Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library {Check it Out!}

My boys have both been fortunate enough to be able to benefit from Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library when it became available in our area a little less than a year ago. Our local United Way sponsors this wonderful program which gives children from birth a new book every MONTH until their 5th birthday for free. That adds up to a lot of books. You can start at any time as long as your child or grandchild resides in the sponsored area and is under the age of five. It is open to every single child, regardless of need. There are no income requirements!
Background (from website): In 1996, Dolly Parton launched an exciting new effort to benefit the children of her home county in east Tennessee. Dolly wanted to foster a love of reading among her county’s preschool children and their families. She wanted children to be excited about books and to feel the magic that books can create. Moreover, she could insure that every child would have books, regardless of their family’s income.

So she decided to mail a brand new, age appropriate book each month to every child under 5 in Sevier County. With the arrival of every child’s first book, the classic The Little Engine That Could ™, every child could now experience the joy of finding their very own book in their mail box. These moments continue each month until the child turns 5—and in their very last month in the program they receive Look Out Kindergarten Here I Come.

This morning I was looking at all the wonderful books that my boys have had a chance to read because of this program. Except for the starter book that every child receives (The Little Engine that Could) I hadn’t heard of any of them. Many have become favorites in our house like the two shown below. There are different age groups with appropriate reading for each and new books are selected each year. Even if you have more the one child who participates in the program you won’t get duplicates unless you have twins. The arrive at different times of the month so it is so much fun to find a brand new book in our mailbox.

Gobble-Gobble Crash, A Barnyard Counting Bash

Kitty Up!