Contact: Trish Anderton, Director of Public Relations
tanderton@goddard.org
929-249-1449
Information: goddard.org/bookfair
[NEW YORK, Sept. 23, 2022]—Goddard Riverside’s holiday book sale is changing its format and its place on the calendar, the organization announced today.
“We have loved sharing the Book Fair with you every November for the last 35 years,” said Roderick L. Jones, executive director of the Upper West Side human service nonprofit. “But the publishing world is changing, and this event must change too.”
While the Book Fair was previously held on the weekend before Thanksgiving and offered brand-new books in all categories for half-price, the redesigned event will occur in the summer and distribute children’s books for free. Jones cited a number of factors behind the changes, including consolidation that has left fewer publishers to donate books to the Fair, and modern printing processes that create fewer excess copies.
“When the Fair launched over three decades ago, it was common to do large print runs that resulted in lots of extra books that publishers would generously donate,” said Jones. “Now they can make them pretty much to order and ship them overnight.”
Jones thanked the publishers for their support and said he looked forward to working with them on getting free books into children’s hands.
“Reading is so important to a child’s developing mind. We’re excited about feeding a love of books among all the young people in the neighborhoods we serve,” he said. “Publishers have not only donated books and helped us run the Fair for all these years; they have also played a huge role on our Board and have been some of our greatest supporters. We are grateful and look forward to maintaining that relationship,” Jones continued.
“We’d also like to thank everyone who has come out to the Book Fair over the years, and all of the incredible volunteers, including the category managers who donated their deep expertise to the Fair. We hope to see you at our other events throughout the year, including the new children’s book giveaway.”
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Goddard Riverside and its strategic partner, the Stanley M. Isaacs Center, are two of New York City’s leading human services organizations meeting the needs of children, youth, families, homeless individuals, and older adults throughout Manhattan and New York City.