Donate Books!

At the end of the school year, The Wonder of Reading gives each student reading with a volunteer a gift bag that includes at least three brand new books.  These books are often the very first books owned by our students.  We rely on donors like you to help us collect these special gifts.  If you would like to donate books, here are some suggestions and guidelines that might be helpful.

 SUGGESTIONS & GUIDELINES

•Only brand new*** books are given to our students.  Most of our students are disadvantaged, and we want to make sure that at least one time a year they can count on getting something new that is just for them.

•Books donated to The Wonder of Reading are not placed into school libraries since library books must meet a variety of specific requirements for each school district.  But that does not mean that your donated books will not get into the hands of a needy child.  Your donation will be the beginning of a child’s home library—a book that will be read over and over again!

•We are seeking books that are appropriate for kindergarteners to 5th grade readers.  We take both hardback and paperback books.

•We ask that you not submit books that are religious or holiday themed since we serve children from a variety of cultures, religions, and ethnicities.

•We ask that you not submit books that deal with violence, drugs, or other topics that might be unsuitable for young readers.

•If you are purchasing books to donate, please pick Newbery Award winners, Caldecott Award Winners, classics, or books that you loved as a child.  The Wonder of Reading strives to give our children excellent literature in order to get them excited about reading.

***If you have gently used books, we can help you find a good home for them too.  The Wonder of Reading will provide contact information for our schools that are near you, so that you may find out if they are accepting donations.  (Please check your gently used books before donating them.  We often receive books that have missing pages, scribbles on the pictures, name of the former owner on the inside front cover, or are geared towards older students, etc.  We are unable to use these books.)

Hold A Bookdrive!

If you would like to hold a book drive, please consider the suggestions and guidelines outlined above.

There are a variety of groups that might be interested in working with you to hold a book drive.  Consider approaching your child’s school or a local school in the community.  Recently, Franklin Elementary School in Santa Monica collected 1,328 new books to donate to The Wonder of Reading students!  Also consider approaching your church or synagogue, local civic organizations, the Chamber of Commerce, and local businesses.  Again, please stress to your donors when collecting the books that they must be new.  We would appreciate it if you would check the books prior to delivery.

Thank you so much for your interest in becoming a book donor for The Wonder of Reading.  Please let us know if you have any questions or if we can help in any way!  Send an e-mail to info@wonderofreading.org or call us at (323) 934-5540.