Book Donations

The Friends of the Jefferson-Madison Library is a 501c(3) organization. Donations are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.

Where and When to Donate:

The Friends of the Library is located in the Gordon Avenue Library Basement Lobby (off the parking lot). The Gordon Avenue Library is located at 1500 Gordon Avenue, Charlottesville, VA .Donations can be brought to the lower level lobby at any time the Gordon Avenue Branch is open:

Monday 9:00 - 9:00
Tuesday 9:00 - 6:00
Wednesday 12:00 - 9:00
Thursday 10:00 - 6:00
Friday 10:00 - 5:00
Saturday 10:00 - 5:00
Sunday Closed

When NOT to Donate:

In order to prepare and operate our sales efficiently, we  ask that the public refrain from making donations to any of our branches 3 weeks prior to the sale, for the duration of the sale, and until the Saturday after the sale. 

Fall 2020:  WE WILL BE ACCEPTING DONATIONS THROUGH FRIDAY, MARCH 13 AND WILL RESUME ACCEPTING DONATIONS ON SATURDAY, APRIL 18.

How to Donate:

We appreciate your delivering donations in boxes, bags, or other containers. Small moving boxes (16 x 12 x 12) or bankers's boxes are best for us. If you do not have a container then please stack them on the large table to the left in the lower level lobby of the Gordon Avenue branch, or on the small table and shelf to the right.

Large donations should be brought to the Gordon Avenue Library. Smaller donations (of 3 or less boxes or bags) to any branch of the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library. See jmrl.org for branch locations and hours.

If unable to deliver donations, arrangements may sometimes be made for pick-up. Call 434.977.8467 or email info@jmrlfriends.org

What we would like to receive:

• books on all subjects, of all ages, for all ages, in a condition that will sell
• records, compact discs, DVDs, sheet music, games, puzzles

What we DO NOT want donated:

No Encyclopedias, audio or video tapes, or magazines

Books that are in a poor or bad condition, i.e. having one or more of the following:

• broken spine; missing pages or covers
• water, food or other stains; mildew; rot; excessively yellowed pages
• crudely, heavily or excessively annotated, highlighted, underlined or otherwise marked

Books for which there is no ready market:

• Reader’s Digest Condensed Books; 1950s Book Club Editions of hard back general fiction
• Hallmark or Gibson books; Harlequin paperback romances
• Omnibus editions of books categorized as general fiction, however, we DO accept omnibus editions of fiction in crime/mystery, westerns and science fiction.

Please note that donations that we cannot use are disposed of in one of the following ways:

• given to another worthy cause: e.g. schools, institutions, self-help groups, etc;
• made available to the public through the library branches’ free paper-back book boxes
• ecologically recycled