Access Books
Access Books is a Los Angeles-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded in 1999, that refurbishes school libraries and distributes free books to Title I K-8 public schools across Southern California and the Bay Area.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1999
- HeadquartersLos Angeles, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Access Books firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Access Books
- Legal name
- Access Books
- Website
- https://accessbooks.net
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1999
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Access Books is a Los Angeles-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded in 1999, that refurbishes school libraries and distributes free books to Title I K-8 public schools across Southern California and the Bay Area.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Access Books industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Nonprofit Literacy Services
- NAICS
- Libraries and Archives (519210), Libraries and Archives (51921)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Libraries, Archives & Special Collections (BPAGAHAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- School Library Operations (K–12 Libraries) (EDAEAGAA), Literature & Book Clubs / Guided Reading Groups (EDAMAJAG), Public Libraries & Information Services (BPAIACAO)
Keywords
Where Access Books is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Los Angeles
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Access Books business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Individual Donations: Financial donations from individuals supporting childhood literacy. 90 cents of every dollar goes directly to books, libraries, and literacy programming.
- Corporate Sponsorships: Corporate partners like L.A. Care and Blue Shield of California Promise HealthPlans provide funding for specific programs. Sponsorship levels range from $500 to $50,000 with various recognition benefits.
- Foundation and Government Grants: Grant funding to support library refurbishments and book purchases. The federal government provides approximately 38 cents per child for school libraries.
- Book Donations: New and gently used children's books donated by individuals, corporations, schools, scout troops, and faith-based organizations form the core inventory distributed to partner schools.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Access Books product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Access Books is a nonprofit organization that refurbishes neglected public school libraries and distributes curated children's book collections to underserved K-8 students. The organization transforms outdated library spaces through painting, murals, new furniture, and approximately 3,500 new titles per school, while also offering take-home book bundles, author visits, book clubs, and volunteer-driven service events.
Product overview
Access Books is a nonprofit organization offering a suite of interconnected literacy programs centered on school library revitalization. The core offerings include Library Refurbishments (transforming neglected libraries with new books, murals, and furniture), Book Bundles (take-home books for students), Author Visits (connecting students with published authors), and Book Clubs (school-based reading groups). Supporting programs include the Artist in Residence mural program, Book Drives for community collection, Library Grants for qualifying schools, Corporate Partnership (Books Make Good Company), Custom Fundraising for personal milestones, Mitzvah Projects for Jewish youth, and Group/Scout Volunteering. These programs work together to provide books, welcoming library spaces, and literacy experiences to underserved students in Southern California.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Library Refurbishments Core program that transforms neglected school libraries into welcoming, functional spaces by removing outdated materials, painting murals, adding new book collections (approximately 3,500 titles per library), and reorganizing layouts to serve K-8 students at qualifying Title I schools.
- Book Bundles Curated sets of new, high-interest books (typically 6-8 books) that students in underserved schools take home and keep, distributed before winter, spring, and summer breaks to build personal home libraries.
Quantifiable outcome
- 81,000 books provided and more than 10,000 students served in one spring semester
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Access Books
Customer profileNamed customers12 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Access Books technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Access Books partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.
- Children's Book WorldcoreLocal bookstore partnered with Access Books to assist with LA wildfire relief efforts, working to get books into children's homes and temporary classrooms. Jointly coordinated with Children's Book Council and publishers.
- Random House, Scholastic, Sourcebooks, Candlewick, and Chronicle BookscoreMajor publishers donated new books for wildfire relief efforts, working with Children's Book World and Access Books to provide books for fire-affected school communities.
- Steinway MovingminorSteinway Moving delivered a truckload of books donated by East Coast families to Access Books warehouse for wildfire relief distribution.
- Kitty FeldeminorPartnership with Kitty Felde produced 4 podcasts through the Book Club for Kids program, connecting students with literacy content.
- YALLWEST Book FestivalflagshipAnnual book festival in Santa Monica featuring bestselling YA and middle grade authors. Access Books brought busloads of children from underserved communities to experience the festival and meet authors.
- L.A. Care Health PlancoreL.A. Care provided $65,000 to Access Books to assist with creation of mini libraries at Community Resource Centers across L.A. County. Partnership brings books to families visiting CRCs in Lynwood, Koreatown, El Monte, Inglewood, Norwalk, Pomona, and Palmdale, totaling 6,200 brand new books in English and Spanish.
- Blue Shield of California Promise Health PlancoreBlue Shield Promise contributed $65,000 jointly with L.A. Care for mini library creation at Community Resource Centers. The partnership supports family literacy programs and children's activities at CRCs.
- Los Angeles TimesflagshipLiteracy partnership with LA Times to create bilingual reading guide for parents and educators encouraging youth literacy. Access Books partnered with the LA Times Reading by 9 initiative.
- NBC Los Angeles (KNBC)minorKNBC featured Access Books in December 2015 news story about elementary school library transformation in Watts, highlighting book access disparity.
- Jeff Kinney, Dav Pilkey, Stephan Pastis, and Lincoln PeirceflagshipCelebrity children's authors held Drawn Together event at Walt Disney Concert Hall raising funds for Access Books. Authors include creators of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Captain Underpants, Timmy Failure, and Big Nate.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Access Books competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Little Free Library: Nonprofit that builds and stewards small book-sharing boxes in communities — comparable grassroots, volunteer-powered book-access model, but via take-any book-sharing rather than school-library refurbishment.
- First Book: Nonprofit that distributes new books and educational resources to children in low-income communities, primarily through Title I schools and programs serving kids in need — closest direct peer by mission and beneficiary segment.
- Books for Africa: Nonprofit collecting and distributing books to libraries in Africa — comparable book-collection-and-distribution model targeting under-resourced libraries, but at international scale.
Emerging players
- United Through Reading: Nonprofit connecting deployed military parents with their children through shared reading experiences — adjacent literacy-and-book-access mission serving a specific under-served population.
Broad incumbents
- Room to Read: Global nonprofit focused on literacy and gender equality in education, including school library construction and book publishing in low-income communities — comparable school-library-refurbishment model operating internationally.
- Reading Is Fundamental (RIF): National nonprofit providing free books and literacy resources to underserved children across the U.S. — directly comparable mission of book access for low-income K–8 students, but at much larger national scale.
- Reach Out and Read: Nonprofit leveraging pediatricians to promote early literacy and provide books to low-income families — comparable book-distribution-to-underserved-children mission via institutional partnerships.
- Dolly Parton's Imagination Library: Mail-based book gifting program delivering free age-appropriate books to children from birth to age five — comparable early-childhood literacy mission with direct home-library impact.
- National Education Association (NEA) Read Across America: NEA's national literacy initiative promoting reading motivation and book access for K–12 students — comparable literacy-promotion mission at much larger national institutional scale.
Regional players
- LAUSD Beyond the Bell / LA Public Library Foundation: Los Angeles public library support foundation and district programs serving the same geography as Access Books — comparable library-support mission but focused on public branch libraries rather than K–12 schools.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Access Books social profiles
Digital presenceAccess Books compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Access Books financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Access Books leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Access Books subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Access Books funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Access Books 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 Access Books
What does Access Books do?
Access Books is a nonprofit organization that refurbishes neglected public school libraries and distributes curated children's book collections to underserved K-8 students. The organization transforms outdated library spaces through painting, murals, new furniture, and approximately 3,500 new titles per school, while also offering take-home book bundles, author visits, book clubs, and volunteer-driven service events.
Is Access Books a public or private company?
Access Books is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Access Books founded?
Access Books was founded in 1999. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Access Books based?
Access Books is headquartered in Los Angeles, United States, in the North America region.
How does Access Books make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Individual Donations are the primary driver. The others are corporate Sponsorships, foundation and Government Grants and book Donations.
Who are Access Books's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Little Free Library, First Book and Books for Africa. United Through Reading is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Room to Read, Reading Is Fundamental (RIF), Reach Out and Read, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library and National Education Association (NEA) Read Across America. LAUSD Beyond the Bell / LA Public Library Foundation is listed as a regional player.
Does Access Books have an API?
No public API is recorded for Access Books.
What industry is Access Books in?
Access Books's product category is Nonprofit Literacy Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAHAF, Libraries, Archives & Special Collections, with a secondary code of EDAEAGAA, School Library Operations (K–12 Libraries). Its NAICS code is 519210 and its SIC code is 8200.