THE BOOK DRIVE BOOK
Everything you need to know about
coordinating a book drive for
Open Books
TABLE OF CONTENTS
3.
4.
5-6.
7.
8.
9-14.
15.
About Open Books
Literacy Landscape
Book Drive Basics
What to Collect/Restrictions
How to get books to us
Promotional Materials
Contact Information
Thank you for supporting literacy in Chicago! Your collected
books make it possible for Open Books to transform thousands
of lives each year through reading, writing, and the SHARED
power of used books.
We’ve tried to include everything you need to organize a book
drive in support of literacy, but if you have any questions, just let
us know!
ABOUT
OPEN BOOKS
Open Books provides literacy experiences for tens of
thousands of readers through inspiring programs and
creative capitalization of books.
Each year, Open Books:
- cultivates the literacy skills of 5,000+ students through our
instructional programs.
- provides readers of all ages with engaging, appropriate and
high-quality books through our book grant programs. Since 2006,
we've distributed hundreds of thousands of books.
- utilizes 500 active volunteers to support our literacy programs, book
operations in our two book stores and online, events, and
community engagement.
- collects hundreds of thousands of used books from individuals,
community groups, and corporations. We use and give away books
in our instructional programs, distribute them through our book
grants, and sell them to support our mission.
FOR EVERY BOOK WE SELL THROUGH OUR BOOK OPERATIONS,
WE DONATE ONE TO A CLASSROOM OR NONPROFIT IN NEED.
THE LITERACY
LANDSCAPE
Reading proficiency by 3rd grade is
the most important predictor of high
school graduation and career success.
That’s why Open Books works with
hundreds of struggling early elementary
students each year to boost reading
skills, fluency, and comprehension.
Creative writing stimulates
imagination, clarifies thinking, and
helps children explore the functions
of writing.
That’s why Open Books serves
thousands of students each year with
opportunities for creative writing, from
poems and memoirs to graphic novels
and fantasy fiction.
Books can spark inspiration and
independence. However, many
individuals, especially children, have
limited access to books. In fact,
studies show that 61% of low-income
households have no children’s books
at home.
That’s why Open Books’ book grant
programs create libraries in schools and
nonprofit centers, support literacy
events in the community, and give
books to students to keep and enjoy
with their families.
BOOK DRIVE BASICS
1) Decide on dates
If your book drive will be held at an office, weekdays might be better;
if it will be at a church, store, or recreational venue, you might collect
more over a weekend.
How long do you want your drive to run? A few hours? A couple
days? One or two weeks? Shorter book drives (i.e., a few weeks or
less) encourage less procrastination; less procrastination means more
books collected by the end of the drive!
2) Pick a place
Books take up space, so you’ll need a location where you can collect
them. Ideally, this will be somewhere inside (to keep books dry) and
easy to find.
If you have access to a big box (wardrobe boxes work well) or barrel
for people to drop their books in, fantastic! If not, consider where you
might be able to use an empty storeroom or other available space.
Keep in mind that you may also need space to store the books before
they are dropped off or picked up.
Let everyone know about your book drive! A few great ways to do so
3) Spread the word are posting flyers, sending emails, using social media, stuffing mailboxes, and any other ways that occur to you. Be creative!
This packet includes customizable templates for flyers and mailbox
stuffers, as well as sample text for email blasts and social media.
4) Do the drive
Collect books! All books (plus CDs and DVDs) in good condition are
welcome.
As the book drive is going on, remember to keep promoting it. Some
groups set collection goals or set up contests to stir up additional
excitement and spur more donations. We’ve included thank-you
coupons to the Open Books store in the West Loop if you’d like to
provide them to donors. Feel free to get creative!
BOOK DRIVE BASICS
CONT.
If you used a large box to collect donated books, consider putting
5) Transfer the books them in smaller containers for transport – standard bankers boxes or
small moving boxes (roughly 16”x12”x12”) are ideal for storing
books!
There are lots of ways to give us your collected books – bring them to
our Pilsen store, drop them in one of our bins in the Chicagoland
area, or request a pickup! See page 8 for an overview of all the available options.
The pickup request form is available at:
www.open-books.org/give/donate-books
6) Tell your story
Share some photos of your book drive and tell us about your group!
We love to promote all the great donors helping Open Books change
the literacy landscape in Chicago and beyond.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenBooksOrg
Twitter:
@openbooks, @openbookstore, @openbookspilsen
Tumblr:
openbooksorg.tumblr.com
WHAT TO COLLECT
Books in good condition
Fiction
Nonfiction
Kids’ books
Cookbooks
Craft books
Comic books and graphic novels
Foreign language books
College textbooks
…etc.!
CDs / DVDs
CDs and DVDs in playable condition and with their
original cases are welcome.
E-Readers
We happily accept tablets, laptops, and e-reading
devices (Kindles, Nooks, etc.).
RESTRICTIONS
We don’t take magazines, VHS tapes, dictionaries,
encyclopedias, or pre-college (K-12) textbooks.
We cannot accept books that are moldy, wet, or seriously damaged, or CDs/DVDs
that are scratched or missing their cases.
HOW TO GET BOOKS
TO US
Securely pack the books in boxes or bags. The ideal box size is no larger than
16”x12’x12” – about the size of a small moving box or a bankers box.
Then you can:
Bring them in
We recommend taking donations to:
Open Books Pilsen
905 W. 19th St.
Chicago, IL 60642
Wed - Sun, 10 am - 4 pm
Any size donation is welcome. While appointments are not necessary, please call ahead (312 243 9776) if you are donating 20
or more boxes at one time. Open Books Pilsen also has a 24-hour
dropslot if you cannot make it during business hours.
Drop them off
Request a pickup
We have several 24-7 collection bins in Chicagoland:
River North
802 W. Superior
Chicago, IL 60642
Drop box at corner of Halsted
and Superior
West Loop
650 W. Couch Place
Chicago, IL 60661
On Desplaines between Randolph
and Lake
Hillside
5979 Butterfield Rd.
Hillside, IL 60162
Drop box in front of StorageMart
Northbrook
2727 Shermer Rd.
Northbrook, IL 60062
Drop box in front of StorageMart
We offer free pickup service in the city of Chicago during
standard business hours on weekdays. You can arrange a
pickup online at www.open-books.org/give/donate-books.
Our pickup schedule fills quickly, so please let us know about
your book drive several weeks in advance so that we can
arrange to pick up your donation at a convenient time.
In general, we do not pick up books in the suburbs. However,
we do make exceptions for large quantities of books. Please
make arrangements by contacting [email protected].
BOOK DRIVE
We’re hosting a book drive to benefit Open Books, an
award-winning literacy nonprofit that provides incredible
experiences for tens of thousands of readers each year.
Join us and donate your gently-used books!
We’ll take: Fiction, Nonfiction, Children’s Books, Cookbooks,
Craft Books, Foreign Language Books, College Textbooks,
Poetry, Plays and more!
DROP OFF
YOUR BOOKS
AT:
WHEN/WHERE:
QUESTIONS? CONTACT:
www.open-books.org
BOOK DRIVE
BOOK DRIVE
We’re hosting a book drive to benefit Open Books, an
award-winning literacy nonprofit that provides incredible
experiences for tens of thousands of readers each year.
We’re hosting a book drive to benefit Open Books, an
award-winning literacy nonprofit that provides incredible
experiences for tens of thousands of readers each year.
Join us and donate your gently-used books!
We’ll take: Fiction, Nonfiction, Children’s Books, Cookbooks,
Craft Books, Foreign Language Books, College Textbooks,
Poetry, Plays and more!
DROP OFF
YOUR BOOKS
AT:
Join us and donate your gently-used books!
We’ll take: Fiction, Nonfiction, Children’s Books, Cookbooks,
Craft Books, Foreign Language Books, College Textbooks,
Poetry, Plays and more!
DROP OFF
YOUR BOOKS
AT:
WHEN/WHERE:
WHEN/WHERE:
QUESTIONS? CONTACT:
www.open-books.org
www.open-books.org
BOOK DRIVE
BOOK DRIVE
We’re hosting a book drive to benefit Open Books, an
award-winning literacy nonprofit that provides incredible
experiences for tens of thousands of readers each year.
We’re hosting a book drive to benefit Open Books, an
award-winning literacy nonprofit that provides incredible
experiences for tens of thousands of readers each year.
Join us and donate your gently-used books!
We’ll take: Fiction, Nonfiction, Children’s Books, Cookbooks,
Craft Books, Foreign Language Books, College Textbooks,
Poetry, Plays and more!
DROP OFF
YOUR BOOKS
AT:
Join us and donate your gently-used books!
We’ll take: Fiction, Nonfiction, Children’s Books, Cookbooks,
Craft Books, Foreign Language Books, College Textbooks,
Poetry, Plays and more!
DROP OFF
YOUR BOOKS
AT:
WHEN/WHERE:
WHEN/WHERE:
QUESTIONS? CONTACT:
www.open-books.org
www.open-books.org
OPEN BOOKS NEEDS
KIDS’ BOOKS
Each year, Open Books gives away over 100,000 books to
students in grades K-12 through their programs. We need your
help so they can continue to provide the most
popular and engaging titles.
Most
tles
ed Ti
t
s
e
u
q
Re
mpy Kid
i
W
a
f
Diary o
erpants
d
n
U
n
i
Capta
iaries
Dork D nes
. Jo
Junie B ody
o
Judy M
umps
Gooseb son
ack
Percy J
Games
Hunger
unner
Maze R
nt
Diverge
e
Big Nat ries
High Se
Bluford
Most Requested Genres
Sports
Star Wars
Minecraft
Pirates
Animals
Monsters
Friendship
Funny books
Scary books for kids
Most R
equ
Autho ested
rs
John G
reen
Rick Ri
ordan
Walter
Dean M
yer
James
Patters s
on’s
Teen S
eries
Please consider donating to our
Book Drive for Open Books.
Tax Donation Receipt
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Thank you for supporting literacy in Chicago and
beyond with your book donation!
Open Books West Loop
651 W. Lake St.
312.475.1355 x100
[email protected]
Mon-Sat 9-7 · Sun 12-6
@openbookstore
Present this coupon at Open Books West Loop and receive $5 off on
a purchase of $10 or more!
(Valid for purchase of used books only).
Thank you for supporting literacy in Chicago and
beyond with your book donation!
Open Books West Loop
651 W. Lake St.
312.475.1355 x100
[email protected]
Mon-Sat 9-7 · Sun 12-6
@openbookstore
Present this coupon at Open Books West Loop and receive $5 off on
a purchase of $10 or more!
(Valid for purchase of used books only).
Thank you for supporting literacy in Chicago and
beyond with your book donation!
Open Books West Loop
651 W. Lake St.
312.475.1355 x100
[email protected]
Mon-Sat 9-7 · Sun 12-6
@openbookstore
Present this coupon at Open Books West Loop and receive $5 off on
a purchase of $10 or more!
(Valid for purchase of used books only).
Thank you for supporting literacy in Chicago and
beyond with your book donation!
Open Books West Loop
651 W. Lake St.
312.475.1355 x100
[email protected]
Mon-Sat 9-7 · Sun 12-6
@openbookstore
Present this coupon at Open Books West Loop and receive $5 off on
a purchase of $10 or more!
(Valid for purchase of used books only).
HOW TO REACH OUT
Email
Hello, readers! We’re delighted to announce a book drive to benefit
Open Books, one of Chicago’s most active literacy nonprofits. All
books we collect will help support literacy experiences for tens of
thousands of readers each year. Almost every kind of book is
welcome—fiction, nonfiction, kids’ books, cookbooks, foreign
languagebooks, textbooks, etc. As long as they’re in good condition,
Open Books will put them to good use, and all donations are
tax-deductible.
Our book drive will run from (date) to (date), and book collection
will take place at (location). To participate, just bring your books to
us...we’ll handle the rest! Thanks for helping us make a difference
for literacy in our city. If you have any questions, just let us know.
Facebook
Share your love of reading and writing and bring your old books
(and CDs and DVDs) to our book drive at ____ on ____. All
books will be donated to Open Books, which runs literacy
programs throughout Chicago.
Cleaning house? Bring your old books to our book drive at ____
on ____ and help us support literacy in Chicago. Books will be
donated to Open Books, which runs literacy programs throughout
the city.
Got books? Donate your used books to support literacy in Chicago.
We're accepting books at ____ on ____ for Open Books.
Twitter
Book drive alert: donate your used books to support literacy
@openbooks! Accepting all kinds, now through MM/DD/YYYY.
DM me for details!
CONTACT
INFORMATION
Questions? Let us know!
General donation questions:
[email protected]
312.243.9776
Questions about hosting a book drive:
[email protected]
Call us:
312.475.1355 x170
www.open-books.org/give/donate-books