One family. One nation. One year.
A whole heaping busload of books.
EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE ACCESS TO BOOKS.
But not everyone does.
Which is why our family plans to spend the 2022-2023 school year on the ultimate roadtrip—visiting Title I schools in all fifty states, giving presentations on creativity and collaboration, and handing out 25,000+ free books to students and teachers who otherwise wouldn’t have access to them.
Already on board?
WATCH OUR VIDEO!
The need is real.
Books have been shown to have a positive impact on reading, academic performance, and language development. But books are often scarce for the kids who need them most.
We’ve done a bunch of book giveaways at local Title I schools (serving children from low-income families).
The results have always been the same: Kids dive into reading. They start telling their own stories. They gain a sense of heightened possibility. The local impact has been amazing. Now we’re going to do it at the national level.
We’ll live and travel in a tiny home school bus with our four kids (and ridiculous dog).
When not visiting schools, we’ll chronicle our country’s incredible cultural and geographic diversity—visiting historical landmarks, hidden treasures, and off-the-beaten path communities—while sharing our adventures through daily photos, videos, sketches, and live streams.
We hope you’ll join us for the journey!
PLEASE HELP US
PUT BOOKS ON THE BUS!
Thanks to a handful of extremely generous donors, we’ve raised the funds to cover trip expenses and renovate the bus. But now we need to fill it with books.
BOOKS CHANGE LIVES.
EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE THEM.
We’re partnering with a national nonprofit, a team of researchers, and a beloved local arts organization.
FIRST BOOK
will help us identify schools where our visit will have the greatest impact.
WASHINGTON COLLEGE
is our partner in a landmark research study on the impact of author visits.
KENT CULTURAL ALLIANCE
will accept tax-deductible donations of $100 and above* on our behalf.
Contributions $100 and above are eligible.
Matthew Swanson and Robbi Behr are author and illustrator of the Cookie Chronicles series, The Real McCoys trilogy, and the picture books Sunrise Summer, Babies Ruin Everything, and Everywhere, Wonder. When not advocating for local schools, giving talks on creativity, or commercial salmon fishing in Alaska, they live in the hayloft of an old barn on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.
Read more about us
in the Washington Post!
MATTHEW
Author, Dad,
Tundra Nanny
ROBBI
Illustrator, Mom,
Fisherwoman
ALDEN (13)
Actor, Artist, Entrepreneur
KATO (11)
Athlete, Gamer,
Engineer
AUGUST (9)
All-star Hugger,
Magical Being
JASPER (4)
Shouter, Jester,
Autocrat
