Deck the Halls with Books Aplenty

Around campus this week, you may have noticed our Book Giving Trees bedecked with twinkling lights and hundreds of gift tags. On each tag is information about one child’s favorite books, and if you pick up one of the tags, you were the lucky person who got to buy that child a book they would cherish forever. All of the books donated to the Library book drive go to a student in one of our local schools.

I love buying books for the children I find on the tree; I always find a little boy or girl who has the same interests as I do. I’ve given craft books, cook books, historical novels, fantasy books—all books that I would read in a heartbeat. I feel a connection with each child I buy a book for, and I can only imagine that, as she opens up her package and finds Esperanza, Rising, or he pulls off the gift wrap to Coraline, they feel something, too. That they feel excited, loved, and inspired.

And isn’t that what a holiday book drive should be about? A community coming together to care for their children, to give them the gift of imagination, adventure, knowledge, and joy? I certainly think so.

This year, I hope everyone on our campus (and beyond!) is able to feel the sense of unity and connection I feel when giving books to the drive. So here’s how you can help:

• Find one of our Book Giving Trees between November 27 and December 8. We’ll have them set up in Barber Hall, the Science Center, and the Library. Choose a gift tag (or two or three) and buy a new book that the child on the tag might like. Return the unwrapped book and the tag to any of the boxes under the Book Tag Trees. Feel your heart grow three sizes.
• Make a donation directly to the Library. We’ll do the book shopping, and you can still feel a warmth in your chest.
• Join the Library for a bit of gift wrapping. We’ll have close to a thousand books to gift wrap, and any help we can get would be most appreciated. (Gift wrap party details coming soon!)

All book or money donations are due December 8. The Library thanks you for any amount of help you can give during the book drive!

If you want to contribute a book but are out of ideas of what to buy, we have a few suggestions.
For kindergartners and first-graders…

Skippyjon Jones is a kitty boy who knows that, deep inside, he is a Chihuahua. When he dons his cape and mask, Skippyjon can go anywhere and do anything…and be anything he wants! I highly recommend Judy Schachner’s Skippyjon Jones in Mummy Trouble.

For second and third-graders…

This is the perfect time to introduce kids to the genius of Roald Dahl. If you don’t know his name, you’ll recognize his most famous work Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. His book The Twits is just the right length and has just the right amount of mild peril and crusty old people to steal a third-grader’s heart!

For fourth and fifth-graders…

I’m going to throw back to my favorite fantasy series for our fourth and fifth-graders, The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander. The magical realm of Prydain is home to a young pig-keeper named Taran who cares for a very special prophetic pig…and saves the kingdom on a regular basis, of course. These books are heavy on adventure and Welsh folk lore. Start with The Black Cauldron for the best introduction to the world and its odd cast of characters.

For middle-schoolers and high schoolers…
I always think a protagonist the age of the young adult who is going to read the book is the best way to nab their attention. Nonfiction books that feature a strong person their age who is actively changing the world? Bingo! A novel that features characters navigating the same problems they might be having at school or at home? No contest. My top three include I Am Malala (nonfiction), Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell, and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie.