Gifts that Give Back 2012

'Twas the night of Thanksgiving,
and all through the town
people were camped out,
for prices marked down. 

"Bah, humbug" you say
to a Friday that's black,
I will shop instead 
for gifts that give back. 

For the Apple fan, a new case
from (Product) RED you can give.
Help Africa fight diseases,
so they can grow strong and live. 

For the cool rock star in your life,
SMS Audio takes the lead.
To help Feeding America
give nutritious meals to those in need.

Young reader who's hooked on her Kindle?
Give her Jessica Park's Flat-Out Love.
With Amazon, you can donate one too.
Through Worldreader, it's easy to do.*

Your bookworm prefers to turn the page?
Better World Books is all the rage.
Each book you buy, they donate one too. 
E-books now included, that's something new!

And speaking of books,
How about a do-gooder's guide?
Try Wendy Smith's Give a Little  
or Pay it Forward by Hyde. 

For guys and gals with laid back style,
Check out the tees by Sevenly.
Each week, brand new shirts help a new cause.
The fit and fabric are heavenly. 

Avoid malls and mayhem.
There's simply no reason.
Give gifts that give back
this holiday season.





*For most of December, Amazon will also donate an e-book for each Amazon Children's Publishing e-book purchased, including Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park.

Better World Books August Book Drive Day 6

“I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do.” Helen Keller

"A room without books is like a body without a soul." ~ Cicero

Today's book is Give a Little by Wendy Smith. I have actually read this book before, but chose to re-read it today and then send it on to Better World Books because it is the book that inspired me to undertake this project in the first place.

Give a Little corrects the common misconceptions about giving, shows what a huge impact the smallest of donations can make and gives advice on how to make sure you are getting the biggest bang for your donated buck.

I was shocked to discover that people just like me giving small donations ended up giving $229 billion dollars in 2008. After the 2004 tsunami, it was American citizens (most of whom gave gifts of less than $50), not the government or corporations that donated the most money.  We may not be Oprah or Bill Gates, but together our donations make a huge difference.  When I first read this book, that served as a huge inspiration for me. I often worried that the little I gave didn't  make much of a difference. Now I see that it is the small donations that make the biggest changes in the world. The book goes on to show examples of how small donations have cured diseases in the past (such as dimes for polio) and gives lots of inspiring stories and ideas of where your small donations can change lives now.

This book not only provided me with plenty of new ideas for giving, it also inspired me to try and find ways that I could make small changes in my everyday life. One of these changes was to try and buy from companies that give back and support causes I believe in, such as Better World Books. Donating the books I buy from them back to them so that I would be doing even more for literacy programs seemed like the next logical step.