The Oglala Lakota College Library, the only public library on the reservation, coordinates an ongoing “Build Your Own Library” project for which they hold events for children in various areas of the reservation.
All children are invited and they have a story time session after which the children are offered a selection of age-appropriate books from which they can choose titles they like to take home with them. The library is trying to engage the children in reading, expose them to the opportunities the library has to offer, and encourage them to build their own libraries at home.
In order to do this, the library is seeking donations of new and/or very gently used children’s books in like-new condition for ages pre-school to 10 years old. Please take a moment to look through your bookshelves at home, purchase some children’s books locally or order some online and have them shipped directly to the OLC Library.
Below are some suggested titles – if you donate any of the books listed below, please let me know. Also, please be aware many book vendors often do not let the gift recipient know who sent the books so if you are able to include a gift card message, please note your name and address so they know who made the donation.
Thank you very much for supporting the OLC Library, and encouraging a lifelong love of reading for the children of Pine Ridge Reservation!
Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I may receive a small percentage of that purchase, at no extra cost to you, which helps support this site. Read full disclosure here.
Please join us over at the FoPRR Google Group!
Donated/Needed as of 1/2021:
We Are Water Protectors (Goal 20, 21 donated)
Fry Bread (Goal 20, 21 donated)
Between Earth & Sky: Legends of Native American Sacred Places (Goal 20, 22 donated–Thank you!)
Crazy Horse: Young War Chief (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
Beaver Steals Fire: A Salish Coyote Story (Goal 20, 21 donated–Thank you!)
SkySisters (Goal 20, 4 donated–Thank you! Need 16 )
Trombone Shorty (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
The Star People: A Lakota Story (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
Goodnight Moon (Goal 20, 21 donated–Thank you!)
The Earth under Sky Bear’s Feet (Goal 20, 21 donated–Thank you!)
Grandmother’s Dreamcatcher (Goal 20, 21 donated–Thank you!)
Ada Twist, Scientist (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
Thirteen Moons on Turtle’s Back (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
Rosie Revere, Engineer (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
Holes (Goal 20, 21 donated–Thank you!)
Iggy Peck, Architect (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
Muskrat Will Be Swimming (Goal 20, 21 donated–Thank you!)
Drum Dream Girl (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
Crazy Horse’s Vision (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
How Chipmunk Got His Stripes (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
The Wonderful Things You Will Be (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
A Boy Called Slow (Goal 20, 21 donated–Thank you!)
Raven: A Trickster Tale from the Pacific Northwest (Goal 20, 21holes donated–Thank you!)
She Persisted: 13 American Women Who Changed the World (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you!)
Children of the Longhouse (Goal 20, 20 donated–Thank you! )
The First Strawberries (Goal 20, 27 donated–Thank you! )
The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses (5 donated–Thank you!)
Please ship your books here (during the pandemic, please try the p.o. box address first)
UPS/FedEx*:
Sharon Janis, Director
Oglala Lakota College Library
BYOL Project/FoPRR
310 Piya Wiconi Road
Kyle, SD 57752
U.S. Mail**:
Sharon Janis, Director
Oglala Lakota College Library
BYOL Project/FoPRR
P. O. Box 310
Kyle, SD 57752
*When entering this address on Amazon orders you’ll get a message that says “This street name or number appears to be invalid.” Ignore it and continue by clicking on the “Ship to this address” button and it will accept it.
**Please make sure to use P.O. Box addresses only if shipping via the post office, not the street addresses.
Please Note: Due to the volume of donations shipped to the reservation FoPRR cannot verify delivery of your boxes. If you require confirmation of delivery, please purchase delivery confirmation from the post office or use your shipping service’s or vendor’s tracking system.