Foster a Love of Reading

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library

The Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library (DPIL) program provides free books to children every month from birth until age 5. Each child gets a book with their name on it, delivered right to their home, making reading fun and easy.

United Way of Southwest is honored to serve as the local DPIL affiliate for Choctaw and Mobile counties. Started by Dolly Parton in 1995, the program aims to help kids develop a love for reading

In total, 1,734 books were distributed to the children of Choctaw and Mobile counties last year alone, bringing the magic of reading to the youngest members of our community.

Lifelong Impact

Benefits

  • Fosters a love for reading

  • Enhances early childhood literacy

  • Supports educational success

  • Empowers families

Sign Up for Imagination Library

Get Started Here

With Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, you can build your child their very own library before they even start Kindergarten!

To register your child to receive a book a month from the Imagination Library scan the QR code or click here.

How It Works

The Dollywood Foundation manages the system to deliver the books to the home. They put books into the hands and hearts of children across the world. The books are specially selected, age-appropriate, high-quality books delivered to registered children each month from birth to age five. These books are personalized with the child’s name and mailed directly to the child’s home to create a gifting experience that makes books exciting and shows the child that someone is thinking of them.

Dolly Parton believes if you can read, you can do anything so, in 1995, she developed Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Book Gifting Program in her hometown of Sevier County, Tennessee. Since then, she has distributed over 90 million books in over 2,000 local communities worldwide.

About Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library

Since launching in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has become the preeminent early childhood book gifting program in the world. The flagship program of The Dollywood Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, has gifted over 200 million free books in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and The Republic of Ireland. This is achieved through funding shared by The Dollywood Foundation and Local Program Partners. The Imagination Library mails more than 2 million high-quality, age-appropriate books each month to enrolled children from birth to age five. Dolly envisioned creating a lifelong love of reading and inspiring children to Dream More, Learn More, Care More, and Be More®. The program has been widely researched and results demonstrate the positive impact on early childhood development and literacy skills. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. For more information, please visit http://imaginationlibrary.com.

Funding Partners

Mobile County Public School System

Alabama Civil Justice Foundation

Innovate Alabama

Innovate Alabama

The J.L. Bedsole Foundation logo

The J.L. Bedsole Foundation

Mobile United logo

Mobile United