Author launches grants for libraries

Having handed out more than $1 million to help independent bookstores, James Patterson is now sharing his wealth with some other vital, but often struggling, institutions: school libraries.

The best-selling author announced on Monday that he was donating $1.25 million through a grant program administered with Scholastic Reading Club, a division of Scholastic, Inc. Libraries or supporters of libraries can seek donations of $1,000 to $10,000. Scholastic will match each donation with "Bonus Points" that can be used to purchase classroom materials. According to Patterson, requests can be for anything from fixing a computer system to paying for a school reading project.

"James Patterson is such a champion of books and reading for all children. We are thrilled to work with him to support school libraries, which are essential for thriving school communities," Judy Newman, president of Scholastic Reading Club, says in a statement.

Patterson, who has strong memories of his weekly visits to libraries as a child, said during a recent interview that he wanted to "shine a light" on the problem of public schools with no libraries or underfunded libraries. In California, for instance, there was just one certified school librarian for every 7,784 students in 2012-13.

"A lot of schools also don't have as many books as they should have," says Patterson.

"There's a myth out there among some people that the kids are reading only digital books now. They're not."

The program will begin with a $250,000 donation from Patterson, with the remaining $1 million to be distributed throughout the year.

It's the latest work of philanthropy for Patterson, an advocate of literacy for more than a decade through such projects as Read, Kiddo, Read and the James Patterson PageTurner Awards, offering cash prizes to individuals who helped promote and encourage reading.