Jamie Naidoo, a professor in the School of Library and Information Studies, started Book Bonanza for the Black Belt in 2009.
“The books are my way of giving back to our local community and state,” he said. “All books are brand new, high-quality books.”
Eva Randolph, a librarian at Notasulga High School, has previously received books from the program and applied again this year.
“It is a very, very worthwhile cause,” she said. “A lot of libraries, not just [in] the Black Belt, are in dire need of books because the library funds have been cut the last 10 years and there’s not a lot of money for books.”
Naidoo said he focuses on giving to the Black Belt region because schools there are less likely to be able to raise funds for books through book fairs and PTAs.
Schools that apply must provide information including school enrollment, grade levels served by the school, number of books currently in the library, number of books per student, average publication date of those books and the types of books the school needs.
Not only are there fewer books per student in Black Belt schools than schools outside of the region, but the books they do have are often out-of-date. The nonfiction collection in these schools over all subject areas had an average copyright date in the 1970s. These books not only provide outdated informational content, they are unappealing to the students, said Sarah Wright, a librarian at J. E. Terry Elementary School. J. E. Terry Elementary School was one of the schools that received books last year.
“The kids love checking them out,” Wright said. “It just makes it more inviting to read. We’ve had old books, and when I say old, I mean old. So these are more related to the kids and on their level. They absolutely love to read. They’re excited about coming to the library now to check out books.”
Naidoo forms a three-person committee composed of himself, another SLIS faculty member and an SLIS graduate student to choose where the books will be awarded. They divide the available books by the grade levels the schools represent, match the books with the needs listed on the application and try to spread them over as many counties as possible.
“I wish that I could give books to every school that applies,” Naidoo said.
As director of the SLIS Children’s and Young Adult Book Review Collection, Naidoo has access to thousands of books before they are published. The publishers send the new books to be reviewed by him and his graduate students. They provide their reviews to publishers and post them on their blog, SLIS Crimson Review. This year, nonfiction books were also donated by the University of Alabama Press.
Naidoo has an agreement with the publishers that he can do whatever he wants with the books at the end of the publishing year. He has chosen to donate them to clear space for the books they will receive throughout the coming year.
Applications to receive books are due Feb. 12 at midnight and selections will be made by Feb. 18.
