Book Tale

Haili Smith loves a spine-tingling book. Her sibling, Brooke, prefers fantasy. Neither used to like reading much. Then they read books with characters like them. That changed everything. These books “made us want to read more,” Haili told TIME for Kids. “We thought we could share that with students.”

Haili is 17 and Brooke is 14. They run Books Like Me. It supplies teachers with culturally diverse children’s books. The two started the project in 2020. It is still going strong.

The siblings collect and donate books of different genres for kids of all ages.

Getting Started

Haili and Brooke began by making a list of books they liked. They asked people on social media for donations. People sent them boxes of books.

En enero de 2023, Brooke (izquierda) y Haili celebran haber regalado 10,000 libros.

Haili and Brooke have given away more than 21,000 books. Teachers and librarians can request donations from Books Like Me. Different genres are available. Different reading levels are too. Requests have come in from across the United States.

The siblings drop off 876 books at a school in Hillsborough County, Florida, in 2022.

The Joy of Reading

Haili and Brooke have also taken books to students. Haili remembers happy kids at a book fair in Florida. “All kids should see themselves represented in books,” she says.

Haili is ready to donate this stack of books.

Educators say books with diverse characters are important. A book can be a mirror. Readers can see themselves in the story. Or a book can be a window. It lets readers learn a new point of view.

Anitra Carter agrees. She’s an elementary school teacher. Carter thinks reading helps teach kids empathy. It gives them “knowledge about the experiences of other people,” she says.