head-in-bookWhen my daughter makes a holiday or birthday list a bookstore gift card and/or a list of books she wants is always on it. Methinks she takes after her mother just a little. If you love books, you love to get books. Since tomorrow is Cyber Monday, it’s a great time to find and buy books to give to others this season.

In honor of that, I plan to donate part of the proceeds from the sales on amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com from my YA fantasy novel, The Travelers, to charity. But, what charity, you ask? Excellent question. Deciding on that was difficult.

I knew I wanted it to be a charity related to reading and books. There are many great ones out there.I finally decided on these two charities. OK, to be fair, I didn’t decide, my daughter said these were the ones.

Between now and December 31, part of the proceeds from The Travelers will go to the following charities.

United Through Reading – United Through Reading is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) public benefit organization dedicated to uniting U.S. military families who face physical separation by facilitating the bonding experience of reading aloud together.

Milk and Bookies –  Milk and Bookies a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in the United States. The organization’s stated mission is two-fold: 1) providing opportunities for children to experience giving back to their community and 2) literacy promotion in underserved areas of the population.

Other reading charities if you’re interested.

During my search, I also discovered many more book charities worth learning about. Here’s a small list of highlights if you too are interested in supporting book and reading charities this holiday season.

  • Little Free Library – A Little Free Library is a “take a book, return a book” free book exchange. They come in many shapes and sizes, but the most common version is a small wooden box of books. Anyone may take a book or bring a book to share.
  • Room to Read – Room to Read seeks to transform the lives of millions of children in developing countries by focusing on literacy and gender equality in education. Working in collaboration with local communities, partner organizations and governments, we develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children, and support girls to complete secondary school with the relevant life skills to succeed in school and beyond.
  • First Book – First Book is a nonprofit social enterprise founded in 1992 that provides new books and educational resources to children from low-income families.

There are other author’s out there that also support charities as part of their book sales. I’d encourage you to see who they are and help support the authors and the charities they love.

You can also check out these lists for more information on charities related to books and reading!

Lastly, make sure the book you’re giving the right book to the right person.

Whether you’re giving The Travelers or another book as a gift, make sure you know it’s the type of book someone will enjoy. For example,  The Travelers is a young adult, fantasy novel. So, it’s appropriate for any young adults who like stories with witches, romance and action or any adults who also like that kind of young adult literature. (We’re out there and not embarrassed that we like YA!) Just make sure you’re always keeping the person you’re giving to in mind when choosing a book!

Happy Cyber Monday’ing!