About Love-Talk-Read

We collect new and gently-used children’s books to share with at-risk children and families to keep at home. One of the greatest predictors of children’s literacy and overall academic success is the number of books they have available to them at home.

Statistics indicate that in some areas, the average middle-class child has 13+ books at home. In some under-resourced areas, there is ONE book for every 300 children. According to the One World Literacy Foundation, the link between academic failure and delinquency, violence, and crime is welded to reading failure. Over 70% of America’s prisoners cannot read above a 4th grade level. According to some sources, when building prison cells, some states factor in the number of 3rd graders who are reading below grade level. The number of 3rd graders reading below grade level is factored into the construction of prison cells to potentially house these 3rd graders as adolescents and adults!

In the United States…

  • We spend $8,000 a year to educate a school-aged child
  • We spend $40,000-$50,000 a year on each prisoner

The advent of Covid 19 impacted the literacy skills of children all over the world. Because many children were isolated and did not have access to education, their oral and literate language skills became very delayed. Post-pandemic, the number of babies and young children with speech and language delays has more than doubled worldwide. Today, it is more urgent than ever to help our children obtain books and be exposed to literacy-rich experiences.

Our GoalOur Goal

Is to help address this situation with positive solutions to build children’s literacy skills early in life. We have been blessed to provide over 350,000 free books to children in order to make a positive difference in their lives. We continue to provide books as our world emerges from the pandemic, with a goal of every child on the planet being able to read.

Places We Have Donated Books for Children and Youth in the United States

  • Shonto Indian Reservation (Arizona)
  • United Way
  • Migrant camps (Delano, Merced, central California)
  • Mayor Johnson’s Sacramento Reads program
  • Sacramento Reading Partners (at-risk children)
  • Sacramento Crisis Nursery (neglected/abused preschoolers)
  • Sutter Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
  • Mustard Seed School for Homeless Children
  • Boys and Girls Club (after school program)
  • Roseville After School Program
  • Jabbergym (special needs children)
  • San Juan Unified School District Early Head Start
  • Oak Park Head Start
  • Elk Grove Children’s Development Institute
  • Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services
  • New Horizons High School (for at-risk students)
  • Serna Village (released prisoners reunited with their children)
  • Sacramento First 5 (0-5 care and literacy program)
  • Shriner’s Children’s Hospital (burn and orthopedic patients)
  • Children’s Receiving Home (abused children)
  • Sacramento City Unified School District Pre-K Program
  • San Juan Unified School District Pre-K Program
  • La Familia Counseling Center (services for under-resourced families)
  • Orangevale Food Bank
  • Kids First Roseville (for neglected and abused children)
  • Center for Social Justice (for children of Folsom prisoners)
  • Sacramento Mutual Housing Authority (for under-resourced families)
  • MAS Youth Community Center Elk Grove
  • Only Love preschool (Howe Avenue, Sacramento)
  • Sacramento urban League
  • Capitol City Center preschool
  • Elementary Schools
    • Whitney
    • Cottage
    • Greer
    • Twin Rivers
    • Naralto
    • Ethel Philips
    • Howe Avenue
    • Rosa Parks
    • Mariposa
    • Grand Oaks
    • Dyer Kelly
    • Howe Avenue
    • Elder Creek
    • Starr King
    • Kingswood

Countries Where We Have Donated Books

Albania   American Samoa      Argentina     Australia     Austria     Belize    Belgium    Bosnia and Herzegovina    Brazil    Bulgaria   Cambodia   Canada    China    Costa Rica     Croatia    Cuba     Czech Republic      Denmark    Dominican Republic    El Salvador    Ecuador    England   Estonia   Fiji    Finland   France   Germany   Ghana   Greece   Guatemala     Hungary     India    Kenya    Kosrae (Micronesia)  Laos    Latvia   Lesotho (South Africa)  Lithuania   Mauritius   Mexico    Monte Negro    Nepal    Netherlands     New Zealand     North Macedonia  Peru  Philippines   Poland   Portugal   Puerto Rico  Qatar    Russia   Scotland   Serbia   Slovakia   Slovenia   Spain   Sweden   Switzerland    Thailand   Turkey  Ukraine  Wales    Vietnam   Zambia

 


Thank you for helping us support at-risk children through boosting their literacy skills!