May 7

May 7 Episode #61: How to help non-profits right now: PART ONE

Welcome! Today’s episode features an interview with special guest, Alison Morris, Senior Director of Title Selection at FirstBook.org. Alison talks about how First Book is surviving the pandemic and how you can show support for them and other non-profits right now. The interview was on the longer side and rather than cut any of the content out (it’s so good!), they have divided it into two episodes. Part TWO of this episode will be released next week.

*A special announcement! On Monday, May 18th, the Book Friends Forever will be doing a LIVE BROADCAST of this podcast on the Asian Author Alliance YouTube channel! This is in honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, and we will be one of many panels and live streams that the alliance will be featuring. We are not sure what we are going to talk about, so if you have any suggestions, please let us know. The podcast will air at 7:00pm EST and 4:00pm PST.

“How have you been?”

As usual the Book Friends check in with each other on how they’re doing and what’s been going on in their lives.

Alison talks about working full time very hard from home but it’s going as good as it can be. Her husband is graphic novelist, Gareth Hinds, who is also working from home but he usually does pre-pandemic.

They are supposed to be traveling in Greece right now on vacation but obviously that trip was cancelled. She thought she would be really sad about this, but since the idea of traveling anywhere right now is so far from reality, she doesn’t really experience “FOMO” ( Fear Of Missing Out) Nobody else is traveling anywhere. Plus, she is so grateful that they both still have jobs and recognize that their situation could be so much worse as it is for others.

Alvina is hanging in there and doing okay. She had heard the phrase “Pandemic fine” as an answer the question, “How are you doing?” It makes sense. After all, there is just no way to be completely fine during a global pandemic and the world turned upside down. She took two much-needed days off from work and spent the days mostly cleaning the house and doing a puzzle. Then it occurred to her that exactly one year ago today, she was on sabbatical in South Africa. What a difference. I guess now we are ALL on “staycations”.

Grace is also continuing to work really hard from home although winding down her online activities and YouTube channel videos. She mentioned how much anxiety she had while doing a daily Facebook Live reading of her novel, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. She was worried about trolling! That happened once when she did a PBS News Hour video about racists books and she received many violent and negative comments. Luckily, the reading of WTMMTM went well and people were lovely online. That reminded her of the recent article in the School Library Journal about author Dhonielle Clayton who experienced racists attacks online and tweeted about it. Grace talks about how she just has to expect this kind of thing and be prepared for it even though it’s awful and shouldn’t happen.

“What is First Book?”

Alison explains First Book as a non-profit that makes books and other classroom resources available to educators around the country at deeply discounted prices. Anyone can become a member if they are an educator in a Title 1 school or if they are in a program that serves a high percentage of families in need. “We have an e-commerce site called First Book Marketplace.”

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“How have things changed during the pandemic?'“

Alison says, “We are partnering with programs and organizations that are still open that are providing critical services.” Mostly getting books to feeding sights, homeless shelters, and soup kitchens.
Members and educators are doing things on a smaller scale such as hand-picking books and driving them to places for delivery on front porches. Alison says she is humbled by the “lengths our members go to to get books to the kids that they serve” They’re very concerned about backsliding and kids not being able to improve their literacy skills, especially those who do not have books at home already.
First Book recently had a wonderful New York Times write-up about their work.

Alison said that First Book is still trying to keep their books diverse during the pandemic challenges. It is difficult trying to be budget consious. “We are fierce believers in “Windows and Mirrors” to reference Rudine Sims Bishop. We want all kids to find books that will really resonate with, speak to them, and reflect their experiences so that they will become life-long readers and learners.”

“How can people help First Book right now?”

You can make a donation to First Book.
Tell Title 1 schools and programs about First Book.
Follow us on social media! Two Twitter accounts: @firstbook and @firstbookmarketplace
We have a Crowdfunding platform. There are grants available for schools if you run a campaign.
Visit the First Book Marketplace and see if we have what you’re looking for. If you’re looking to diversify your bookshelves, we have books broken down by author and character type.
If you know of any good corporate sponsors, please let us know.

Thank you Alison!

Alison Morris is a nationally recognized children's book buyer with an infectious enthusiasm for reading and 20 years' experience matching books to readers. As the Senior Director of Title Selection for nonprofit First Book, she oversees the curation of children’s and young adult books on the First Book Marketplace, hand-selecting a diverse range of titles that speak to and address the needs of kids in underserved communities, with a keen eye to inclusion, authenticity, and kid-appeal. She previously served as Senior Editor at Scholastic Book Clubs, Children's Book Buyer for Wellesley Booksmith and The Dartmouth Bookstore, and was the founding blogger of the ShelfTalker children’s book blog for Publishers Weekly. She'll be joining us from her home near Washington, DC where she spends LOTS of time discussing books with her husband, illustrator and graphic novelist Gareth Hinds.

Don’t forget to leave a review or rate Book Friends Forever on Apple Podcasts! We have reached 101 ratings! Many thanks to listeners who reviewed Book Friends Forever. As promised, next week there is a drawing and a winner will be announced! They will get to be a guest on the podcast. Stay tuned!