All Posts Tagged With: "donations"

In the 1990s, Baltimore was "The City That Reads." This optimistic statement, found mostly on bus stops and benches, was replaced about ten years later by "The Greatest City In America." Big talk, yet Baltimore’s greatness lies arguably in its quirkiness, a truly fine example of what is The Book Thing of Baltimore . Its mission is "to put unwanted books into the hands of those who want them." How do they do it? The books are free! Donations from libraries, publishers, reviewers, authors, illustrators, and everyday people have given The Book Thing a collection of some 200,000 books on average. Aside from volunteers, who are always welcome to show up unannounced during store hours, The Book Thing is managed by Russell Wattenberg, a 29-year-old Brooklyn native and former bartender who used to hear schoolteachers complain that students didn’t have enough books. When Wattenberg started buying them books with tip money, people started to take notice and donated their own books. At some point it became apparent that the operation, which started in his basement, needed to expand. The store hands out about 10,000 books a week to a wide range of customers, from university professors to homeless people. The Book Thing accepts all books, regardless of age or subject matter. Wattenberg believes that if there’s a book, there’s someone who wants it. The Book Thing is open 9 am to 6 pm Saturdays and Sundays. Donations can be made any day of the week via two drop off bins that sit outside.