Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing announced this week the launch of Little Green Books, a new line of eco-friendly children's storybooks aimed at parents and children looking to learn more about the environment.

The books will debut in stores in fall 2008 with four titles, including two cloth books - Little Monkey and Little Panda, and two storybooks - I Can Save the Earth!: One Little Monster Learns to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and The Polar Bear's Home: A Story About Global Warming.

The theme of Little Green Books will focus on improving the environment and preserving habitats, aiming to get little ones and their parents excited about going green, including recycling, replanting and creating an awareness of endangered animals and much more. The books will also include tips for kids on what they can do to become more green. In addition to the themes of each story, the manufacturing of these books will be environmentally-friendly: Each book in the series will be made out of recycled materials and printed with soy ink.

"With environmental issues taking center-stage, we felt that launching a line of books using environmentally friendly materials and themes would be an appropriate contribution towards making Simon & Schuster an environmentally responsible publishing house, and allow parents to introduce young children to some of the issues surrounding the environment and what they can do to help preserve it," said Valerie Garfield, Vice President, Publisher for Novelty and Licensed Publishing. "Our slogan for this line is 'Green Books for Green Readers'."

Promotional efforts for the line will also be environmentally friendly, with marketing materials either available in downloadable formats to reduce paper waste, or printed on recycled stock with soy-based inks. Eco-friendly giveaways include a colorful, seed-paper flower bookmark that children can plant directly into the soil. The paper-saving online campaign includes a webpage devoted to the program at SimonSayskids.com, housing downloadable activities, screensavers and green tips for kids, as well as information on the books.