Books That Give: The Festive Charity Drive Spreading Bookish Cheer Across The UK

Oftentimes, Christmas feels inextricable from shopping: spending, listing, calculating, deciphering, comparing, and trawling sites and shops and shelves for the best gift to give the loved ones in your life. (If in doubt, check out our ultimate gift guide for book lovers.) But Christmas is also an important time to remember those less fortunate, and plenty of charity drives spring up at the end of the year, from festive concerts to the Samaritan’s Purse’s classic shoebox appeal. The latest to join the roster is Bookshop.org’s ‘Books That Give’, a brand new initiative supporting Bookbanks. Here’s what you need to know – plus how to get involved.

Bookshop.org Launches Christmas Charity Drive, Books That Give

Online bookshop Bookshop.org has always been fighting the good fight. For one, the entire business model champions independent booksellers. And recently, the launch of Bookloop – aka ‘the Vinted of books’ – has made offloading your read and unwanted tomes even easier and even better for the planet.

Up next on Bookshop.org’s agenda is Books That Give, a brand new charity drive aimed at raising funds for Bookbanks, an organisation which brings books and book professionals into food banks, founded by writer and former bookseller Emily Rhodes. With support from ambassador Elizabeth Day – the author and host of award-winning podcast How To Fail – Bookbanks has given away more than 3,000 books at food banks since launching in June 2024. But it’s not just physical books: Bookbanks recruits volunteer book professionals to run free book stalls and host activities like author readings and writing workshops.

This festive season, Bookshop.org is launching Books That Give in partnership with the Independent Alliance (a community of independent UK publishers) to support Bookbanks in this fledgling stage. As of this month, Bookbanks has a presence at four food banks: St Jude & St Paul’s foodbank in Newington Green, Wymondham Community Outreach Project in South Norfolk, Trussell Trust Hammersmith and Fulham Foodbank, and the Norwich Foodbank’s Bowthorpe distribution centre. With the donations raised through Books That Give, Bookbanks hopes to develop a presence in food banks right across the UK.

‘We are so grateful to Bookshop.org and to the Independent Alliance for this inspired partnership that will enable us to give more books to more people who would otherwise struggle to afford them,’ founder Emily Rhodes says. ‘When you give someone a book, you strengthen the connection between you. At Bookbanks, where we have now given out over 3,000 books to people accessing food banks, we see just how powerful this connection can be. When guests approach our stalls, our trained volunteers are there to help them find the right book, whether it’s for themselves, their children, grandchildren or friends. The books spark conversations that lead in countless directions – sometimes reflective, sometimes hopeful, often inspiring and always helping to create a positive community atmosphere, which is especially vital at this challenging time of year.’

‘I grew up in a family that needed help, and books were instrumental in enlarging my sense of community and possibility,’ author and Bookbanks ambassador Andrew O’Hagan adds. ‘I’m thrilled that this initiative will help Bookbanks reach more of the many families who need support today, and help other children access the benefits of reading.’

‘Books have always been one of my favourite things to give (and receive) as Christmas presents,’ Elizabeth Day adds. ‘I’m thrilled that this initiative will put more brilliant books under the tree this year – both when people buy them as gifts, and when donations to Bookbanks enable the charity to give more books and connect with more people accessing food banks at this particularly difficult time of year.’

How To Get Involved

From Monday 4 November, order one of the select Independent Alliance titles on Bookshop.org, and 10 percent will be donated directly to Bookbanks. The drive will continue throughout November and December, with 30 eligible books available, spanning non-fiction, cook books, kids titles, best-sellers and more. They are:

• In Ascension by Martin McInnes
• Kala by Colin Walsh
• Family Meal by Bryan Washington
• Under the Tamarind Tree by Niger Alam
• Yawns Freeze Your Brain by Mick O’Hare
• A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig
• Let the Light Pour In by Lemn Sissay
• Yr Dead by Sam Sax
• Looshkin: The Maddest Cat in the World by Jamie Smart
• Understorey by Anna Chapman Parker
• My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
• Goodnight Tokyo by Atsuhiro Yoshida
• Dog by Rob Perry
• Caledonian Road by Andrew O’Hagan
• Sylvia Plath’s Tomato Soup Cake by various
• London Feeds Itself by various
• Intervals by Marianne Brooker
• The Glutton by AK Blakemore
• Clear by Carys Davis
• Soups, Salads and Sandwiches by Matty Matheson
• Seasoning by Angela Clutton
• The Fertile Earth by Ruthvika Rao
• A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James
• The Cheesemonger’s Tour de France by Ned Palmer
• The Bookshop, The Draper, The Candlestick Maker: A History of the High Street by Annie Gray
• Mary: or, the Birth of Frankenstein by Anne Eekhout
• All the Ways to be Smart by Davina Bell
• Boom Boom by Jude Idada
• Big Ideas from Literature by various
• The Secrets of Successful Relationships by various

‘Bookshop.org is proud to partner with the Independent Alliance for our inaugural Books That Give charity drive,’ Bookshop.org’s managing director Nicole Vanderbilt shares. ‘Bookshop.org customers buy their books from us because they know that where they spend their money matters. This Christmas we are giving them the extra gift of the opportunity to buy high quality titles from some of the best independent publishers in the UK, safe in the knowledge that their money will go even further – supporting independent bookshops, independent publishers, and the good work that Bookbanks are doing to widen access to books to those who can’t afford them.

‘At no extra costs to customers, these exciting titles will make great gifts in their own right, but thanks to the generosity of our partner, the Independent Alliance, they will provide vital support to indie bookshops during the most important retail period of the year, and to Bookbanks as they seek to grow their much needed community across the UK,’ Nicole says.

You can find the full Books That Give shopfront at bookshop.org