Books -- they're what's for lunch.

Shel Silverstein, Amelia Bedelia and Tomie dePaolo's bluebonnets were on the menu in Farrer Elementary School's cafetorium Wednesday for the kickoff of Utah County's First Books program. About 20 students went home Wednesday with books, and the rest will get a book on the last day of school, all to work toward First Books' mission.

"That's to give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first book," chairman Stuart Collier told the 200 or so elementary students.

The Utah County chapter of the national nonprofit organization started in October, and the last several months have been spent raising money and interest and getting books donated. About 4,000 books have been donated so far, he said, as well as about $500 to buy books to give to children.

Collier, who is the director of Kids on the Move in Orem, started the local chapter and has been heading it since its inception, said United Way of Utah County Volunteer Coordinator Brittney Smith.

"He brought the idea to United Way, and we liked it," she said.

Wednesday was the first chance to hand out books, and all involved did the honors with excitement on their faces. One child from each class was selected to receive a book, and most went up to the stage with a shy smile to pick a book, aided by teacher Kristin Wilson.

"I was shocked," said sixth-grader Linda Pretet; her name was called and the almost-elementary school graduate picked "The Phantom Tollbooth" by Norton Juster. "It sounds interesting."

The necessity of children owning books comes from the numbers, Collier said. He cited two statistics; 80 percent of low-income child care centers don't have age-appropriate books, and 61 percent of low-income families have no books for children in their homes. Reading scores are closely correlated to the number of books in a home, he said, and they wanted to help get children started on their own book collections.

One of the books on the table to be handed out was "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!" Most of the younger children were familiar with the story, but all of them learned it when storyteller Glenn Gilliam read it to them.

"Did you like that storyfi" he asked when he was finished, after dozens of children helped him read it by shouting "No!" every time the pigeon asked to drive the bus. They responded in the affirmative to that question.

He also told a sing-along story about an old goat on the railroad tracks and a peanut and avocado on the tracks when the No. 10 train rounded the bend. When the children laughed, he insisted it was accurate.

"You've never seen a peanut sit on a railroad trackfi" he asked. "How do you think they make peanut butterfi"

At the end of the assembly, the students returned to their classrooms, a few holding their new books and a few others holding Barnes and Noble gift cards. It was a triumphant moment for Smith and the members of the advisory board, which includes the superintendents of the Provo, Nebo and Alpine school districts.

Two other schools in Utah County will also receive books; Smith said the schools and other organizations can apply for a grant, and any school that applies for a grant receives one. The rest of the book distribution probably won't be as flashy as this one, but as resources become available they'll be giving the books away.

"We just plan to continue to distribute books," she said.

Programs that received First Books grants

The Family Center of Utah Valley

Farrer Elementary School

Franklin Elementary School

Genola Migrant Head Start

Kids on the Move

Provo Early Education Program

Welcome Baby

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page B12.