Listen to article \u2022\u00a00:00 min<\/p>\n
Inside a cavernous warehouse just off I-295 in Cherry Hill<\/a>, Larry Abrams spread his arms, gesturing to the sea of industrial-size cardboard boxes that surrounded him.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re sitting on a rocket ship,\u201d said Abrams, a third-generation teacher.<\/p>\n Abrams\u2019 rocket ship is composed of books: thousands and thousands of them \u2014 picture books and out-of-date science textbooks, cookbooks and battered novels. He sees them as a way to change kids\u2019 life trajectories.<\/p>\n To date, BookSmiles, the nonprofit Abrams started out of his garage in 2017, has distributed five million books. It just outgrew its third location, expanding into a 14,000-square-foot space in Cherry Hill that is formally opening next week.<\/p>\n Book banks are not a new idea. But Abrams believes he\u2019s got the secret sauce. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re the only book bank in America that does this \u2014 we actively trade pallets of grown-up books for pallets of upcycled gently used children\u2019s books,\u201d Abrams said. \u201cNever before has there been a low-cost way to get so many beautiful, upcycled books into the homes and hands of kids who need them the most.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018It\u2019s simply about lack of book access\u2019<\/p>\n Abrams served in the Navy \u2014 he was stationed on an aircraft carrier during the Persian Gulf War \u2014 and managed a copy shop. Then he settled into a career as an English teacher, working first in Moorestown<\/a>, then in Lindenwold.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought, \u2018Why do most of the Lindenwold kids in my ninth-grade class read at a third- or fourth-grade reading level?\u2019\u201d Abrams said. \u201cIt\u2019s simply about lack of book access. It\u2019s not fair that some kids grow up with no access to books, and other kids have everything.\u201d<\/p>\n Abrams thought long and hard about how to change that equation. What if he redistributed books from wealthy and middle-class communities to the places that didn\u2019t have them?<\/p>\n He put out a social media call for children\u2019s books, and got thousands. <\/p>\n There is no market for reselling used children\u2019s books online, Abrams found \u2014 you can\u2019t sell them and make any kind of money. So the BookSmiles concept developed.<\/p>\n Now, people from all over New Jersey and Pennsylvania donate books \u2014 any kind of books, from old encyclopedias to nearly new novel series. The BookSmiles team (at first, just Abrams himself; now, it\u2019s 11 people and a growing corps of volunteers) sorts through every single book. <\/p>\n The organization gets books in myriad ways: from folks dropping off what they salvage after cleaning out a bookshelf to donations of entire estates of books. BookSmiles accepts library discards and scrap paper, too.<\/p>\n Adult books, old textbooks, and kids\u2019 books that are not in excellent condition are sold, not for cash, but for gently used children\u2019s books that are distributed directly to teachers, daycares, and other nonprofits that get them in kids\u2019 hands.<\/p>\n \u2018There\u2019s a low-cost way to raise test scores\u2019<\/p>\n BookSmiles grew so significantly that Abrams retired from teaching and now works full-time as executive director.<\/p>\n But his educator hat<\/a> is always on. Research shows that access to books, and books in children\u2019s homes, is a powerful determinant of kids\u2019 educational outcomes and economic success.<\/p>\n \u201cThis comes from a place of me being a teacher, and seeing there\u2019s a low-cost way to raise test scores,\u201d said Abrams, dipping his hand into a cardboard box and fishing out an old dictionary that will end up being recycled for paper.<\/p>\n The largest share of BookSmiles\u2019 books moves out through its \u201cTeacher Take\u201d program. Teachers pay a nominal fee \u2014 BookSmiles asks for $35 annually \u2014 and can then take hundreds of books multiple times a year, either for classroom libraries or for distribution. <\/p>\n BookSmiles also sponsors \u201cFair Book Fairs,\u201d where schools get enough books for every child to take home at least three volumes at no cost. <\/p>\n Schools that serve predominantly students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds are asked to kick in just $200 to get a Fair Book Fair. Others pay a little more.<\/p>\n In 2025, BookSmiles gave away half a million books to teachers and kids in Philadelphia schools. Another 500,000 went to New Jersey teachers and schools, and the remainder, about 250,000, were sent overseas.<\/p>\n With libraries often on the chopping block in low-wealth school systems \u2014 Philadelphia had fewer than five people working as full-time, certified school librarians last school year \u2014 classroom libraries are key, and teachers often need resources to build them.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can hook them up,\u201d Abrams said. \u201cI can\u2019t give them school supplies, but I can give them books.\u201d<\/p>\n Book joy<\/p>\n Abrams still gets struck by moments of \u201cbook joy\u201d when he looks at the Teacher Take room, or the massive room of books waiting to be sorted or moved out.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s almost like walking into Willy Wonka\u2019s world, but it\u2019s not candy, it\u2019s books,\u201d he said. \u201cSometimes, you can\u2019t tell the difference between what Barnes & Noble is selling and what we\u2019re giving away.\u201d<\/p>\n BookSmiles\u2019 new space, across the street from the PATCO Woodcrest station, just off I-295, is a level up for the organization. It will allow BookSmiles to move from distributing 1.3 million books per year to five million books per year, and can accommodate more volunteers.<\/p>\n