About Us
Made for Me Books is a Harlem-based nonprofit, working to get more diverse books into homes.
We want all young people to own books that share stories that they can connect with, that illuminate Black and brown cultures - and that nurture a greater understanding of all of our experiences. ALL of US.
we are working to address
Need for more diversity
We search for books and authors that share the diversity of experiences that are not as widely available and expand the mental idea of who is considered "American."
Affordability
We provide FREE, NEW BOOKS to young people, focusing on neighbors who have less ability to pay for new books. Building a home library (purchasing books) can be expensive - and we want all young people to have a large collection at home. And, there is just not a lot of diversity in the used book market, yet.
Heightened Book Bans
Focusing on more diverse books, we work against intolerance and exclusion. Around the country, books by authors of color, by LGBTQ+ authors, by women (and other topics - are being taken off shelves - with 49% of them being books about people with BIPOC backgrounds. In the 2024-2025 school year, more than 6,800 books were banned in the United States. The majority of these have “long fought for a place on the shelf.” (source: https://pen.org/book-bans/)
Choice
We give young people the ability to pick which books they want to take home. Often when things are being provided for free, "you get what you get and you don't get upset." Studies show that when a young person chooses their own book, they are more likely to read it.
Through our book distributions and programming, Made for Me Books hopes to encourage young people with:
- diverse books and literary arts;
- more cultural and historical knowledge
- stories that nurture more positive social identities; and
- events and activities that bring our community and neighbors together to know and value the diversity among us.
Made for Me Books identifies stories that share a diversity of American experiences, with special focus on stories not as widely shared: Black, Indigenous, Latino/a, Asian and African diasporas.
We provide books for young people in and around Harlem, from early preK to young adult. The books are FREE and each student chooses multiple books to take home.
Made for Me Books is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, run by a founder, her extended family, a small board, a community of incredible volunteers – and a lot of LOVE.
