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Even before kids can read, parents receive tools to help them get ready.
In January, 31,465 District children received a new book by mail through Star: Books from Birth, a DC Public Library initiative that sends age-appropriate books to enrolled children from birth through age five. Families receive one book per month, every month, for five years.
The program celebrates its 10th anniversary this February. Since launching in 2016, it has mailed more than 3.6 million books to 103,765 children. It currently reaches 77 percent of children under five in the District — one of the highest participation rates among affiliates of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, the national partner that supplies and distributes the books.
"Books from Birth is an incredible program that gives families resources to support their children and it gives our kids something to look forward to every month,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser. “We know how important literacy is and how important it is to read to young children, and I’m grateful for all the people, especially our fantastic DC Public Library team, who make Books from Birth work and who provide world-class programming at libraries across DC.”
“DC Public Library believes that every child in the District deserves a personal library and the joy of a good book," said Richard Reyes-Gavilan, executive director of DC Public Library. "Books from Birth represents the very best of what a library can be: an essential partner to every family, delivering the joy of reading right to their doorstep. The program is an investment that pays dividends for a lifetime, and it is a fundamental part of our strategy to increase the community of readers in D.C."
“I couldn’t be prouder of the Books from Birth program and its reach to now hundreds of thousands of District children and their families. There’s nothing more special than watching a child develop a love of reading and books. The mission of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library was always to ensure every child could have a shelf full of books to call their own, no matter their circumstances, and I’m so pleased to have been part of bringing that here to the District through one of my first bills as a newly-elected Councilmember,” said Councilmember Allen. “It's been a genuine and incredibly successful partnership with the DC Public Library and Mayor Bowser embracing this program from the start and bringing it to life.”
Council Member Charles Allen introduced legislation creating Star: Books from Birth in 2015. Mayor Bowser incorporated the program into the Fiscal Year 2016 Budget Support Act, securing both its launch and long-term funding.
The books are a tool for parents. Each delivery gives families a predictable moment to read, talk, and sing together, building vocabulary and connection long before a child can do it alone. This regular interaction supports the skills that prepare children for kindergarten, such as recognizing shapes, letters, colors, and numbers.
The program is part of the Library’s Sing, Talk, and Read early literacy initiative. Through a partnership with the DC Department of Health, families are enrolled at hospitals when children are born. That hospital-based strategy, implemented under Mayor Bowser’s administration, now accounts for nearly 80 percent of participants. The remainder register through the library’s website.
Enrollment is open to all DC families. Parents provide the child’s name, birth date, and mailing address. Books begin arriving six to eight weeks later.
The District invests $25 per child per year for STAR: Books from Birth. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library selects, prints, and mails the books, which are chosen by child development experts to match each age and stage of early development.
When STAR: Books from Birth began in February 2016, the Library mailed just 15 books. By the end of that year, enrollment had surpassed 17,000 children. The program peaked at 37,943 in March 2021. More than 56,000 children have completed the program after aging out. Children who enrolled as infants when the program started are now ten to 15 years old.
The Library will host anniversary celebrations throughout February, including a Pajama Storytime with Mychal Threets on Feb. 4 and a 10th Anniversary Celebration on Feb. 28.
For more information about Books from Birth, visit dclibrary.org/books-birth