Dolly's Imagination Library expands into Canada

In November, Dolly announced to a Toronto audience that the “Book Lady” was about to begin Imagination Library book deliveries in Canadian communities. For the first time, the program crossed a border with the goal of instilling a love for reading in all children worldwide.

The Dollywood Foundation of Canada secured an agreement with the Canadian-based organization, Invest in Kids, to help bring books to as many Canadian preschoolers as possible.

This year, many initiatives were successful in terms of geography and growth. For example, Michigan representatives, inspired by many of the surrounding communities, providing Imagination Library books, appropriated $500,000 for school districts to match in order to provide a “book a month” program. This $1,000,000 would be largely devoted to the program and significantly expanding the effort across the state.

The total number of books distributed climbed to over 3 million. Since the beginning, over 7 million books have been mailed to children.