Give Books
Children's Book Project
The gift of inclusive books in new or like-new condition makes children who need books feel valued and empowered. We welcome donations of new and like-new books for children ages 0-18 that reflect the needs of the communities we serve, especially:
- books in Spanish (all ages)
- books featuring characters of color (all ages)
- board books
- beginning readers
- early chapter books
- graphic novels
Please weed out and do NOT donate books and other items we can’t accept, as described below — these take up too much of our limited time to process, and just bum out our hardworking team:
- dirty, dusty, wet, chewed, ripped, bent, folded, highlighted, doodled upon, written in, moldering, or mildewed books
- books missing covers, pages, or parts
- vintage books
- obsolete books
- nonfiction over ten years old
- library discards
- textbooks and curriculum materials
- encyclopedias
- audio cassettes, VHS tapes, and DVDs
- religious books
As you gather children’s books for donation, please keep in mind that if a book is aged, dated, broken, dirty, stored for years, or otherwise unappealing to children today, we can’t offer it on our shelves but must still process it by hand. When in doubt, ask yourself, “Would I give this book to my loved one as a gift?” When you recycle unusable books at home and donate those we don’t accept to another charity, you help us devote our limited resources to giving even more beautiful books to children who need them!
Book Bank Curbside Donation
Our Book Bank runs on a shoestring with a team of part-time staff and volunteers. Your consideration of our limited resources, and mindful donation of only those books we accept, supports our mission and helps us more efficiently serve our clients. Review the guidelines above about the kinds of children’s books we accept, and then click the yellow button to schedule an appointment to drop off your donation at our Book Bank in San Francisco. We do not accept delivery from third-parties such as Lugg. Your donation is tax deductible as allowed by law; donation receipt provided at drop off.
BOOK BANK
2166 Palou Avenue, San Francisco
Please note our address in the Bayview, conveniently located near Highways 101 and 280— and just a block away from SCRAP!
Online Wishlists
Ship new books directly from our curated wishlists at amazon.com or at bookshop.org to support independent booksellers at the same time!
Book Drops
Drop off your donation of 20 or fewer new or like-new children’s books that meet our guidelines at any of our Book Drop locations. Donation receipts not provided via Book Drops.
Donations of more than 20 books must be made directly at our Book Bank, where a donation receipt will be provided and we’ll be happy to show you around. Please do not inconvenience our Book Drop hosts with large donations, or they may give us the boot!
SAN FRANCISCO
Books Inc Laurel Village 3515 California Street
Books Inc Marina 2251 Chestnut Street
PENINSULA
Bagel Street Cafe 254 Redwood Shores Parkway, Redwood City
EAST BAY
Tay Tah Cafe 1182 Solano Ave, Albany
MARIN
Toy Crazy 2211 Larkspur Landing Circle, Larkspur
Mail/Ship
You may ship up to 4 banker-size boxes of books to our mailing address:
Children’s Book Project
3433 21st Street
San Francisco CA 94110
To make special arrangements for larger shipments, please contact office@childrensbookproject.org.