Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a global book-gifting program providing free books to children from birth to age five. United Way Australia (UWA) is a social impact organisation working with communities, partners and donors to improve lives and create lasting change. It is also the only licensed organisation delivering the Imagination Library program in Australia.

As part of UWA’s work translating a substantial new body of research into accessible communications, I worked alongside my colleague Erin O’Dwyer from Good Prose Studios to turn complex findings on shared book reading, the home literacy environment and children’s development into a clear and compelling story — one that could be understood by people far beyond the research community.

Working across research findings, academic papers, economic modelling and qualitative family stories, I helped to shape the overarching narrative and develop accessible language for a range of audiences. This included simplifying technical concepts without losing their meaning, identifying the findings that mattered most and connecting the evidence to the human stories behind it.

The result is a body of repurposable content and communications designed to make the research not only understandable, but meaningful. It shows why shared reading matters, what the evidence tells us about the Imagination Library, and why investment in early literacy matters for children, families and communities.

Shared reading from birth is a simple activity with powerful developmental impact.

Research translation · Narrative strategy · Evidence-led storytelling · Content development