MADISON, Wis.— A Madison nonprofit is hoping to give 10,000 books to local kids this holiday season. 

As volunteers “shop” for kids enrolled in the Empty Stocking Club program, their last stop is a big stand full of books. 

Those books are from the Madison Reading Club. At their office on Madison’s west side, outreach coordinator Deirdre Steinmetz spent her morning organizing all the donations. 

She had boxes worth of donated books. Some were used, while others were bought brand new from the project’s wish list. 

“This one, it’s $170 worth of books,” she said as she pulled a bag of books out of a box. That means one person bought all those books for the donation drive. “It’s mind-blowing to me.”

More kids don’t have access to books at school, or libraries, or even friends to trade books with right now. 

“Unfortunately, there’s a lot more need for books right now,” Steinmetz said. “We hear a lot of teachers tell us that kids are experiencing screen burnout, or they're not accessing school at all.” 

The Madison Reading Project is hoping to collect and give out 10,000 books to Dane County kids through the Empty Stocking Club. It’s a big task for them: Their biggest drive in such a short timeframe. 

“Literacy is so important; [it’s] a determining factor in success for everyone,” she said. “Being able to meet benchmarks and having books at home is such an important part of inspiring love for reading.”

It’s tough to estimate just how many books they’ve received so far because each book is “quarantined” after it’s donated. Still, she thinks they’re close to that 10,000 book-mark. 

They’re accepting donations until December 15.