7 minute read
Good Things in Small Boxes
Good Things in Small Boxes
ALLIE MURRAY
Since New York Times Bestselling Author Colleen Hoover released her first book, she has received overwhelming support from readers, which encouraged her to find a way to give back to other authors like herself and charities across the U.S.
Hoover joined forces with fellow author Lin Reynolds and book cover designer Murphy Rae to start The Bookworm Box, a monthly book subscription box that gives back to readers and local charities.
The Bookworm Box fosters a love for reading, and 100 percent of the profits are donated to charities across the country. To date, the box has donated more than $1 million to more than 400 charities, most recently including the East Texas Crisis Center, Dyslexia Association, The NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, and many more. So far in 2022, the team has donated more than $50,000 to charity.
Every box comes with an autographed book, reading accessories like bookmarks, and other reading goods.
“The method by which we choose our books comes down to authors who express interest in being featured, as well as authors who are in high demand from our subscribers,” co-founder Rae explained. “We tend
to put an emphasis on independently published books and try to purchase most of our swag items from small businesses.”
Working with a small team, the Bookworm Box loves to hear directly from their subscribers about what charities to support.
“We have a form on our website that charities can fill out to request grants, and most of our monthly subscription funds go to those organizations,” Rae shared. “Occasionally, we will do a special fundraiser and select organizations that are either important to one of the authors we’ve worked with or someone on our team.”
Rae also explained that they are starting to emphasize charities that support literacy efforts or tackle food insecurity. Similarly, the June Bookworm Box is set to feature LGBTQ+ authors and donate to an LGBTQ+ charity in celebration of pride month.
The Bookworm Box makes it easy to discover a passion for reading and grow a collection of books in the romance and young adult genres. There are seven different boxes to choose from: The Digital Box, The Minimalist Box, The Author Stalker Box, The Swag- Tastic Box, The It’s All About the Books Box, The Digital Box YA, and The Swag-Tastic Box YA.
To continue to pass on acts of kindness, Bookworm Box launched The Kindness Gift, an initiative that the subscribers of the box created.
The Kindness Gift is a gift you can purchase for an anonymous person. It costs $15 and includes one book and some book goodies. You can also submit someone who deserves some extra kindness by submitting the Nominate Kindness Recipient form.
To donate their profits to charities in need, the Bookworm Box team works with a group of dedicated volunteers and authors who donate their books and time to make sure each box contains an autographed novel.
Hoover has been publishing books since 2012, now with more than 20 titles to her name. Online she has built up a wide following base through the #BookTok hashtag on TikTok, bringing some of her older novels back into the spotlight and climbing the New York Times bestseller list.
“It was surreal and still is surreal,” Hoover told Glamour earlier this year. “The first time I was told I made the New York Times in 2012, I didn’t tell anyone for an entire day because I didn’t think it was true. And that’s pretty much how everything has gone since then. It takes time for the good things
to sink in. My husband and I still sometimes look at each other and say, ‘How did this happen? Why did this happen?’”
Earlier this year, Hoover published Reminders of Him and announced a prequel to her fan-favorite novel It Ends with Us, titled It Starts with Us, scheduled to release in October 2022.
The Zero Waste Teen Teaches Youth How to Live an Eco-Conscious Lifestyle
ALLIE MURRAY
From the age of 12, Ava Langridge knew she wanted to do more to protect our planet.
After stumbling upon a YouTube video, Langridge began researching the zero waste movement, and a month later, her family transitioned into a zero waste lifestyle. In three months, she and her family went from sending three trash bags to the landfill per week to only half a bag per week.
Then, to show others how easy it is to live zero waste, she created The Zero Waste Teen, her Instagram persona that showcases the importance of a zero waste lifestyle, and how easy it is to make small changes to your daily routine for the planet.
“I wanted to reach the masses, and social media seemed like the perfect method,” Langridge explained. “The Zero Waste Teen was the only thing I could think of when Instagram asked me what my account name was. I have since embraced this title as my identity in environmentalism. To me, The Zero Waste Teen is a climate activist who goes into
any situation with the goal of not sending any waste to landfill and shares my experience with others to help them do the same.”
Now 17 years old, Langridge has built an online following of more than 46,000 and has furthered her mission by founding Our Youth For The Climate (OY4C), a grassroots organization empowering youth through education.
Founded amid the COVID-19 pandemic, OY4C offers free weekly Zoom workshops on the climate crisis. This year, OY4C is offering four workshops, with plans to branch out to in-person events as COVID restrictions are lifted to attend climate strikes and use their voice to make a difference.
More and more youth organizations dedicated to tackling climate change have continued to pop up, pulling inspiration from climate activist Greta Thunberg. For Langridge, she notes that working collaboratively is the best way to drive systemic change.
“Today’s youth is mostly driven by the wellbeing of others,” she explained. “We listen and share the stories of those most impacted by climate injustice.
I believe that collaboration with all communities will help us create the systematic change we so desperately need.”
Together, Langridge believes that we can save our planet and uses this as the driving force for OY4C. As a team, they work collaboratively to encourage youth to take the initiative to stop the climate crisis.
To do so, they’ve hosted virtual events and created a pledge, with
the goal of having 50,000 take the oath. Not only are they driven to make a difference for the climate, but they are also focused on creating ways for all people to get involved and give back.
“As a movement, we accept anyone from all backgrounds,” Langridge said. “For every project we have done in the past, including our weekly class and our educational webinar, we have included the concept of
intersectional environmentalism, which is defined as an ‘inclusive form of environmentalism that advocates for the protection of all people and the planet’ by Intersectional Environmentalism.”
Ahead of Earth Day, Langridge and the OY4C team encourage others to educate themselves on the climate crisis, research what they can do, and take the pledge. Together, we can create a brighter future.
AVA LANGRIDGE
