Start Date: Apr 30, 2022
End Date: Apr 30, 2022
From: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Children’s Book Festival Set to Give Away Thousands of NEW Free Books

Kids of all ages will be able to select books of their own choosing to take home free of charge at this weekend’s Día de los Niños, Día de los Libros event at Memorial Park. The event has been giving free books away to area children since 1997 but this will be the first year the event have been held at Memorial Park. The event is free to enter and will take place from 10AM to 4 PM this Saturday, April 30, 2022 at Memorial Park.

Besides free books, children will be able to take part in a large variety of activities including jumping balloons, a football camp, live entertainment on stage, free swimming for kids at the Memorial Park pool from 11 AM to 1 PM, storytelling tent, and more than 40 other activity booths sponsored by area agencies. There will also be food trucks selling El Paso style fare such as tacos, gorditas, hamburgers, aguas, paletas and much more.

The event is organized by the El Paso Public Library and Parks and Recreation and began as an effort to keep kids engaged in reading and healthy activities Studies show that children who read and comprehend well, do better in school and in life. Children who pick out their own books are more likely to read and use the books they choose.

It was El Paso born author and educator, Pat Mora, who first proposed the idea of celebrating Children and books much like they do in Latin-American countries. She wrote an open letter to teachers and librarians across the country asking them to join in the celebrations. Since then, thousands of communities across the country have hosted Día celebrations intent on honoring children and reading.