I accept Jimmy Santiago Baca donations anywhere in the Albuquerque metro with free pickup — the whole collection: Martín & Meditations on the South Valley, Immigrants in Our Own Land, Black Mesa Poems, Winter Poems Along the Rio Grande, the memoir A Place to Stand, the essays, and the stories. You don't sort or price anything. Bring it all: I check every book by hand, and readable copies go back to readers.
Published June 2026 · By Josh Eldred, New Mexico Literacy Project
Jimmy Santiago Baca is an Albuquerque South Valley poet whose story is, at its core, a literacy story: he taught himself to read and write while incarcerated, and went on to win the American Book Award and become one of the most powerful voices in Chicano letters. That makes a Baca collection especially close to the heart of what I do. When one gets cleared, most people just want it to land somewhere that honors it. That's exactly what I'm for: I take the whole thing, free, and I check every book.
What I take: all of it
The poetry
Martín & Meditations on the South Valley (1987), Immigrants in Our Own Land (1979), Black Mesa Poems, Winter Poems Along the Rio Grande, C-Train and Thirteen Mexicans, and Spring Poems Along the Rio Grande.
Memoir & essays
The acclaimed memoir A Place to Stand, the essay collection Working in the Dark, and Stories from the Edge.
Fiction & any condition
A Glass of Water and the other novels and story collections; plus reading copies, signed copies, the New Directions and Grove editions, and scarce early chapbooks — bring whatever's on the shelf.
Why bring the whole shelf
Donating takes one call or text: no research, no pricing, no listings, no shipping. Free pickup in the Albuquerque metro, or the covered 24/7 drop box outside the gate at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, any hour. I check every book by hand, readable copies go back to readers, and no readable book goes to the landfill. Here's where donated books go.
How free pickup works
Call or text 505-250-3804 (or schedule online), tell me roughly how much there is and where you are, and I add you to the next route through your area. I come to you and load it all. I cover Albuquerque, the South Valley, Rio Rancho, Corrales, the East Mountains, and the surrounding metro, and I handle whole-house and estate cleanouts regularly.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I donate Jimmy Santiago Baca books in Albuquerque?
Right here — free pickup anywhere in the metro for the whole collection: the poetry, the memoirs, the essays, the fiction. Call or text 505-250-3804.
Can I drop Jimmy Santiago Baca books off instead of waiting for a pickup?
Yes. The covered 24/7 drop box outside the gate at 5445 Edith Blvd NE takes them any hour, and someone is at the warehouse from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. to help unload a bigger load.
Paperbacks too?
Yes — worn paperbacks, New Directions and Grove editions, reading copies. Just don't throw any of it out first.
Cite This Guide
Eldred, J. (June 2026). Donate Jimmy Santiago Baca Books in Albuquerque — Free Pickup. New Mexico Literacy Project.
https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/donate-jimmy-santiago-baca-books-albuquerque
Licensed under CC BY 4.0.