A Message From Our FounderI am a high school English teacher, and I believe that all children in America should have their own personal library. Kids who grow up with books come to my classroom reading at or beyond grade level. Kids who lack books struggle with fundamentals. I see it first-hand every day.
Why do some kids grow up with books everywhere, and other kids own few or none? There are lots of reasons, but there is one great solution: relentlessly distribute book-wealth into book deserts. Over the last few years, my fellow teachers in Philadelphia and New Jersey have given to their students over 400,000 gently used books culled from BookSmiles. We also rely on social workers and all types of literacy warriors to take as many books as they can distribute. Most books flowing into the BookSmiles Book Bank come from kids doing book drives, as well as families clearing off the shelves before the books get too yellow and dated. And generous people have augmented what we provide by donating funds for Spanish/bilingual books and books featuring diverse characters, as well as graphic novels. Thank you for supporting our mission, and working to end book deserts in the Delaware Valley. Larry Abrams Founder and High School English Teacher |
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