“Reading can take you places that you could never imagine.” – Mary Frances Early

ooks for Keeps was established with a core belief in mind: by creating open, equal access to books, we allow children the opportunity to connect the joy of reading with the thrill of discovery by coauthoring positive experiences they can forever associate with learning.

Since starting as a volunteer-led, grassroots program in 2009, Books for Keeps has distributed more than 1,000,000 books to children, teachers, fellow peer agencies, and other individuals in Georgia through book grants, community-based events, the Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in Clarke County, and its flagship program Stop Summer Slide.

Further, the organization seeks to demonstrate the inherent value of reading and therefore learning by leveraging the provided book access through community engagement activities and in-school programming such as our new Literacy Mentors Program.