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Making books a Berkeley birthright.
 

Making books a birthright in our community.

Access to an excellent home library from before Kindergarten is invaluable to every child’s academic readiness.

That’s why we’re a Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library affiliate. We register any Berkeley child for home delivery of carefully-curated books mailed once a month from birth to age five.

Books from birth at home are the best tools in the best place at the best time to nurture roots of lifelong literacy. Our mission is to make books a birthright for all children, starting with Berkeley and expanding to our surrounding communities.

 
 

Will you be our Valentine? Shop at smile.amazon.com/ch/46-1358633 and AmazonSmile donates to The Berkeley Baby Book Project.

 
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Our Story

 

Research from around the world clearly shows that early literacy affects children's cognitive development, academic success, and even their life expectancy. Improving literacy doesn't have to be complex. The first step is getting books into children's hands. All children. That's why we founded The Berkeley Baby Book Project.

Continue Reading →

 
 
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Our Programs

 

Imagination Library

Monthly Book delivery program

One book delivered by mail addressed to your child every month from birth to age five, at no cost: Imagination Library books are a gift to the child. Available to any child under age 5 living in Berkeley, CA.

 
 

Baby Book Club

Family Engagement

Meet and play with other book-loving children from Berkeley. Enjoy a wide variety of hands-on activities, story reading, take-home books, and snacks (thanks, Clif Bar!).

 
 
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Reflecting Readers

Community Representation

Seeing yourself in the books you read is powerful, and necessary. We work with local organizations to provide books reflecting families they serve who are under-represented in children’s publishing.

 
“We love discovering new authors and books. Getting a book in the mail is a very exciting treat for my toddler. We look forward to the monthly delivery and love that our friends are all reading the same book. It’s like a toddler book club!”
— Parent of One of Our Registrants
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Our Impact

It's tempting to sign up as many children as we can as quickly as we can. But we plan to help Berkeley's children build great personal libraries for generations. In order to succeed sustainably, we have to start small and expand with success. The community response so far has been outstandingly positive, and we're excited for the road ahead.

Here's what we've accomplished to date:

 

200+

Personal Libraries Created

Since the creation of The BBBP, over 200 children have aged out of the Imagination Library program.

 
 
 
 

500+

Currently receiving monthly books

Our numbers are growing steadily by word of mouth, and our goal is to serve the entire community.

 
 
 
 

10,000+

Books Delivered

Since we began in  2015, we’ve delivered over 10,000 books directly into the hands of children.

 
 

Number of Books Delivered to Berkeley Children

 
 
 

Get Involved

There are plenty of ways to help get books in the hands of Berkeley's children. If you're a parent, register your child for Imagination Library or join us for a Baby Book Club. If you've got skills you're willing to lend, volunteer with us. If you'd like to support our mission, make a donation or see how else you can help us grow.

 

register your child for Imagination Library

One hand-selected book, delivered to any child age 0–4 living in Berkeley. All you have to do is sign up. We take care of the rest.

Sign up for the baby book club

Meet and engage with other book-loving parents and children from Berkeley. Enjoy complementary refreshments and hands-on activities led by our team of volunteers.

volunteer

Help us improve The BBBP by providing much-needed assistance with book mailing, Baby Book Club activities, event photography and more.

 
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