Who we serve

Books Through Bars has been sending free books to incarcerated people in six mid-Atlantic states (Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia) for over 30 years.

To learn about programs serving people in other states, check out Prison Book Program’s list of books to prisoners programs. We’re all unaffiliated, although of course we admire each other’s work.

What we send

We do our best to send the books people ask us for, whatever those may be. By fulfilling all requests to the best of our ability, we work to support self-determination, self-education, and healing behind bars.

Nearly all of the books we send are donated. That means our ability to fulfill requests depends on the donations we receive.

By donating books, you can help ensure that incarcerated people receive the books they need!