A Beverly bookstore is working to make sure students on Chicago’s South Side can build their own home libraries, regardless of family income. Keith Lewis, owner of Bookie’s at 10324 S. Western Ave., started the nonprofit For Access and Inclusion in Reading Fund Chicago (FAIR Fund) last year to help remove financial barriers for children attending school book fairs.
“One of the worst things is for kids to come in with no money and not be able to get anything,” Lewis said. “That’s upsetting to see. I’ve seen kids in tears because they see a book they really want, and they just can’t get it.”
The FAIR Fund has raised enough money so far to provide 200 students with $25 vouchers for upcoming Bookie’s book fairs. The organization plans to support all 240 students at Rudyard Kipling Elementary School during a fair in March.
“There is something to be said for book ownership, to be able to have books at home that you can read, reread and just grab off the shelf on a snowy day,” Lewis said.
Bookie’s curates its collection for each school visit, offering diverse titles tailored to student interests. The store will host ten book fairs over the next ten weeks, using data such as past performance and community need when deciding which schools receive subsidized events.
“We curate our book selection for the specific schools that we’re going to,” Lewis said. “Kids like to see themselves in the books that they read. We bring a lot of diverse titles and things that we think they are going to want to read.”
The $25 vouchers allow students flexibility when choosing from new releases, used books, or discounted options at these fairs.
“It can be a nice stack of books,” Lewis said. “Some books are expensive, and some are cheap. What the kids get is up to them. Bookie’s brings new books, used books and bargain books.”
Lewis emphasized how this approach helps students start their own collections: “It’s a nice start to a home library,” he said. “The kids can choose the books they want and bring them home. That’s what we’re looking to do, because there is power in choice and being able to choose the books that you want to read.”
Bookie’s has operated in Beverly for more than 35 years and frequently donates part of its proceeds back to participating schools after each fair.
“They can choose what they want to do with the money. They can either take store credit and fill up their school libraries, or they can also take cash and do whatever they need for the school,” Lewis said.
