National Prisoner Resource List ~ Updated August 2008 ~ PRISON BOOK PROGRAM Send no more than two book requests per person per year, because we have a limited budget. LUCY PARSONS CENTER & BOOKSTORE Only one dictionary per person will be honored. 1306 HANCOCK ST, STE 100 Unfortunately, we do not send books to California, Maryland (except QUINCY, MA 02169 Jessup, Cumberland, and Hagerstown), Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Texas, and certain individual prisons. If we receive a request from one of these locations, we will reply to you with a copy of our resource list. WHO WAS LUCY PARSONS? Lucy Parsons (1853-1942) was a radical American labor organizer, Prison Book Program exists for one purpose to send free reading anarchist, and remembered as a powerful public speaker. She was material to prisoners throughout the United States. We have been born in Texas (likely as a slave) to the parents of Native American, doing it since 1972. We are not a library and we have no books for African American, and Mexican ancestry. Because of her singular you to purchase. All books, magazines, and other reading materials fight against social and economic oppression, Lucy led a controversial are donated to prisoners free of charge. They are yours to keep. life. Lucy Parsons always kept a sharp eye on the social revolution Please feel free to share these books and the ideas in them. that she was convinced was necessary to change the glaring excesses of the oppressive capitalist system. We work to fill your book requests as quickly as possible, but we sometimes receive such a large quantity of letters that orders can be Lucy Parsons was a fearless revolutionary. delayed anywhere from 3 to 6 months. The legacy of late Lucy is alive in the Boston area where, one can find Prison Book Program can rarely match specific requests for titles or the Lucy Parsons Center, a bookstore and gathering place for a wide authors, but we try to make the following book categories available. range of anarchists, political radicals, activists, and generally Please tell us which subjects you enjoy reading. It always helps us if concerned citizens. you can give us a few different options. SOURCE: Wikipedia; http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3812/is_200003/ai_n8896091 MOST AVAILABLE BOOK CATEGORIES: Dictionaries, Thesauruses, or general reference GED and Education (Math, Science, Reading or Writing) FREE BOOKS TO PRISONERS PROGRAMS: General Legal Self Help The following programs send free books to prisoners in various states. Health, Psychology, or Self-Improvement Before you write, please make note of the specific states that each Foreign Language – various, please specify program serves. Also, please be aware these programs struggle to Ethnic Studies (Native & African American, Latino/a, etc.) keep up with the demand so you may have to wait several months to History, Biographies, or Autobiographies receive a response. Stamps, pre-stamped envelopes and self-addressed Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transsexual Literature stamped envelopes (SASE) are always welcomed, but are not required. Religious and Spirituality Studies APPALACHIAN PRISON BOOK PROJECT, Sports or Hobbies P.O. Box 601, Morgantown, WV 26507 Fiction: classic, contemporary, fantasy, thriller, westerns, Sends to: KY, MD, OH, TN, VA, and WV only. short stories, drama, poetry or plays. Please note that we rarely have Bibles or books on: real estate, ASHEVILLE PRISON BOOKS PROGRAM, investments, business, specific laws, almanacs, Spanish/English c/o Downtown Books and News, dictionaries, Wiccan spirituality, or trade skills. If you request any of 67 N Lexington Ave, Asheville, NC 28801 these topics, please provide us some other options too. If your first Sends books to prisoners in: GA, NC, SC, and TN only. choice is not in stock, we will send you a substitution. BOOK'EM, P.O. Box 71357, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 Serves: all states, except OR and male prisoners in TX. Focuses on PLEASE HELP US: educational and non-fiction books. Clearly print your NAME, ID NUMBER, and ADDRESS on both the outside and inside of your request letters. BOOKS 2 PRISONERS, c/o Iron Rail Bookstore & Publishing, Tell us exactly what restrictions your prison places on 1631 Elysian Fields, Ste 117, New Orleans, LA 70117 incoming book packages (for example: paperback only, Serves LA only. hardcover okay, maximum number, new or newish books only, invoice required, prior approval required, etc.). BOOKS THROUGH BARS, Let us know if you are in the process of being transferred 4722 Baltimore Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19143 from one location to another location. We’ll do our best to Sends free progressive political and educational materials to county, keep track of your exact location and get your books to you. state and federal prisoners in: DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA, VA, and WV Stamps, pre-stamped envelopes and self-addressed stamped only. Request books by topic. No catalog. envelopes (SASE) are welcomed, but are not required. Our packages are shipped via United States Postal Services, BOOKS TO OREGON PRISONERS, using media mail rate. P.O. Box 11222, Portland, OR 97211 We do not offer any pen-pal services. Prisoners in OR only. Prison Book Program, 1306 Hancock St, Ste 100, Quincy, MA 02169 Email: [email protected] Page 1 Please tell your family and friends that this 6-page Resource List is also available on our website’s home page: www.prisonbookprogram.org National Prisoner Resource List ~ Updated August 2008 ~ BOOKS TO PRISONERS, c/o Groundwork Books, URBANA-CHAMPAIGN BOOKS TO PRISONERS, 0323 Student Center, La Jolla, CA 92037 c/o Spineless Books, P.O. Box 515, Urbana, IL 61803 Serves all states. Sends all types of books to state and federal prisoners in IL. BOOKS TO PRISONERS, c/o Left Bank Books, WISCONSIN BOOKS TO PRISONERS, c/o Rainbow Bookstore, 92 Pike St, Box A, Seattle, WA 98101 426 W. Gilman St, Madison, WI 53703 All states except CA. Request by subject. No religious or legal books. Free books to prisoners in WI (and GLBT prisoners nationwide). BOOKS THRU BARS, c/o Autumn Leaves Bookstore, HELP US HELP YOU! 115 The Commons – 2nd Floor, Ithaca, NY 14850 Serves: CT, DE, MA, ME, MD, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, and VT only. We want to help you by providing the highest level of educational resources. Our highest hope is to help you learn and achieve your CLEVELAND BOOKS 2 PRISONERS, goals with the books and resources we provide to you. P.O. Box 602440, Cleveland, OH 44102 Prisoners in OH only. Request by subject only. Please write to us a letter if a book has helped you while you are in prison or if, upon leaving prison, it helps you succeed as you make a DC BOOKS TO PRISONS, new start (get your GED, go to school, find a new job, start a new P.O. Box 5243, Hyattsville, MD 20782 business, etc). Your success story can be big or small, it is still an Nationwide. Only two books per request. Request by subject only. equal success and we want to know! GAINESVILLE BOOKS FOR PRISONERS, Your personal stories of success can make a huge difference to our P.O. Box 12164, Gainesville, FL 32604 program. We can take your letters to potential donors and ask for Covers prisoners nationwide. Requests by subject only. more books and more funds with which we can buy more postage stamps for future book shipments. INSIDE BOOKS PROJECT, c/o 12th Street Books, th 827 W. 12 St, Austin, TX 78701 Thank you for making our mission possible! Prisoners in TX only. Request by subject only. We hope to continue sending books to clients like you. INTERNATIONALIST PRISON BOOKS COLLECTIVE, Please encourage your family and friends to start book programs too! 405 W. Franklin St, Chapel Hill, NC 27516 New program that sends books to: AL, LA, and MS only. MIDWEST BOOKS TO PRISONERS PROJECT, INFORMATION SERVICES: 1321 N. Milwaukee Ave, PMB 460, Chicago, IL 60622 Serves: IA, IL, KS, MO, MN, NE, and WI only. AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION (ACLU) - NATIONAL PRISON PROJECT, th th MIDWEST PAGES TO PRISONERS PROJECT, 915 15 St NW, 7 Floor, Washington DC 20005 c/o Boxcar Books & Community Center, Write for list of publications and the contact information for your state. 408 E. 6th St, Bloomington, IN 47408 Sends free books to prisoners in the following states: AR, AZ, FL, IA, DISABILITY RIGHTS EDUCATION & DEFENSE FUND, th IN, KS, KY, MN, MO, ND, NE, OK, OH, SD, and TN only. 2212 6 St, Berkeley, CA 94710 Assists state prison inmates with medical access, provides referrals. NYC BOOKS THROUGH BARS, c/o Bluestockings Bookstore, Write for list of publications on disability civil rights and newsletter. 172 Allen St, New York, NY 10002 Nationwide, except MI. Specializes in political and history. Also FEDERAL CITIZEN INFORMATION CENTER, literary fiction and other educational books. No religion books. Dept WWW, Pueblo, CO 81009 Many free/low cost documents for federal programs. Request catalog. PRISON BOOK PROJECT, c/o Food for Thought Books, P.O. Box 396, Amherst, MA 01004 NATIONAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFERENCE SERVICE, Serves: CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, TX, and VT only. Request by subject. P.O. Box 6000, Rockville, MD 20849-6000 No requests for legal aid or pen-pals. Offering justice and substance abuse information to support research, policy, and program development. PRISON LIBRARY PROJECT, 915C West Foothill Blvd, PMB128, PARTNERSHIP FOR SAFETY & JUSTICE, Claremont, CA 91711 P.O. Box 40085, Portland, OR 97240-0085 Free books: self-help, personal and spiritual growth, wellness, and Works with prisoners and families in: ID, MT, NV, OR, UT, WA, and metaphysical books. Free resource guide on request. WY only. Quarterly "Justice Matters" and “Prisoner Support Directory”, available upon request.