I’m working with Battenkill Books, my local bookstore, to ship $425 to Albany in the next few days to stock our free book store with books for the refugee children from Afghanistan. They range in age from infants and toddlers to adolescents and high school students.

I suggested books to the refugee coordinators, and they agreed that would be tremendously helpful to the Afghan families right now.

Connie Brooks from Battenkill Books books has chosen ten copies of Richard Scary’s Best Word Book Ever, ten copies of the All Are Welcome picture book, and five copies of the first Picture Atlas. to send them.

As we learn more about these children, exactly how many they are, how old they are, and what language they are familiar with, I hope to order more books for them. There are 60 Afghan families in Albany already; more are coming.

I have enough money on hand for these books; I’d like to ask for help buying more books, some that focus on picture books and help me learn English.

The best books are expensive. We are choosing them carefully and thoughtfully. I purchased $200 worth of books for the children last week, my donation.

I’m buying these books in $500 chunks until we get what we need and everyone who wants to read can. The Afghan students are generally not familiar with social media. Their parents would like to keep it that way.

As always, any overage will go to the refugee fund; we can use it.

You can help by donating via Paypal, [email protected] and Venmo, [email protected], or by check, Jon Katz, Books, P.O. Box 205 State Route 22, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

Thank you. The Afghan Toy Wish List is going up shortly.