Donations
Marin County Free Library has a Collection Development Policy that governs our acceptance of donated materials (See our Collection Development Policy - Gifts and Donations of Books and Materials). Materials accepted at our branches are transferred to the Book Place, the Friends of the Library book store in Novato.
The Book Place is a nonprofit 501(c)3 staffed by a group of volunteers dedicated to making our library system and its programs the best they can be. The income generated from the sale of materials supports a myriad of library programs each year. Please see the Friends of the Library website for more details.
Not all branches accept donations, so please contact your local branch for information before bringing any materials to donate, or take your items directly to The Book Place.
Donations Accepted
Items must be gently used and not show signs of damage. The focus is on re-sellable items to fund critical library programs and needs.
CDs/DVDs in good condition, in original cases and complete sets are limited to 1 box at a time.
- Books (hardcover and paperbacks)
- DVDs (no home-recorded or burned DVDs)
- Music CDs (no home-recorded or burned CDs)
- Books on CD (no cassettes)
- Puzzles
- Sheet music
Donations Not Accepted
Items that are damaged, torn, chewed, underlined or annotated, have yellowed pages, mold or cigarette smell, stained, are spiral-bound or in a ring binder, or contain outdated information.
Boxes of books by one author are discouraged.
- Popular fiction from 70's-80's
- Books from professionals retiring/closing their offices
- National Geographic magazines
- Magazines more than 2 years old (fashion/style more than 1 year old
- Textbooks and manuals
- Encyclopedias and reference sets unless pre-1940 (must be complete)
- Reader's Digest condensed books
- Non-fiction and instructional materials more than 5 years old
- VHS, vinyl records and audio cassettes
- Audiobooks and DVD sets with missing CDs or without original cases
- Home recorded music or movies
- Greetings cards, stationery, and board games