Marissa’s Books is putting free books into the hands of students and teachers, encouraging kids to foster a love for reading. 

From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., on Saturday, Sept. 20 and Sunday, Sept. 21, the independent bookstore in Millcreek (3302 S. 900 East) will allow each child to select two free books from the children’s section of the shop. 

“There’s no purchase necessary. All people have to do is bring their children in and each child can choose two free books,” owner Cindy Dumas said. “We make it a full-on kids' event. We do face painting, we do popcorn, we’ve got a balloon maker who comes in. We do some kind of cold treat and we have cookies. So it’s all geared towards kids.”

The event started at Marissa’s Books when Dumas kept receiving requests from teachers for book donations. Many of their students didn’t own books and the teachers wanted to give them one to keep for themselves. Although she was willing to donate books to classrooms, Dumas believed children should be able to pick out their own books, based on their reading preferences. 

She didn’t want kids to feel like they were getting “leftover” or used books, so she started the free book event. Children can browse through thousands of brand-new books and select the ones they want to read. 

During the Sunday event, educators throughout the state can show their teaching credentials to receive 10 free children’s books from Marissa’s Books. 

“This is a great way to bring people into the store and they’re wowed by it,” Dumas said. “It’s a good way to introduce people to the store who haven’t been here before.”

Marissa’s Books was founded in 2013 to share Dumas’s love of reading with people all over the world. It’s her goal to make reading accessible to every child and she has been recognized for her generous book donations to a variety of organizations. Marissa’s Books hosts regular book club events and features local authors. Learn more about the bookstore at Marissasbooks.com. 

A balloon artist crafts animals for children attending Marissa’s Books free-book event for students and teachers. (Photo courtesy Cindy Dumas)