Bilingual babies have not been forgotten in the Government's National Reading Initiative, whereby every child born this year is to receive a free bag of books.
In conjunction with Comhluadar, a support organisation for families rearing their children through Irish, or bilingually, the National Reading Initiative has produced a special package as Gaeilge.
Today details of one such package are being announced by the Minister of State for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, Mr Eamon O Cuiv, in Galway City Library. Participants are Comhluadar and the Galway County Library Service.
It is one of the initiative's many events in Galway this week and throughout the month in Co Mayo. "The Magic of Books" is the title of a literature festival from today until Friday in Galway City Library involving local authors such as Moya Roddy and Willie Costelloe and others such as Maeve Kelly, Lyn Andrews and Joseph O'Connor. All events are free, beginning with a talk this afternoon by Padraig O Ciobhain, an Irish-language author from Co Kerry.
"Reach Out and Read" is the title of a festival in Co Mayo which began last month and continues in November. Its aim is to foster a culture of reading in Co Mayo at a time when there is so much emphasis on the so-called "information age".
On Saturday the poet Paul Durcan will open a "virtual writer in residence" in Ballinrobe library. This will allow students in primary and post-primary schools to submit poems by e-mail to a writer in residence for collation and review. A selection will then be published on CD-ROM, with video clips of the young writers reading from their work.
Adrian Frazier will lead a literary walk on Sunday around the grounds of Moorehall at 2 p.m. and will speak at 3 p.m. in Carnacon Community Centre on George Moore's life and work.
Other events include lectures for teachers, including "Stress and the teacher" and "Self-worth and children's education", by Dr Tony Humphreys on Thursday, November 16th, in the Mayo Education Centre, Chapel Street, Castlebar, and Castlebar library respectively. On Monday, November 20th, there is an introduction to film in the classroom by Sean Conlan at the Mayo Education Centre. On November 23rd Ann O'Sullivan will facilitate a session in Castlebar library on helping children to read from infancy.
For further information, contact the Mayo Education Centre at (094) 26499 or the Mayo County Library in Castlebar at (094) 24444.
In Galway a new website will be introduced tomorrow for people living in or visiting the city.
It will give information on business and leisure, the backers say, and will be updated several times daily.