The Book Thing

The other day I heard a brief whisper of a magical place from another teacher. Since the first graders were intently focused on math, I didn't want to disrupt their progress with my sheer excitement, so I bottled it up and waited until I got home.

Had she really said there was a place where you could go and get up to 150,000 books for FREE? Yes! It's called The Book Thing. The simple mission of this volunteer-run organization is "putting unwanted books into the hands of those who want them." In Baltimore, MD an old, simple warehouse is a temporary home for tons of free books that are constantly flowing in and out of its doors.  Inside are rows of shelves filled with loosely organized categories of books, and yes, you really can take as many as you want. The "store" is open every Saturday and Sunday from 9-6. They do accept donations and, of course, more books.

Here is my haul of 81 books from this weekend! Most of them are going to help supplement the library at my AmeriCorps service site. I plan to return and stock up on more early chapter books that I can give out as graduation presents to students who exit the reading program this year. I highly recommend a trip to The Book Thing for any bibliophiles in the area. Next time E and I will have a plan to explore the rest of Baltimore, too!

Tips for visiting:

-Be sure to allow plenty of time to look. There is no alphabetical order.
-Check back in your favorite section before leaving; more books are being added while you browse!
-Bring plenty of bags or grab a box from the pile in the fiction room.
-Dress appropriately. There was no air while we were there and it was quite toasty. 
-Watch where you park. You do not want to get a ticket, so be sure to pull around to the front.