Donate Books in Edgewood

Edgewood is one of New Mexico's fastest-growing communities. Families fleeing Albuquerque for space, affordability, and mountain living have transformed this I-40 corridor into a booming residential area. Young families with kids, homeschoolers, retirees leaving the city, and new homeowners are all discovering Edgewood. And with them come books—overflowing bookshelves of picture books kids have outgrown, homeschool curricula, young adult series, chapter books from childhood, and adult collections that need space to breathe.

If you're clearing books to make room in your new Edgewood home, donating books your kids have aged out of, or just organizing what fits in your space, I make it simple. My free donation center is just 35 minutes west in Albuquerque, open 24/7. Stop by the drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, Unit A whenever it works—no sorting required, no fuss, books in any condition welcome.

I donate children's books free to UNM Children's Hospital, care facilities, and rural New Mexico communities. Your Edgewood family's outgrown books help other families build their home libraries. When you donate with me, you're making space at home while keeping books in circulation where they matter most.

How Far Is the Drop-Off?

From Edgewood to my donation center at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, Unit A is just 35 minutes via I-40 west. It's a straightforward drive down the mountain and into Albuquerque. Perfect timing on a trip into the city, or a dedicated run to clear space at home.

What I Accept

• ✓ Books of any genre, condition, or age—children's books, chapter books, young adult, adult fiction, nonfiction, textbooks, educational materials
• ✓ DVDs & Blu-rays—family movies, documentaries, TV series, educational content for kids and adults
• ✓ CDs—music, audiobooks, children's music, educational recordings, spoken word
• ✓ Any condition—worn covers, pencil marks, dog-eared pages, beloved books that have been read and enjoyed are welcome

Where can I donate books in Edgewood instead of a thrift store?

Edgewood families want to make smart choices for their communities. Here's what makes the New Mexico Literacy Project the right choice for your books:

Free In-Home Book Pickup Across Edgewood

Edgewood is roughly 35–40 minutes east of my 5445 Edith NE warehouse via I-40 over Tijeras Pass and out exit 187. I cover Edgewood proper, the rural acreage north along NM-344 toward Sandia Park, the developments south toward Moriarty and Stanley, and the smaller communities of Estancia Valley north and east. Long driveways, gravel roads, and mile-marker addresses are routine — none of it adds a fee.

Sub-areas served across Edgewood

The Edgewood town core near the I-40 frontage road, the larger-acreage homesteads along NM-344 and Frost Road, the rural parcels south toward Moriarty, and the small-town and ranch properties spreading into the Estancia Valley. I also pick up across the Sandia Park/San Antonito boundary and out toward Cedar Crest when residents group their pickups.

What pickups typically look like here

Edgewood pulls a mix of homesteaders, retirees, working ranch families, and homeschool households who chose the area for the space and the schools. Libraries here typically include practical reference (livestock, gardening, water rights, off-grid living), large homeschool curricula, regional history, and the broad western fiction and nonfiction canon. Pickups average twenty to sixty boxes — often higher when a homeschool family graduates the youngest child and clears a decade of curriculum, or when a multi-generational ranch property changes hands.

Literary provenance I see on this side of town

Edward Abbey's nonfiction and The Monkey Wrench Gang are constants on Edgewood collections — the rural land-ethic posture is part of why people moved here. John Nichols's NM Trilogy and Tony Hillerman's Leaphorn and Chee mysteries are near-universal. Sandia Labs scientists who chose the East Mountains commute often hold serious naturalist collections including Leslie Marmon Silko, N. Scott Momaday, and Frank Waters. Homeschool-curriculum clear-outs reliably include classic Americana: Willa Cather's Great Plains novels (O Pioneers!, My Ántonia) and Death Comes for the Archbishop (1927) are curriculum-staple editions I see on most Edgewood homeschool shelves, alongside Oliver La Farge's Laughing Boy (1929 Pulitzer) in school-anthology form. Native-educator pickups also surface Simon Ortiz and Luci Tapahonso.

Stamps from Page One (Albuquerque, 1981–2019) and Treasure House Books (Old Town) appear regularly; the full Albuquerque bookstore history covers where these libraries were assembled.