One of the things I like most about Vashon is its diversity. Make the same assertion to 10 people about almost anything and you’re likely to get 10 distinct responses. So, I’m going to go out on a limb here and ask for unanimous consent just one time:

Reading is important.

I know, we can argue about degree; it may be more or less important to you than it is to your neighbor. But important it is. If reading comes easily to you, chances are better that you will succeed in school and in life, whatever your field, than if you struggle with the written word.

We all know that. We also know vegetables are good for us, but that doesn’t mean we eat them. Reading faces stiff competition for time early in our lives. The U.S. Department of Education estimates the average kindergarten student has seen more than 5,000 hours of television — more time in front of a TV than it takes to earn a bachelor’s degree.

What happens later in life when the reading habit is not developed early? Here’s what a recent University of Dayton study discovered:

• One-third of high school graduates never read another book for the rest of their lives.

• Forty-two percent of college graduates never read another book after college.

• Eighty percent of U.S. families did not buy or read a book last year.

Even more sobering than those statistics is the fact that it has become commonplace in states and municipalities across America to estimate the number of jail cells needed in the future based on the number of children not reading at grade level by the third grade.

How well will we function in the Global Village in the next generation if those numbers persist, or worsen?

Fortunately, the Seattle area always ranks high nationally in literacy, and our little piece of paradise here on Vashon has a vibrant library and three independent bookstores. We’re doing great, right? Perhaps. But we have our own glaring, local numbers that make me wonder how committed we really are to literacy on Vashon.

A year ago, Vashon College made ours the 14th community in the state to offer the Imagination Library to each local child under the age of 5.

This program has won numerous awards and was begun by Dolly Parton 14 years ago to improve the quality of life in her native county in rural Tennessee. It has since been adopted in every county in that state and about 1,000 communities nationwide.

With a local sponsor — Vashon College here — footing the bill, any local preschooler can get an age-appropriate book in the mail each month at no cost to his or her family.

There is only one requirement (in addition to Island residence): an adult must pause for a few moments to register the child. That’s it. Once registered, the child receives a free book in the mail each month until his or her 5th birthday — when they will have built their own library before kindergarten. How many of those kids do you think will stop reading books after high school or college?

The latest census numbers say there are 500 kids on Vashon under age 5, each eligible to participate —for free — in the Imagination Library. Yet enrollment after one year is stuck at around 150. Why? Maybe because you didn’t know about it. Now you do.

So, let’s celebrate your fresh discovery. The Children’s Book Council has again declared a week in May Children’s Book Week, begun in 1919 with a simple declaration from its founder, Frederic Melcher: “A great nation is a reading nation.”

Now is the perfect time to engage in a little non-violent nation-building. Do you know a preschooler on the Island who would enjoy and benefit from receiving a free book in the mail each month? If so, today is a great day to give the gift of reading to that child.

— Bob Booth lives on Vashon and has enjoyed reading for many years.

Register with Imagination Library

Forms are available at The Little House, Vashon Pharmacy, Books by the Way, Vashon Bookshop, VYFS PlaySpace and Vashon Youth & Family Services.

Or register online by visiting www.dollysimaginationlibrary.com.