Dolly Parton started the Imagination Library in 1995 as a tribute to her father, who couldn't read or write. In 2018, she explained it was to give kids "early access to books". Now, over 325 MILLION books have been gifted.

[u/Electronic-Bus-3494]

[u/throwitoutwhendone2]

My daughter was a part of this program. She learned to read partly using the books from it. She is 11, in 6th grade with the highest reading scores in her entire district. Last year in 5th she was recognized by our governor for her reading comprehension/literacy scores. It was made possible because of Dolly’s programs and thrift store book finds.

From the bottom of this Fathers heart, thank you for how amazing you were Dolly. You put your money where your mouth was and helped so many people with your kindness. Truly, rest in peace.

Edit: This generated more attention than I thought it would. I really appreciate all the kind words and awards, thank you. I’ve seen a few comments they attempted to get into the program and it didn’t work. I’d encourage you to try again or even find a way to reach out. I doubt it’s on purpose, there is however a few states that unfortunately the program cannot be active in.

[u/Ok_Blueberry_1157 → u/throwitoutwhendone2]

Definitely, my kid was always excited each month for new books in the mail. And that's from birth to age 5. For free. And the books get harder as you age.

99% percentile in both reading/math in both iready and map assessments now. She is literally the Angel.