Books Are Fun
Books Are Fun operates Book Blast, a school-based literacy program that distributes books to K-12 students at no cost to schools, funded entirely through voluntary contributions from family, friends, and sponsors. It serves thousands of US schools via a donation-driven model.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1992
- HeadquartersBroomfield, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Books Are Fun does
Books Are Fun, Inc. is a private, mission-driven company headquartered in Louisville, Colorado, that operates a school-based literacy program called Book Blast. The company partners directly with K-12 schools, principals, librarians, and educators to distribute books to students at no cost to the school, with funding sourced entirely from voluntary monetary contributions made by friends, family, and sponsors of participating students. Since its founding in 1992, Books Are Fun has distributed over 15 million books to students nationwide and works with thousands of schools. The company originally operated book and gift displays in offices and schools but has since pivoted to focus exclusively on building children's home libraries through Book Blast.
Books Are Fun's core product is Book Blast, a contribution-driven literacy event in which schools host the program, students invite family and friends to make voluntary contributions, and every participating student receives books regardless of contribution outcome. The company supplements Book Blast with three digital surfaces: the Contribution Portal for voluntary donor contributions, the Shop at shop.booksarefun.com for program-participant Shopping Spree redemptions, and a separate general Store at store.booksarefun.com for public book purchases. Supporting program components include a Kids & Families offering and an Educators program targeting school administrators and teachers. Technology is not proprietary; the stack relies on HubSpot for consultative scheduling, Google Analytics for site analytics, Rippling for ATS, a third-party payment processor, and CCPA/COPPA-compliant data handling.
Revenue mechanics are donation-driven rather than transactional with schools: schools pay $0, and contributions flow through the Contribution Portal without creating entitlements to specific products. Marketing is content-led, anchored on educator testimonials, a company blog covering literacy research, and organic SEO. The company describes itself as 100% sponsor-funded and operates within a single-country (US) geography, with no disclosed financials, no funding rounds, and no parent company.
Books Are Fun firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Books Are Fun
- Legal name
- Books Are Fun, Inc.
- Website
- https://booksarefun.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1992
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Books Are Fun operates Book Blast, a school-based literacy program that distributes books to K-12 students at no cost to schools, funded entirely through voluntary contributions from family, friends, and sponsors. It serves thousands of US schools via a donation-driven model.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Books Are Fun industry classification
Industry- Product category
- School Literacy Programs
- NAICS
- Book Publishers (51313)
- SIC
- Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Library, Reading Motivation & Independent Reading Programs (EDAMAJAO)
Keywords
Where Books Are Fun is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Broomfield
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Books Are Fun business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Monetary Contributions / Philanthropic Funding: Books Are Fun generates revenue entirely through voluntary monetary contributions made by friends and family of participating students, as well as sponsors. The Contribution Portal allows individuals to make voluntary donations in support of the Book Blast program. Contributions are not purchases of goods or services and do not create entitlements to specific products. The company is described as 100% sponsor-funded.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Book Blast program — free for schools, funded by contributions |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Books Are Fun product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Books Are Fun operates the Book Blast program, a school-based literacy initiative in which K-12 schools partner with the company to deliver free books to every participating student, funded entirely by voluntary monetary contributions collected from students' friends, family, and sponsors. The program is supplemented by an online Shop for Shopping Spree redemptions, a general online Store for retail book purchases, and a Contribution Portal that processes the donations that underwrite the program.
Product overview
Books Are Fun operates as a single-focus literacy nonprofit offering the Book Blast program as its primary product, supplemented by two e-commerce platforms (The Shop and The Store) and a contribution portal. Book Blast is a school-based program that distributes books to students at no cost to schools, funded through voluntary contributions from family and friends. The Shop enables Shopping Spree redemptions for Book Blast participants, while The Store serves general retail customers. The company was originally founded in 1992 selling book and gift displays but pivoted entirely to children's home library development.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Book Blast: A school-based literacy program that helps students build home libraries by obtaining contributions from friends and family, with every participating student receiving books at no cost to the school.
Products and services
- Book Blast The flagship school-based literacy program that enables K-12 students to build home libraries through a contribution-based fundraising model. Schools participate at no cost while friends and family contribute to provide books directly to every student at the participating school.
- The Shop (shop.booksarefun.com) An online redemption portal where educators and parents who have been awarded a Shopping Spree through the Book Blast program can redeem credits to select and order age-appropriate books for students. Available exclusively to Book Blast program participants, not a public retail store.
- The Store (store.booksarefun.com) A general retail e-commerce website operated by Books Are Fun for purchasing books and related products. Distinct from The Shop, the Store is open to the public and accepts standard payment methods.
- Contribution Portal An online portal enabling friends and family of participating students, as well as organizational sponsors, to make voluntary monetary contributions in support of students' book deliveries through the Book Blast program. Contributions are voluntary donations and do not constitute purchase of goods or entitlements to specific products.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 15 million books distributed to students nationwide; schools report increases in reading scores and excitement for reading
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Books Are Fun
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Books Are Fun technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration5 records
Books Are Fun partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Books Are Fun competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- First Book: Nonprofit that distributes free and low-cost books to children in low-income communities, primarily through schools and educational programs. Directly comparable to Books Are Fun in mission (building home libraries for underserved kids) and channel (school partnerships), though funded by donations and corporate sponsors rather than parent-driven contributions.
- Reading Is Fundamental (RIF): Long-established children's literacy nonprofit that provides free books and reading resources to underserved children through schools, libraries, and community programs. Comparable mission, school-channel distribution, and donation-funded model.
- Dolly Parton's Imagination Library: Worldwide book-gifting program that mails free books to children from birth to age five, funded by local affiliates and sponsors. Comparable in goal (building home libraries of books) and donation funding, though the distribution model is direct-to-home rather than through schools.
- Collective Goods (formerly Books Are Fun): Based on the Rippling ATS link referencing 'Collective Goods Holdings Inc.' as the corporate parent of Books Are Fun, this appears to be the same company's current parent brand, which historically sold book and gift displays to schools and offices. Same legal entity, evolved into Book Blast.
Emerging players
- Raising A Reader: National nonprofit that partners with schools, libraries, and community organizations to provide books and reading engagement support to families. Comparable in mission, school-channel distribution, and parent-engagement focus.
- Reach Out and Read: Nonprofit that partners with pediatricians to give free books to children at well-child visits, focused on early literacy. Adjacent mission (building home libraries, addressing book access) and comparable donation/sponsorship model, but a different distribution channel (pediatric clinics).
- United Through Reading: Nonprofit that connects military families with read-aloud experiences and provides free books to children. Adjacent in mission (free book distribution to children) and donation-funded, but focused on the military family segment.
- PJ Library: Sends free children's books monthly to families, funded by philanthropic sponsors. Comparable in mission (home book distribution) and donation/sponsorship revenue model, though narrower in audience and not school-channel.
Broad incumbents
- Scholastic: Largest U.S. children's book publisher and distributor, with deep school channel relationships through book fairs and book clubs. Operates Scholastic Reading Club and school-based distribution that overlaps with Books Are Fun's school distribution model, though at much larger scale and with a publishing business model.
Regional players
- BookTrust (UK): UK charity that gifts books to children via schools to build home libraries. Directly comparable mission and school-channel model, but operates exclusively in the United Kingdom rather than the U.S.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Books Are Fun social profiles
Digital presenceBooks Are Fun compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Books Are Fun financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Books Are Fun leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Books Are Fun funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Books Are Fun M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Books Are Fun
What does Books Are Fun do?
Books Are Fun operates the Book Blast program, a school-based literacy initiative in which K-12 schools partner with the company to deliver free books to every participating student, funded entirely by voluntary monetary contributions collected from students' friends, family, and sponsors. The program is supplemented by an online Shop for Shopping Spree redemptions, a general online Store for retail book purchases, and a Contribution Portal that processes the donations that underwrite the program.
Is Books Are Fun a public or private company?
Books Are Fun is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Books Are Fun founded?
Books Are Fun was founded in 1992. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Books Are Fun based?
Books Are Fun is headquartered in Broomfield, United States, in the North America region.
How does Books Are Fun make money?
One revenue line is on record: monetary Contributions / Philanthropic Funding.
Who are Books Are Fun's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are First Book, Reading Is Fundamental (RIF), Dolly Parton's Imagination Library and Collective Goods (formerly Books Are Fun). Emerging players are Raising A Reader, Reach Out and Read, United Through Reading and PJ Library. Scholastic is listed as a broad incumbent. BookTrust (UK) is listed as a regional player.
Does Books Are Fun have an API?
No public API is recorded for Books Are Fun.
What industry is Books Are Fun in?
Books Are Fun's product category is School Literacy Programs. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAMAJAO, Library, Reading Motivation & Independent Reading Programs. Its NAICS code is 51313 and its SIC code is 2731.