine just how big five million books really is. The school chorus then performed “Goin’ to Bandy Rowe,” arranged by Melissa Roth, while the book Kitty Alone was shown on screen. The song is an old folk song and the children’s book Kitty Alone, adapted by John Feierabend and illustrated by Mina Echevarria is based on the story told in the song.

With big shoes to fill, local author-illustrators Jessixa Bagley and Sanae Ishida led the students in a creative character-building session. Taking audience suggestions, they created a wonderful character using simple shapes and colors! Just as they were wrapping up, a surprise visitor appeared—the Mariner Moose! In honor of the Moose, the authors chose to name their new character “Moose” after the Mariner Moose himself.

The Moose and the school mascot, the Firebird, passed out the five-millionth book to the pre-K students as they sat on stage. It was a joyful afternoon filled with excitement and a love for books and reading. Thank you to everyone who helped us celebrate!