PJ Library

PJ Library is a program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation,[1] a North American Jewish non-profit organization based in Agawam, Massachusetts. It was created in December 2005 as a Jewish engagement and literacy program for Jewish families with young children.

PJ Library logo

PJ Library is modeled after Dolly Parton's Imagination Library[2] program. PJ Library sends out free Jewish children's books and music to families "with Judaism as part of their lives."[3] on a monthly basis by subscription. It is a North American program that is implemented on a local level. Costs are covered by a partnership between the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, members of the PJ Library Alliance, and families who “Pay it Forward” to make sure PJ Library can reach more families. In most communities there is an agency such as a Jewish federation, Jewish Community Center, or synagogue that is a key partners in making PJ Library possible locally.[4]

Distribution and book selection

In North America, PJ Library sends more than 220,000 books to families raising Jewish children each month. PJ Library is available in every zip code in the US as well as across Canada. The PJ Library books and music are available for children between 6 months and 8 years of age, depending on the available funding in each community. Older children, ages 8.5 - 11 may sign up for PJ Our Way, a choose-your-own book program. Children in the US and Canada are able to select a free chapter book or graphic novel each month and write reviews, take quizzes, and interact in a safe, moderated, online space just for kids.

In December 2017, PJ Library, in partnership with Jewish Rock Radio, launched PJ Library Radio, a free app and online streaming radio station. PJ Library Radio plays Jewish kids' music 24 hours a day with a special, curated, lullaby playlist starting around 9pm Eastern.

Globally, PJ Library programs are implemented in more than a dozen countries including Israel, Mexico, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.

Children that have been enrolled in PJ Library receive age-appropriate books highlighting Jewish holidays, values, Bible stories, and folklore. Books are selected by the PJ Library Book Selection Committee. Working with authors, publishers and editors, the committee strives to ensure that the finest Jewish books for children find their way each month into the mailboxes of all PJ Library families. Many of the PJ Library books have won prestigious awards, including the Caldecott Medal and the Sydney Taylor Book Award. Several have been named as finalists for the National Jewish Book Award from the Jewish Book Council.

Enrollment

Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever their background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.

Through partners around North America, PJ Library also offers concerts, family outings, activities and other events as well as online Facebook groups.

National recognition

PJ Library has been regularly featured in the Slingshot Resource Guide's "50 most inspiring and innovative organizations, projects, and programs in the North American Jewish community today".[5] In April 2009, Harold Grinspoon, president and founder of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, received the Sidney Shapiro Tzedakah Award for his work in Jewish philanthropy, including the founding of The PJ Library.[6] In January 2010, the Jewish Education Service of North America listed The PJ Library as one of JESNA's "Picks for the Best in Jewish Education of the Decade".[7]

Notable books

The PJ Library has also been the driving force behind updates and reprints of classic and favorite books.[19]

References
  1. Harold Grinspoon Foundation
  2. Imagination Library official website
  3. "About PJ Library". PJ Library. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  4. "Frequently Asked Questions". pjlibrary.org. Retrieved 2019-01-23.
  5. Slingshot official website
  6. Jewish Funders Network presents awards Archived 2010-06-16 at the Wayback Machine, Philanthropy Journal April 7, 2009
  7. JESNA's Picks for the Best in Jewish Education of the Decade Archived 2010-06-16 at the Wayback Machine
  8. "The Association of Jewish Libraries: Sydney Taylor Book Awards" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-11-05. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
  9. Jewish Book Council Archived 2011-07-17 at the Wayback Machine, National Jewish Book Awards-Winners List
  10. American Library Association, Caldecott Medal & Honor Books, 1938-Present
  11. The CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal Archived 2010-08-06 at the Wayback Machine, Full List of Winners
  12. Literatureplace.com Award Winning Booklists for the best in Children's Literature, Lewis Carroll Shelf Award
  13. The National Book Awards Archived 2010-06-20 at the Wayback Machine, Winners and Finalists, Since 1950
  14. Library Thing, Book Awards: Christopher Award
  15. "Review: Soosie: The Horse That Saved Shabbat". 3 June 2021. Retrieved 2021-11-24.
  16. SOOSIE | Kirkus Reviews.
  17. "Marven of the Great North Woods". PJ Library.
  18. "Julian Edelman's children's book gets a Jewish makeover". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  19. Tamar Snyder (February 14, 2011). "PJ Library Now Speaking Volumes". Retrieved March 21, 2016.
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