YES- we are open today for office hours! Stop by between noon and two pm and we'll be there to assist you with all of your bookish needs. #ReadBannedBooks

It's important to know who's REALLY behind change in our community. Annie's Foundation is the real deal. We're just a group of volunteers who saw the need for action and decided to step up. We have no grants, no major funding sources--just small donations from passionate community members.

This? This is why they are so scared of books, of public libraries, of public schools. Read. Read everything "they" don't want you to. We guarantee you'll be a better person because of it. Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/9GejQ9j 𝟭𝟴,𝟬𝟱𝟴 books donated and counting! #ReadBannedBooks

YES- we are open today for office hours! Stop by between noon and two pm and we'll be there to assist you with all of your bookish needs. #ReadBannedBooks

𝐂𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐫. 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞. 𝐃𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐞’𝐬 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. Support stories where the villain isn’t just “basic human rights” in animal form. Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/9GejQ9j 𝟏𝟕,𝟎𝟐𝟗 books donated and counting! #ReadBannedBooks

𝑵𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝑺𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝑵𝒊𝒎𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒔, 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕 2: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐢𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝. 𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑖𝑓, 𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑡𝑒𝑒𝑛, 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑚𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑙𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑𝑛'𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑....

𝐀 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫 𝐁𝐫𝐨 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐠 (𝑴𝑭𝑨 𝒊𝒏 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑭𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚) 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐅𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐨𝐦 (𝑂𝑢𝑟 𝑓𝑎𝑣𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑡𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐷𝑒𝑠 𝑀𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑠 𝐹𝑎𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑟'𝑠 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑒𝑡.) Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/9GejQ9j 𝟏𝟕,𝟎𝟐𝟗 books donated and counting! #ReadBannedBooks

𝐍𝐨 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲! We love you all, but we were up at 5am yesterday to share the JOY of reading at the Des Moines Farmer's Market yesterday, so we're giving ourselves the day off to rest and recover. Catch you next Sunday!

𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐂𝐊 𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐓!!! Annie's Foundation has just fully restocked the Little Free Library at the Johnston Public Library. Stop by soon for the best selection! Lots of brand-new picture books and some new and gently used books for middle and high school kids. We love sharing the 𝐉𝐎𝐘 of reading!

YES- we are open today for office hours! Stop by between noon and two pm and we'll be there to assist you with all of your bookish needs. #ReadBannedBooks

You already know that back in March, SF 496, Iowa's book-banning law, was blocked in court, and an injunction was issued, essentially rendering the law null and void for the time being.

When the kind folks at Valley Junction Pride approached us and asked if we wanted to sponsor the Drag Story Time, our answer was a no-brainer--YES! We believe in the power of positive LGBTQ role models for kids. Drag story times expose children to positive role models who are living authentically.

Pride is for everyone, and that's why we're giving away books for ALL ages at Valley Junction Pride! We'll be giving away nearly 300 books! Remember, quantities are limited, so if you see something you want, be sure to stop by our booth early! We will be at Pride from 10-4 on Sunday the 29th.

Our work just became more important than ever. Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/9GejQ9j 15,890 books donated and counting! #Resist #ReadBannedBooks

𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐝!!! Annie's Foundation is bringing over 𝟐𝟕𝟎 banned and challenged books featuring LGBTQ voices and stories to Pride on the Riverfront--and we're giving them all away, 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆!

Annie's Foundation is excited to be making our debut at 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐭 in Burlington this Saturday! Did you know that the West Burlington school district has one of the most extensive book bans in the state?

𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐝!!! Last year we gave 486 FREE banned and challenged back to the community at the Juneteenth Neighbor's Day Celebration--do you think you can help us beat that?

YES- we are open today for office hours! Stop by between noon and two pm and we'll be there to assist you with all of your bookish needs. #ReadBannedBooks

𝑨𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒆'𝒔 𝑭𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 𝑬𝒎𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝑮𝑩𝑻𝑸 𝑽𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔, 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆. Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/9GejQ9j

Of COURSE it's a DCG parent 🫤 𝑨𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒆'𝒔 𝑭𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 𝑬𝒎𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝑮𝑩𝑻𝑸 𝑽𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔, 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆. Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/9GejQ9j

𝑨𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒆'𝒔 𝑭𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 𝑬𝒎𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝑮𝑩𝑻𝑸 𝑽𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔, 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆. Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/9GejQ9j

𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬. It really is that simple. This weekend, Annie's Foundation had the honor and the privilege of giving away 𝟏,𝟏𝟐𝟏 queer books at the Capital City Pride celebration in Des Moines.

If you're interested in reading about a crayon's identity crisis, you're in luck! We'll be giving this one away at Valley Junction Pride. 𝑨𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒆'𝒔 𝑭𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 𝑬𝒎𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝑮𝑩𝑻𝑸 𝑽𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔, 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆.

Finally, it's time to announce our Adult book titles for the Pride Banned Book Giveaway! 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲 Six of Crows Heartbreak Boys Riley Weaver Needs a Date to the Gaybutante Ball We All Fall Down 𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲 Queer, There, and Everywhere Master of One Just Happy to be Here

We'll be giving this one away at Valley Junction Pride--find out for yourself if it tests the moral fabric of our society! 𝑨𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒆'𝒔 𝑭𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 𝑬𝒎𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝑮𝑩𝑻𝑸 𝑽𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔, 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆. Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/9GejQ9j

Are you as excited about Capital City Pride as we are? It's time to reveal our Teen selections...here are the books we will have on hand on this weekend. 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲 A Queer History of the United States Bloom The Weight of the Stars Camp Spirit

Capital City Pride is rapidly approaching, so it's time to reveal our Middle Grade Giveaway books! Check out this great assortment: 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲 Starting From Scratch: A Wish Novel Snapdragon (graphic novel) The Vanquishers We Are All Equal! Activists Assemble

In June, we celebrate PRIDE! Over the next several days we'll be sharing our popular 𝑃𝑟𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝑊𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝐴 𝐻𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑒𝑟 series, featuring LGBTQ books.

Do you love a child in preschool or early elementary school? Celebrate the JOY of diversity with them with one of these banned books Annie's Foundation is giving away at PrideFest this weekend. 𝑺𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒅𝒂𝒚 Elton John (Little People, Big Dreams) Fred Gets Dressed Born Ready

Pride is for everyone, even the littlest members of our families! Annie's Foundation will be giving away the following banned and challenged books for infants and toddlers: 𝗦𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗱𝗮𝘆 Teo's Tutu Not Quite Narwhal Neither Being You

Kick off your summer with Annie's Foundation! We'll be back at the Boone Ericson Public Library Summer Reading Kick-Off Carnival from 4-7 TODAY. We have some great banned books to give away, and for all ages!

YES- we are open today for office hours! Stop by between noon and two pm and we'll be there to assist you with all of your bookish needs. #ReadBannedBooks

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐚 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐚 𝐇𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞 Why nuance, art, and history spent a month in exile — until someone realized banning a horse book was a bad look Well, that didn’t take long.

𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐞'𝐬 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 and more than 40 organizations representing parents, grassroots organizers, authors, librarians, booksellers, and publishers have signed a statement on the Trump Administration's firing of Dr. Carla Hayden. 𝑺𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑨𝑪𝑻 𝑵𝑶𝑾!!! bit.ly/EmailHayden

YES- we are open today for office hours! Stop by between noon and two pm and we'll be there to assist you with all of your bookish needs. #ReadBannedBooks

👏 𝐉𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐈𝐭 Let’s take a moment to thank Judge Stephen Locher, who’s rapidly becoming the patron saint of Common Sense in Iowa. His opinion is smart, grounded, and refreshingly free of political theater.

🤐 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 𝐁𝐋𝐎𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐃: 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐋𝐚𝐰 𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐝 The law said schools had to notify parents if a student requested any "accommodation" related to gender identity—but didn’t say what that meant. Judge Locher ruled that was 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐯𝐚𝐠𝐮𝐞.

🧑‍🏫 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆: 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐋𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐊–𝟔 (𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠) The court upheld a portion of the law that prohibits 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐥, 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬 on gender identity or sexual orientation in grades K–6.

✅ 𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐍𝐄𝐖𝐒: 𝐋𝐆𝐁𝐓𝐐+ 𝐂𝐥𝐮𝐛𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 The judge 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝 the vague and unconstitutional parts of the law that banned “programs” and “promotions” related to gender identity and sexual orientation in grades K–6.

⚖️ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞 Iowa Safe Schools and a group of brave families and teachers sued the state over a law that:

📢 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆: 𝐋𝐆𝐁𝐓𝐐+ 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬, 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐖𝐨𝐧 𝐁𝐢𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐈𝐨𝐰𝐚 A federal judge just delivered a major blow to Iowa’s 2023 censorship law, SF496. And for once, we get to say this:

🚨 Iowa Senator Sandy Salmon is demanding the Supreme Court take away the right of same-sex couples to marry—because apparently, attacking families is her top priority. Yes, in 2025. No, it won’t work. And yes, it’s still rooted in bigotry.

We couldn't help but notice that this Banned Books display at the Barnes and Noble on University in West Des Moines seemed to have a very *local* flair! #ReadBannedBooks Support our work by donating here: buff.ly/PQTm5Md

YES- we are open today for office hours! Stop by between noon and two pm and we'll be there to assist you with all of your bookish needs. #ReadBannedBooks

Friends, Indie Bookstore Weekend is HERE! We hope you will take some time to visit one--or all!--of Central Iowa's independent bookstores. Over the past few years we've had the pleasure of getting to know all of these stores and the lovely people who own and run them.

Hi friends, Sara here. A few weeks ago, I got a terrible call in the middle of the night: My dad had died. Dad was always a big reader, and particularly loved science fiction. He helped to instill in both me and my sister a lifelong love of reading.

In a bold move that should concern everyone, the Department of Education has appointed two well-known Moms For Liberty to the state's Social Studies Standards Revision & Review Team. Both are failed school board candidates (thank goodness).

Don't let some prude with a highlighter take away your right to choose what you read. #ReadBannedBooks

𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬, 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐋𝐈𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒! There are two bad bills still alive in the Iowa House. 𝐇𝐅 𝟖𝟖𝟎 would prevent a library from receiving state funding if it is a member of the Iowa Library Association or American Library Association.

We're hitting the road! Join us at Grinnell College 𝐖𝐞𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐀𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐥 𝟐, 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝟒:𝟏𝟓-𝟔:𝟑𝟎𝐩𝐦 (that's tomorrow!). We'll be at Bob's Underground on campus. Annie's Foundation will start with an overview on the state of censorship in Iowa.