Thursday, January 15 saw a gathering of children’s book and educational professionals come together to learn about Worthwhile Books, an imprint of IDW Publishing designed to produce quality books for children combining elements of picture books and graphic novels.

The party, held at the Puck Fair Bar in downtown New York City, boasted such attendees as Barbara Stripling, the head of NYC School Libraries, and Leonard Marcus, children’s book reviewer for Parents magazine. Attendees were treated to lunch, followed by an address from Rob Kurtz, the publisher of Worthwhile Books and author of forthcoming Seamus McManus, which appropriately takes place at Ireland’s legendary Puck Fair. Kurtz profiled some of Worthwhile’s bestselling titles and upcoming projects, and shared his passion for children’s book publishing, which was met with enthusiasm by like-minded attendees. Projects to watch for include an upcoming Robot Galaxy easy reader graphic novel series, as well as a sequel to the best-selling Michael Recycle.

IDW, known for such graphic novels as the Transformers series, 30 Days of Night, 24, Star Trek and many others, announced plans to expand its efforts with the launch of Worthwhile Books in January 2008.  Since then, they have introduced the U.S. to a variety of titles from U.K. children’s publisher Meadowside Books including the environmentally conscious Michael Recycle by Ellie Bethel and William’s Dinosaur by Alan Baker. Worthwhile also publishes books from Blue Dream Studios, such as Hyperactive and Ed’s Terrestrials by Scott Christian Sava.

For more about Worthwhile Books, please visit the official website.