Emily's Virtual Book Drive

Overview

Since 1992, First Book has distributed over 46 million new books to children in need. Studies reveal that the critical factor determining whether a child becomes a reader is access to reading materials--specifically, the presence of books at home. Yet in low-income neighborhoods, there is only one book for every 300 children, and 80% of preschool and after-school programs serving this population have no age-appropriate books at all.

Mission

To give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books.

Programs

In the U.S., First Book reaches existing preschool and after-school programs through an innovative, powerfully designed, three-part network:

Local Advisory Boards – First Book’s central, community-based model that brings together diverse local leaders to mobilize communities and supply existing programs with new books for the children they serve.

First Book National Book Bank – the first-ever online centralized system that enables publishers to donate large quantities of new books to the nonprofit sector for distribution to children from low-income families.

First Book Marketplace – a web-based venture that offers high quality, award-winning books to community programs serving disadvantaged children at 50-85% below retail prices.