I accept Oliver La Farge donations anywhere in the Albuquerque metro with free pickup — the whole collection: Laughing Boy, The Enemy Gods, Behind the Mountains, Santa Fe: The Autobiography of a Southwestern Town, Raw Material, A Pause in the Desert, and the anthropology and Indian-affairs writing. You don't sort or price anything. Bring it all, including the early hardcovers you might not recognize; the 1929 first of Laughing Boy is collectible, so I check everything and the rest funds New Mexico literacy.
Published June 2026 · By Josh Eldred, New Mexico Literacy Project
Oliver La Farge won the Pulitzer Prize for his first novel, Laughing Boy, and spent much of his life in Santa Fe as a writer, anthropologist, and tireless advocate for Native American rights (he led the Association on American Indian Affairs for decades). His books are cornerstones on New Mexico shelves, and when a collection 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 novels
Laughing Boy (1929), The Enemy Gods, Long Pennant, and the story collections (All the Young Men, A Pause in the Desert).
The Santa Fe & memoir books
Santa Fe: The Autobiography of a Southwestern Town, the memoirs Raw Material and Behind the Mountains, and The Mother Ditch.
Anthropology, Indian affairs & any condition
As Long as the Grass Shall Grow, A Pictorial History of the American Indian, the Tribes and Temples archaeology, and reading copies, book-club editions, and reprints — bring whatever's on the shelf.
You don't have to know what's valuable
Here's the reason to call rather than dump: the 1929 first edition of Laughing Boy (Houghton Mifflin), which won the 1930 Pulitzer Prize for the Novel, is collectible in fine condition with its dust jacket, and signed copies bring more. The early firsts of his other books are sought-after too. The later printings, book-club editions, and illustrated reprints, by contrast, are common — and to a non-collector a first and a later printing can look much alike. That's exactly the distinction I check. Bring the whole shelf and I'll recognize the early firsts, protect them, and keep the reprints in circulation, with any value put to good use in his home state.
Why donate instead of selling it yourself
For a confirmed 1929 first, selling on your own can pay. For the rest — book-club editions, paperbacks, reprints — identifying and listing each is more work than they're individually worth, which is why shelves get dumped intact. Donating handles it in one call: no research, no pricing, no listings, no shipping, free pickup at your door, reading copies to new readers, and a genuine first recognized and supporting New Mexico literacy. Here's where donated books go.
How free pickup works
Call or text 702-496-4214 (or schedule online), tell me roughly how much there is and where you are, and we set a time. I come to you and load it all. I cover Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, Corrales, the East Mountains, Santa Fe, and the surrounding region, and I handle whole-house and estate cleanouts regularly.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I donate Oliver La Farge books in Albuquerque?
Right here — free pickup anywhere in the metro for the whole collection: the novels, the Santa Fe books, the anthropology and Indian-affairs writing. Call or text 702-496-4214.
Is an old Laughing Boy worth anything?
The 1929 Houghton Mifflin first (Pulitzer winner) is collectible, jacketed/signed more; later printings and book-club editions common. Bring it all and let me check.
Reprints and paperbacks too?
Yes — book-club editions, illustrated reprints, worn paperbacks. Just don't throw any of it out first.
Cite This Guide
Eldred, J. (June 2026). Donate Oliver La Farge Books in Albuquerque — Free Pickup. New Mexico Literacy Project.
https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/donate-oliver-la-farge-books-albuquerque
Licensed under CC BY 4.0.