CHILD
LITERACY
Your support helps put books into homes, stories into hands, and possibility into the lives of children.
📚 Why Book Ownership Matters
More than 60% of low-income families in the U.S. have no books at all in their homes for children. For many kids, this means growing up without the stories, language exposure, and learning opportunities that books make possible.
Research shows that having books at home is one of the strongest predictors of a child’s academic success — even more influential than parental education or income. Yet too many children are growing up in “book deserts,” where access to books is limited both at home and in their communities.
❤️ How Your Support Helps
Your donation helps put books directly into children’s hands — books they can own, revisit, and grow with. That simple act builds confidence, sparks imagination, and lays the foundation for lifelong learning.
Together, we can help ensure every child has the chance to read, dream, and thrive.
-
350,000+
books donated to hundreds of schools, libraries, and literacy programs across the country
-
300,000+
books distributed through Save the Children’s Early Head Start, Head Start, and rural education programs
-
350,000+
children now own books of their own—often for the first time
WHAT WE DO
The Amy Krouse Rosenthal Foundation partners with trusted organizations in Chicagoland and across the U.S. to get books into the hands—and homes—of children who need them most.
Our work includes:
Donating books at scale to classrooms, community programs, and families
Distributing Amy’s award-winning titles—including Exclamation Mark!, Friendshape, Duck! Rabbit!, and Yes Day!—to aid in early learning and inspire joy, kindness, acceptance, and curiosity
Building, installing, and stocking Little Free Libraries in neighborhoods with limited access to books
Supporting early literacy and summer reading initiatives to prevent learning loss and keep kids reading year-round
Through partnerships with organizations such as Save the Children, we support national initiatives like Make Summer Fair, 100 Days of Reading, and Stuff the Bus, ensuring children have consistent access to books year-round.
Our Impact
Thanks to our generous donors and partners, the AKR Foundation has helped bring books—and the joy of reading—to children across the country. Many children now own a book for the very first time, transforming reading from an abstract idea into a personal, empowering experience.
Amy’s books carry messages of empathy, connection, and wonder, shaping how children see themselves and the world. When a child owns a book, it becomes a lasting tool for learning, imagination, and possibility.
-
1 in 4
children in Chicago Public Schools
are able to read at grade level -
61%
of low-income households do not
own any children’s books
The Amy Krouse Rosenthal Book Grant
Our Annual Book Grant Award is one of the Foundation’s key strategies for expanding access to books nationwide—placing Amy’s stories directly into schools, classrooms, and community organizations committed to child literacy.
By supporting the Book Grant Award, donors help ensure that more children—especially in under-resourced communities—can experience the confidence, curiosity, and joy that reading brings.
The AKR
Foundation
Learning Library
Families, educators, and caregivers can explore our Learning Library for free activities inspired by Amy’s books—designed to deepen comprehension, spark creativity, and make reading even more joyful.