Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting program that mails free books to children from birth to age five in participating communities within the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.
In 2018, The MONARCH TRAIN brought the Imagination Library to Shoshone County. The program serves ages 0-4 (children graduate from the program on their 5th birthday). The goal is to prepare them for kindergarten and instill a lifelong love of reading. Together, we’ve now served over 700 families.
In 2023, The MONARCH TRAIN partnered with United Way of North Idaho to expand the program to Benewah County. Unfortunately, in May 2025, after two years of supporting hundreds of families in the community, we had to suspend the program in Benewah due to a lack of funding resources. We hope this is only a pause as we work to gather additional support.
Since the program started in June 2018, we’ve impacted the community in the following ways:
- We’ve delivered over 15,000 books to hundreds of children. (as of March 2025)
- About half of all eligible children have participated in the program.
- There were zero interruptions to book deliveries during the pandemic, providing literary stability to kids in the Silver Valley.
We’ve heard from many parents who have told us how much being a part of the Imagination Library has meant to their children. When they go to the mailbox and there’s a special gift addressed to them, it makes them feel special to know they’re thought of.
At a Head Start event we attended in Kellogg, Idaho, a parent approached us and thanked us. She said she hadn’t considered reading to her child. She figured she was too young and wouldn’t really understand. Then, when the books started arriving, her daughter asked her to read them to her. Now, it’s not only their nightly routine, but they have an entire library of books to choose from, thanks to the Imagination Library.
So, how did the Imagination Library begin?
Inspired by her father’s inability to read and write, Dolly Parton started her Imagination Library in 1995 for children in her home county. Her goal was to instill an early love of reading and to help prepare children for kindergarten. Today, her program spans four countries and mails over 1 million free books each month to children around the world.
“When I was growing up in the hills of East Tennessee, I knew my dreams would come true. I know there are children in your community with their own dreams. They dream of becoming a doctor or an inventor or a minister. Who knows, maybe there is a little girl whose dream is to be a writer and singer. The seeds of these dreams are often found in books and the seeds you help plant in your community can grow across the world.”
By mailing high-quality, age-appropriate books directly to the homes of children, Dolly wanted children to be excited about books and feel the magic that books can create.
Moreover, she could ensure that every child would have books, regardless of their family’s income.
Books create entire worlds where children can dream of becoming exactly who they want to be. Every child should have access to the imaginative opportunities books provide.
Why can’t Dolly Parton take on 100% of the financial cost of the program?
We’ve had many people ask us why Dolly can’t just financially support the program alone. The answer is simple. Millions of books are sent to children all around the world every single month. If Dolly were to pay for the program alone, she’d eventually run out of funds. Tens of millions of dollars per month is a lot, even for Dolly. It’d also be impossible for her to financially cover every single child on the planet.
Dolly remembers being left out of a lot of things as a child because her family didn’t have much money. Because of this, she doesn’t want any child left out of any program she’s connected to. So, Dolly needs community involvement to make the program grow and thrive, not just for today, but for generations to come.
The Imagination Library is not a charity or a social service; it’s a book-gifting program. The book is a gift from the community to help children develop a love of learning and reading.
The Silver Valley has generously come together to make these gifts possible for the children in our community.
You can help us with our mission to continue the Imagination Library in Shoshone County by donating in one of the following ways:
FACEBOOK:
Go to our page here. On the right-hand side, just below the lead image, you’ll see a big blue “Donate” button. You can also start a fundraiser for us on Facebook and ask your friends and family to help.
PAYPAL:
You can donate through our PayPal page here.
BY MAIL:
Please make checks or money orders payable to:
The MONARCH TRAIN
PO Box 1345
Hayden, Idaho 83835
Your donation is completely tax deductible.
If you have any questions about the program, please do not hesitate to contact us. We appreciate everything you are doing to help children in the Silver Valley have access to books.
If you have a child between the ages of 0-4 and live in Shoshone County, you can register for the program here.
We have a great FAQ page for any questions you might have. Also, below shows you when to expect your first book, depending on the month you register.
| Sign-Up Month | First Book Arrives |
| June | August |
| July | September |
| August | October |
| September | November |
| October | December |
| November | January |
| December | February |
| January | March |
| February | April |
| March | May |
| April | June |
| May | July |
The MONARCH TRAIN 