Dear Dot: Where Do I Donate Gently Used Books?

Dear Dot,

I have been looking for a way to recycle gently used books for over a year. Libraries no longer accept books and I can’t find any place to donate them. If you have any suggestions, I would appreciate it

Thank you.

–Connie K., Brooklyn, NY

Dear Connie,

My good friend Sarah spends her days helping people declutter. She arrives at their home, her clients often embarrassed and overwhelmed by the sheer volume of their stuff, and gets to work strategizing, sorting, and culling.

Consequently, she frequently leaves these clients’ homes with a van full of their no-longer wanted items, including books. What Sarah does next is consult the Little Free Library app, map those in her city, and set aside a few hours, with one of her daughters riding shotgun, to restock these neighborhood treasures with her clients’ discarded books. What could be a chore, she says, feels like a privilege — getting books into the hands of new readers. 

If you’d prefer one-stop dropping, our Bluedot Guide to Getting Rid of (Almost) Anything notes that you have a few options, including prison libraries, Goodwill, and Salvation Army. DonateNYC has a handy tool that will show you exactly where you can donate items in the city, including books. 

Rebecca Cohen, Executive Director and Cofounder of the Brooklyn Book Bodega would love to get her hands on any gently used children’s books you might have. What she (and her team) will do with those books is pretty incredible. Let’s let her explain: “The mission of Brooklyn Book Bodega is to increase the number of 100+ book homes for kids aged 0–18 in NYC. Brooklyn Book Bodega provides access to and ownership of books, builds community, and creates a passion for learning through free events and literacy-based community programming.” This is important, she says, because “kids who grow up in homes with books have better life outcomes,” and yet too many families don’t have the resources to provide books to their children. Brooklyn Book Bodega works with community members and organizations to host book distributions and help kids and families develop their home libraries. “So far in 2022,” Cohen says, “we have helped 33,500 New Yorkers add to or start their home libraries by giving away 106,000 free books.” The organization does it best to match specific requests.

I don’t know about you, Connie, but a lovely song plays in my heart when I imagine my children’s much-loved Scaredy Squirrels finding new homes where they can continue to delight young readers. 

For those who have more than 50 children’s books to donate, please contact Brooklyn Book Bodega to arrange a drop off time at its storage site. Cohen asks that you sort books by category (picture books, board books, chapter books, and so on) and place them in bankers’ boxes. Label each box with the appropriate category. 

For smaller donations, you can drop books at either of these sites:

Brooklyn Navy Yard, 141 Flushing Avenue, Brooklyn, NY; drop off any time during open lobby hours — bin located next to the security desk in Building 77.

Old Stone House, 336 3rd St, Brooklyn, NY; Friday–Sunday,  noon to 3 p.m. 

Literarily,

Dot

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