Press Release issued: 29 July 2011.
Children's Laureate Julia Donaldson, author of the classic tale 'The Gruffalo', will personally narrate one of her latest stories onto audio-disc for young blind and partially sighted fans today.
Donaldson, who lives in Glasgow, will record 'Freddie and the Fairy' for the Royal National Institute of Blind People Scotland at the charity's transcription studio in Partick.
It will join over 18,000 titles in the RNIB 'talking books' library, the largest unabridged audio-collection in Europe.
Donaldson, who was awarded an MBE in May, will be shown some of the vital work carried out by RNIB Scotland transcription centre this morning before voicing 'Freddie and the Fairy' onto audio in the charity's talking book studios.
Julia Donaldson said: "It's so important that books and stories are available to blind and partially sighted children. I'm really looking forward to recording 'Freddie and the Fairy', and also to reading it at a special RNIB event at the Edinburgh Book Festival.
"I chose that story because it has a deafness theme - the fairy mishears Freddie's wishes until he learns to speak clearly - as I'm also very interested in story-telling for and about deaf children."
Pam Chater, RNIB Scotland's transcription service manager, said: "Usually we employ professional actors to narrate our books but it's always wonderful to have an author read her own work. Julia has been very supportive of our drive to make literature accessible to people with sight loss and it will be great to have this simple but beguiling story to add to our collection."
At next month's Edinburgh International Book Festival, Donaldson will be guest of honour at a special RNIB Scotland event to highlight the fact that only around five per cent of books published in the UK ever make it into any alternative format.
"That's a needlessly small proportion given the potential of today's new technology," said Chater. "We'd like to see a lot more books made available in accessible formats to allow people with sight loss to take part in something as everyday as a shared enjoyment of reading. Whether literature is read as words on a page, by using braille, or heard on audio, the skill and feeling conveyed in the writer's art can still be enjoyed by all."
The Book Festival event will also discuss how illustrations - a vital part of literature for young children - can be made accessible using 'tactile imagery', pictures made of shapes of different textures.
Since the RNIB talking book service began in 1935, it has issued over 75 million audio books to people with sight problems in the UK. Over 8,000 RNIB talking books are issued every day, and over two million every year.
"But it takes five days on average to record a RNIB talking book and costs between £1,000 and £2,500," added Chater. "So we do very much rely on the support of the public to help us continue to carry out this important work."