Books for International Goodwill

05/07/2026

BIG HAPPENINGS
A lot has been going on with Books for International Goodwill (BIG) in recent weeks. Here are just a few items of note.

BIG SCHOLARSHIP FOR PROMOTING LITERACY
For the second straight year, thanks to a generous contribution from the Hollins Family Foundation, BIG sponsored a $5000 scholarship in the category of Promoting Literacy to an Anne Arundel County senior high school student. Working through Scholarships for Scholars, BIG gave the award to Sandra Oyedele of Meade High School. The scholarship ceremony was held at St. John's College in Annapolis on April 29.

Sandra is senior class president and president of two honor societies, and has held leadership roles in other school organizations. She was active in several Anne Arundel County public library programs, and volunteered for many food and book collection and distribution efforts, including coordinating a book drive for BIG. Sandra is an excellent and passionate writer. Her scholarship application essays on the importance of literacy, both to her individually and to the community at large, were inspiring. Sandra will be attending the University of Maryland in the fall. BIG is confident that Sandra will make meaningful contributions to whatever her future pursuits are. We will share pictures from the ceremony when they are available.

BOOKS IN AND OUT
This past Monday, BIG received a huge number of donations – books, puzzles, CDs and DVDs - that we estimated to be as many as we’ve ever received on one day. The items came in multiple vehicles and a trailer. BIG had to store many of the books on our shipping shelves in order to have enough room on the floor of the warehouse for volunteers’ sorting of books. This is a good “problem” to have, and we thank both those making the donations and our volunteers for their work in going through all of the items.

On Monday, April 27, BIG loaded 153 boxes of books to send to Wonder Book in Frederick, MD. Wonder Book is the largest bookstore on the East coast, selling books, movies, and music. Several times each year, BIG sends both recent books that are in pristine shape and antique books to Wonder Book. Wonder Book’s payments for these books help cover the costs of our shipping to communities overseas. This load included a huge number of outdated law books from a local attorney that Wonder Book was interested in for possible office/home staging or movie/TV set use.

PACKING AND SHIPPING
On Saturday, April 25, BIG volunteers packed six pallets of books – primarily children’s, fiction, and nonfiction - for upcoming shipments to Uganda and Nigeria. Then, on April 29, BIG loaded 18 pallets of books (about 25,000) for the shipment to Uganda’s Vijana Foundation. The foundation provides resources for education and to develop employment skills. BIG's shipment of books is anticipated to arrive at the port in Kampala, Uganda in early July.

MAY BOOK SALE
BIG will be holding its next public book sale on Friday, May 29 from 3-5 p.m. and Saturday, May 30 from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Put us on your calendar! More details on the sale to come soon.

04/20/2026

APRIL BOOK SALE RESULTS AND OTHER UPDATES

BIG’s regularly scheduled book sale on April 17 and 18, and a special dealer’s popup sale on March 31, netted enough to meet our operating expenses and, along with proceeds from our March sale, can cover the cost of our next overseas shipment of books. In addition to our many local customers, we had customers from New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. BIG continued to get compliments on the quality, selection, and organization of books. As always, we give a huge thanks to both our patrons and the volunteers who make the sales and shipping possible.

BIG’s next book shipment will go to the Vijana Corps in Uganda. We will be loading the shipping container at our warehouse on April 29.

Consistent with our commitment to recycling and contributing to local charities, BIG has agreed to serve as a collection point for used eyeglasses for the Annapolis Lion's Club. There is a box on the sign-in table for our volunteers and we will have a box available at our upcoming sales. BIG also has agreed to participate in Walk-the-Walk’s diaper drive, part of an Anne Arundel County initiative, by collecting diapers at our May sale. More details on this initiative and our next sale to come in the near future.

04/12/2026

APRIL BOOK SALE AND UPDATE FROM CROOKED CRAB BREWING

Books for International Goodwill (BIG) invites you to join us for our April Book Sale. Once again, BIG has received a large number of book donations since the last sale and our shelves are bursting. There are many new titles across all book categories, including classics, fiction, children’s, science and nature, vintage, sports, and religion, among others.

Here are a few highlights of the sale:
• We have a huge number of new titles in history and military, especially relating to WWII.
• Many beautiful cookbooks have been added to our already large collection.
• We received numerous interesting biographies and memoirs.
• A donor gifted BIG with many books about the game of chess.
• Our collections of CDs and TV/children’s DVDs are packed.
• BIG’s shelf of puzzles and games is overflowing.

As usual, we will have tables stocked with small books, journals and diaries, educational materials, and other items that have been donated. Be sure to check out our popular surprise bundles - get 3 hardback fiction books for $3 (normally $12). The bundles include clues about the contents.

Sale Dates and Times:
• Friday, April 17, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
• Saturday, April 18, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Prices are:
- $4 for hardbacks (including coffee table)
- $2 for trade softbound
- $1 for pocket paperbacks and children's books
- $1 for CDs/DVDs
- $2 for games and puzzles
- Other prices as marked.

You may also fill a provided grocery bag with books for just $38 (plus tax).

We accept major credit cards. A 3% transaction fee will be added to cover processing costs. You may also pay with cash or check to avoid the fee.

All proceeds help ship books to underserved communities in the U.S. and abroad that help promote literacy.

Location: 451 Defense Highway, Annapolis, MD (1.7 miles west of the Annapolis Mall, south side of the road, up the drive and all the way to the right). Parking is limited - please use overflow parking to the left of the main driveway if you're able to walk a short distance.

You can find out more about BIG by visiting our webpage at www.big-books.org
or contacting us at [email protected].

Financial contributions can also be made through the United Way of Central Maryland (Organization #9643).

CROOKED CRAB BREWING COMPANY

On Thursday, April 9, Crooked Crab Brewing Company hosted a fundraiser for BIG. Crooked Crab was a great venue – it set aside space for BIG and was very busy. Many customers checked us out and bought books. The fundraiser was successful in terms of funds raised, but also in enhancing the visibility of BIG. There were multiple types of beer to taste, wonderful pizzas, and good cheer all around. BIG gives a "big" thanks to Crooked Crab for sponsoring this event. Please give them a try if you haven’t already: https://www.crookedcrabbrewing.com/. Some pictures are attached. BIG is considering similar partnerships in the future to expand its reach.

03/30/2026

HERE ARE A FEW UPDATES

CROOKED CRAB BREWING FUNDRAISER
Books for International Goodwill (BIG) is taking its show on the road. Crooked Crab Brewing Company, located at 8251 Telegraph Road in Odenton, will be hosting BIG for a fundraising book sale on Thursday, April 9 from 5pm to 8pm. This event was postponed from earlier in the year due to inclement weather; we are excited that Crooked Crab agreed to a new date to host us.

A variety of books will be available for sale at our regular prices. We will also be offering a "six pack" of hardcover books of the buyer's choice for $20, a $4 savings, and a similar deal on children's books. BIG will also have a limited selection of premium signed books priced at $10 and up. Finally, we will be selling BIG 30th Anniversary glasses for $10.

Come out and shop and sample some of the best craft brews and pizza in the area. For more information on Crooked Crab see their website: www.crookedcrabbrewing.com

SHIPMENTS
On Thursday, March 19, BIG loaded 18 pallets of books (about 25,000 BOOKS) for a shipment to a literacy program in Nigeria. The majority of books were children’s, college, fiction, and nonfiction, with some medical and religion added. We also included a stack of educational material, such as maps and posters. The shipment is anticipated to arrive at port in Nigeria on June 1. Our packing crew on March 14 for this shipment included some regulars, local teens, and a group from Whole Foods in Annapolis. BIG appreciates the work of these volunteers that we really depend on to get ready for shipments.

With the shipment to Nigeria, BIG has now processed over 11 million books. Our next shipment is planned for Uganda in late April/early May.

INCOMING AND OUTGOING LOCAL DONATIONS
The Frederick (MD) Rotary Club’s Dave Miller dropped off a pallet of new children’s books on March 13 that were provided by the Monrovia, MD facility of the non-profit organization, Helping Hands and Caring Hearts, https://helpinghandsandcaringhearts.org/
The majority of these books are going in BIG’s shipments to Nigeria and Uganda. BIG greatly appreciates both Helping Hands and Caring Hearts and Dave for making this donation happen.

BIG recently provided approximately 140 children’s and young adult books to several Annapolis area Little Free Libraries through Parole Rotary and individual BIG volunteers. The Little Free Libraries effort is one that we are looking to expand, working with the Annapolis and Parole Rotary clubs.

Whole Foods in Annapolis donated dozens of drinks to share with BIG’s volunteers, including sparkling water, soft drinks, and yerba mate. The volunteers always appreciate the drinks and snacks provided to them!

NEXT BIG BOOK SALE
BIG will hold it’s next regularly scheduled book sale on April 17 and 18 at our warehouse at 451 Defense Hwy, Annapolis. More details to come soon!

03/09/2026

BIG SALE UPDATE

BIG had another successful sale this past Friday and Saturday. Between dealers’ purchases, the public sale, and online sales, BIG collected enough funds to pay for our shipment to Nigeria next week (more to come) and to cover our rent for the warehouse and other expenses. Some of the sections that sold particularly well were classics, fiction, and children’s (as usual), but also our highlighted sections on cookbooks, jewelry/glass/design, and sets (e.g., Durant history, Teddy Roosevelt).

One of the book dealers that regularly comes to our sales said ours is the best organized sale he comes to. Other patrons said the BIG sale is one of their highlights for the month. We see many of the same buyers every sale, for whom we are extremely grateful. As always, BIG gives a huge shoutout to our nearly 150 volunteers, without whom we could not collect, sort, and distribute books to communities in need and to conduct the sales that are our funding lifeblood. We also sincerely appreciate all the book donations we regularly receive - since Friday, about eight pallets of books were donated, so we will have many more books ready for the next sale and to ship!

02/27/2026

MARCH BOOK SALE

Books for International Goodwill (BIG) invites you to join us for our March Book Sale. BIG has received a large number of book donations since the last sale and our shelves again are bursting. There are many new titles in classics, fiction, history/military, children’s, science and nature, cooking, vintage, sports, and religion, among others.

Here are a few highlights of the sale:
• Donors gave us a sizeable number of beautiful cookbooks that are in addition to our already large collection.
• We have a wonderful addition to our books on jewelry, silver, art glass, 19th and 20th century design, and related topics.
• BIG received a great collection of train and railroad books and magazines.
• We added several titles to our Sets section, including Will & Ariel Durant's works on civilization, Norris’ Teddy Roosevelt books, and Gibbon’s Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire.
• Our Local Interest and Signed sections received several wonderful titles, including some first-time, more unusual additions.
• We created a selection of books on everything IRISH to celebrate Saint Patrick's Day.

As usual, we have numerous puzzles, audio books, DVDs, CDs, and LPs. We will have tables stocked with small books, journals and diaries, educational materials, and other items that have been donated. Be sure to check out our popular surprise bundles - get 3 hardback fiction books for $3 (normally $12). The bundles include clues about the contents.

Sale Dates and Times:
• Friday, March 6, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
• Saturday, March 7, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Prices are:
- $4 for hardbacks (including coffee table)
- $2 for trade softbound
- $1 for pocket paperbacks and children's books
- $1 for CDs/DVDs
- $2 for games and puzzles
- Other prices as marked.

You may also fill a provided grocery bag with books for just $38 (plus tax).

We accept major credit cards. A 3% transaction fee will be added to cover processing costs. You may also pay with cash or check to avoid the fee.

All proceeds help ship books to underserved communities in the U.S. and abroad that help promote literacy.

Location: 451 Defense Highway, Annapolis, MD (1.7 miles west of the Annapolis Mall, south side of the road, up the drive and all the way to the right). Parking is limited - please use overflow parking to the left of the main driveway if you're able to walk a short distance.

You can find out more about BIG by visiting our webpage at www.big-books.org
or contacting us at [email protected].

Financial contributions can also be made through the United Way of Central Maryland (Organization #9643).

02/20/2026

DONATION UPDATES

Hi, everyone - this is a short update before BIG's next book sale on March 6 and 7 (more details next week).

BIG receives a huge number of book donations every week from individuals and organizations. Some of the donations are from regular supporters, many others are first-timers who have discovered BIG. The reasons for the donations vary, ranging from specifically wanting to support literacy though book drives, to cleaning out personal libraries when retiring from work or from an estate. The Anne Arundel County Public Schools System and the Public Library System provide thousands of books, primarily children’s and school books, to BIG each year as they update their inventory; these books are wonderful for shipping to deserving recipients overseas. Here are two recent examples of other organization and private donations to BIG.

The Frederick (MD) Rotary Club’s Dave Miller dropped off over 600 books last week. He makes the trek from Frederick to BIG a few times each year. Dave initiated the Frederick Rotary’s book collection efforts in 2000. Over the past 25 years his club has donated about 635,000 books, worth $1.9 million, to BIG. Including travel miles and hours spent, the total value of the contributions is approximately $2 million. BIG salutes Frederick Rotary and Dave for their efforts to support us.

Sophia Vandiver, a high school student from Severna Park, MD, organized a book drive at her school and in her neighborhood to fulfill her service-learning requirement. Sophia delivered 815 books to BIG two weeks ago. The books included children’s and adult fiction and nonfiction. It was a very nice collection that BIG greatly appreciates.

01/30/2026

Books for International Goodwill/Crooked Crab Brewing Company Charity Book Sale Update

The charity event sponsored by The Crooked Crab Brewing Company has been canceled for Sunday, February 1, given the still poor road conditions in many areas and the chance of more snow this coming weekend. BIG thanks Crooked Crab for sponsoring this event and we look forward to rescheduling it during warmer weather. Our apologies to those who had made plans to join us.

In the meantime, put our regularly scheduled March 6-7 book sale on your calendar! We’ll provide more details in the weeks ahead.

01/21/2026

Change of Date for BIG/Crooked Crab Brewing Company Charity Event Due to Impending Snow Storm.

The charity event scheduled for Sunday, January 25 has been rescheduled for Sunday, February 1 at the same time.
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Please join BIG in a new type of event for us – a charity book sale on Sunday, February 1 from 1–4 p.m., hosted by Crooked Crab Brewing Company. Swing by, shop the sale, and snag some great reads. Proceeds will help BIG ship books to communities across the globe, spreading information and stories far beyond the taproom.

Come for the books, grab some pizza, and sample some of the best craft brews in the area!
The event will feature "six packs" of adult hardcover books of your choice for $20 and "six packs" of children’s books of your choice for $5. There also will be premium signed books for $10 and up, a variety of books at BIG’s regular prices, and "mystery packages" of 3 hardcover books for $3. Finally, we will selling BIG 30th Anniversary beverage glasses for $10.

Crooked Crab Brewing is located at 8251 Telegraph Road in Odenton, MD. For more information on Crooked Crab Brewing, see their website at

Crooked Crab Brewing Company is Odenton Maryland's own hometown micro brewery and brick oven pizza kitchen. Indoor seating and online ordering available.

01/18/2026

Post-sale update and new fundraiser announcement

1. BIG had a very successful sale this past Friday afternoon and Saturday, especially given the cold rain and sleet on Saturday. The front area inside the warehouse was jam packed with customers on Friday, 20 minutes before the sale actually began (we kindly let them in to help stay warm)! Classics, vintage, pocket paperbacks, cooking, and children’s sections sold particularly well. Paul Gillespie from the Annapolis Capital Gazette stopped by and took many photos during the sale; see his article at https://www.capitalgazette.com/2026/01/17/books-for-international-goodwill-sale-photos/.

Proceeds from the sale will fund our next shipment of books in February and cover operating costs. As always, thanks to our many patrons and the volunteers who helped set up for, manage, and break down after the sale.

2. Please join BIG in a new type of event for us – a charity book sale on Sunday, January 25 from 1–4 p.m., hosted by Crooked Crab Brewing Company. Swing by, shop the sale, and snag some great reads. Proceeds will help BIG ship books to communities across the globe, spreading information and stories far beyond the taproom. Come for the books, grab some pizza, and sample some of the best craft brews in the area!

The event will feature "six packs" of adult hardcover books of your choice for $20 and "six packs" of children’s books of your choice for $5. There also will be premium signed books for $10 and up, a variety of books at BIG’s regular prices, and "mystery packages" of 3 hardcover books for $3. Finally, we will selling BIG 30th Anniversary beverage glasses for $10.

Crooked Crab Brewing is located at 8251 Telegraph Road in Odenton, MD. For more information on Crooked Crab Brewing, see their website at https://www.crookedcrabbrewing.com/

01/09/2026

Books for International Goodwill (BIG) invites you to come to our January Book Sale, our first sale of 2026. Start the new year with a bang and keep your resolution to read more!

BIG has received a large number of book donations since the last sale and our shelves are bursting. There are many new titles in classics, fiction, history/military, children’s, science and nature, cooking, vintage, sports, and religion, among others. This sale includes volumes of different Guidepost series, such as “Patchwork Mysteries” and “Amish Mysteries.” From the science fiction section, there will be bundles of vintage science fiction books at a special price. We also will have a small bookcase with “adaptations” - books from which current and “coming soon” television shows and movies are based. And, we received numerous bluegrass music sheets that will be available.

As usual, we have numerous puzzles, audio books, DVDs, CDs, and LPs. We will have tables stocked with small books, journals and diaries, educational materials, and other items that have been donated, ranging from small picture frames to a new whale-themed t-shirt. And be sure to check out our popular surprise bundles - get 3 hardback fiction books for $3 (normally $12). The bundles include clues about the contents.

Sale Dates and Times:
• Friday, January 16, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
• Saturday, January 17, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Prices are:
- $4 for hardbacks
- $2 for trade softbound
- $1 for pocket paperbacks and children's books
- $1 for CDs/DVDs
- $2 for games and puzzles

You may also fill a provided grocery bag with books for just $38.

We accept major credit cards. A 3% transaction fee will be added to cover processing costs. You may also pay with cash or check to avoid the fee.

All proceeds help ship books to underserved communities in the U.S. and abroad that help promote literacy.

Location: 451 Defense Highway, Annapolis, MD (1.7 miles west of the Annapolis Mall, south side of the road, all the way to the right). Parking is limited - please use overflow parking to the left of the main driveway if you're able to walk a short distance.

You can find out more about BIG by visiting our webpage at www.big-books.org or contacting us at [email protected].

Financial contributions can also be made through the United Way of Central Maryland (Organization #9643).