Join Us in Celebrating and Supporting our 2019 Shelf Help Partner Schools

Happy September! The Boston Book Festival’s annual Shelf Help program, which brings brand-new donated books to Boston-area schools, is in full swing—but, this year there’s something new. Through a competitive application process, we’ve chosen not one but two schools for our program: Orchard Gardens Pilot School in Roxbury for grades K–8 and TechBoston Academy in Dorchester for grades 6–12. As in years past, we’re teaming up with the nonprofit organization Wondermore to bring BBF presenters (Charlotte Nicole Davis and another author TBD) for school visits before BBF’s annual festival on October 19th and 20th. You can learn more about Orchard Gardens Pilot School here and about TechBoston Academy here.

Participating publishers have started to fill the shelves but there’s still a long way to go, and that’s where you come in! We’re asking friends and fans of the BBF to join us in donating brand-new books and funds to stock library shelves at Orchard Gardens and TechBoston. Focusing primarily on a diverse collection of award-winning books, these schools’ online wish lists will make thousands of young readers very happy.

Here are some ways you can get involved:

  • Peruse each school’s wish list online (for Orchard Garden’s go HERE and for TechBoston’s go HERE). Then, donate a book directly to the school library (click the blue “Donate Now” button and then choose “Donate books”).
  • Contribute funds directly to the Shelf Help project by visiting each school’s donations page and selecting a dollar amount. Or, stop by the merchandise booth at BBF 2019 on October 19th (in Copley Square) and October 20th (in Roxbury) and donate on-site!
  • Spread the word about Orchard Garden’s library, TechBoston’s library, and Shelf Help by sharing this post on social media, using the hashtag #ShelfHelp and tagging @bostonbookfest. Please tag Orchard Gardens—@BPSOGPSK8—and TechBoston—@TBAboston—as well!

Books bring hope to young readers—so we’d like to thank YOU for bringing much-needed hope to the youth of Boston!

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