Cheerios(R) Serves Up Six Million Children’s Books Inside Boxes this Fall; Que Bueno! All Five Books Are Specially Printed in English and Spanish

General Mills (NYSE: GIS) – Bedtime stories are a tradition for many families, but this fall families are invited to also START their day with a great book. Beginning in October 2009, Cheerios® is again bringing books to the breakfast table, by providing six million children’s books free inside Cheerios boxes. The books, for children ages 3 to 8 years old, include a new book in the popular “Trucktown” series, available only inside Cheerios boxes. And all five books have been specially printed in both English and Spanish.

"Parents and caregivers play an important role in nurturing children's love of
reading, by reading with their child every day," said Jeff Hingher, Cheerios
marketing manager.  "We hope this simple action of putting great books inside
Cheerios boxes can make it easier for families to enjoy a book together, and
help set the foundation for more children to grow up as readers."  

Cheerios is also making a financial donation to First Book, an award-winning
children's nonprofit organization that gets new books to children from
low-income families.  "For many kids, just having a book to read is the
biggest obstacle to learning," said Kyle Zimmer, president of First Book.
"Cheerios' support means we can deliver even more books to kids, many of whom
don't have a single book to call their own."  This is the eighth year of the
Cheerios Spoonfuls of Stories program, and over the past eight years, Cheerios
has distributed more than 40 million books inside Cheerios boxes - and given
$3.2 million to First Book.  The program is part of an ongoing commitment to
helping parents provide their children with a healthy, nutritional and
educational foundation.  

Cheerios Spoonfuls of Stories kicks off during Give a Child a Book Week,
October 12 - 19.  With the help of Cheerios' financial support, First Book
will give a year's worth of books to every child participating in 50 selected
reading programs, one in each state across the country.

This year's book offerings from Cheerios - all by Simon & Schuster Children's
Publishing - are:

Junkyard Fort, by Jon Scieszka, and illustrated by David Shannon, Loren Long
and Dave Gordon.  A new book in the popular "Trucktown" series, available
exclusively inside Cheerios boxes.  Scieszka is the United States' first
National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. 

Tea for Ruby, by The Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, and illustrated by Robin
Preiss Glasser. 

Sleepyhead, by Karma Wilson and illustrated by John Segal.  

Ballyhoo Bay, by Judy Sierra and illustrated by Derek Anderson.  

What's Under the Bed?, written and illustrated by Joe Fenton.  

Families can see which book is inside through a special cut-out window on the
front of the box, so they can select the specific book they want, or collect
all five.  

"Encouraging kids to read is about making books available to them, and
providing a variety of storylines, characters, illustration styles, and
reading levels," said Scieszka.  "From my perspective as an author, a teacher,
a dad, and as the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, what
Cheerios is doing through this Spoonfuls of Stories program is exactly and
spectacularly right.  This is how you make it both fun and easy for families
to feed their child's love of books." 

Information is online at www.spoonfulsofstories.com.  

ABOUT CHEERIOS
Cheerios, America's No. 1 cereal, debuted in 1941 as Cheerioats.  The nation's
first ready-to-eat oat cereal has since become one of the most trusted and
recognized brands in America.  In fact, one of every 10 boxes of cereal sold
in America is a box of Cheerios.  General Mills' popular franchise includes
Cheerios, Honey Nut Cheerios, Frosted Cheerios, Fruity Cheerios, Apple
Cinnamon Cheerios, MultiGrain Cheerios, Berry Burst Cheerios, Yogurt Burst
Cheerios, Banana Nut Cheerios and Cheerios Crunch.  For more information, go
to www.cheerios.com.  

ABOUT FIRST BOOK
First Book provides new books to children in need addressing one of the most
important factors affecting literacy - access to books. An innovative leader
in social enterprise, First Book has distributed more than 60 million free and
low cost books in thousands of communities. First Book now has offices in the
U.S. and Canada. For more information about the nonprofit First Book please
visit www.firstbook.org or call 866-393-1222. 

ABOUT SIMON & SCHUSTER
Simon & Schuster, a part of the CBS Corporation, is a global leader in the
field of general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in
fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed,
electronic, and audio formats. Its divisions include Simon & Schuster Adult
Publishing, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, Simon & Schuster Audio,
Simon & Schuster Digital, and international companies in Australia, Canada,
and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit our website at
www.simonandschuster.com. 

ABOUT THE NATIONAL AMBASSADOR FOR YOUNG PEOPLE'S LITERATURE
The position of National Ambassador for Young People's Literature was created
by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress and the Children's Book
Council to raise national awareness of the importance of children's books as
they relate to literacy, education, and the development and betterment of
children's lives. Cheerios is a founding sponsor of the National Ambassador
for Young People's Literature.  Appointed for a two-year term, Jon Scieszka is
focusing attention on the need to reach out to reluctant readers.  Additional
information at www.childrensbookambassador.com/.  The National Ambassador
program is administered by Every Child a Reader, Inc.

Cheerios, Honey Nut Cheerios, Frosted Cheerios, MultiGrain Cheerios, Apple
Cinnamon Cheerios, Berry Burst Cheerios, Yogurt Burst Cheerios, Fruity
Cheerios, Cheerios Crunch, Banana Nut Cheerios and Spoonfuls of Stories are
trademarks of General Mills.

SOURCE  Cheerios

Kristen Goldberg, +1-763-293-1562, or Joyce Johannson, +1-612-927-4543, both
for Cheerios; or Joan Sahlgren, +1-202-639-0150, for First Book

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