Looking to find your perfect match? Madison has entered the matchmaking business. Instead of helping you find the one, the Madison library has started a new program to help you find the one book you’ll love. This new program is called the Book Box program.

The Book Box program is a new initiative created by the Madison library which aims to reignite students’ excitement for reading. Students who participate in the program will receive a small range of books every month, tailored to their individual interests and preferences.

“The Book Box is a curated set of books from 1-3 books based on student interests,” Alice Pleasants, one of Madison’s librarians, said. “Students filled out a reading profile and told us what they like to read, what they don’t like to read, what they’ve read in the past, favorite TV shows, subjects they want to avoid, that type of thing. And Ms. Liebman and I will curate 1-3 books for this little book box and deliver it [to them] once a month.”

Unlike any other library programs at Madison, the Book Box program is an entirely personalized experience for students. After they fill out a quick google form, the library sends a Book Box to the student’s advisory class filled with novels specifically for them. The hope is that this program will help get Madison students excited about books again after a schoolwide decline in reading during the COVID-19 Pandemic. 

“We have noticed that since Covid, students haven’t been reading as much as they were, and this has been a big concern to us,” Pleasants said. ”We spend so much time ordering books that we think students would like, and it was so upsetting to see books that just never got checked out because we weren’t getting readers to see them. That’s how [the idea] came about; trying to get books into [the] hands of kids.”

So far, students have been very interested in this program. The librarians report that over 200 students signed up for the Book Box and received their books around the beginning of October. One student, Nanma Haridas (’26), signed up for the Book Box program and truly enjoyed the personalized program.

“I like to read and I liked the way they formatted [this program] because they allowed you to choose what genres you wanted,” Haridas said. “I feel like it would be easier than going [to the library] and actually looking through everything.”

Like many students at Madison, Haridas has found herself having less and less time to go to the library, but still wants to find new books. This program provided a great solution to her problem, giving Haridas a simple way to find more books without needing to step foot in the library. Haridas notes how the process was very easy and simple, and the books she received were perfect for her.

“They were good,” Haridas said. “They were actually books I was interested in. I finished two of them in the first two days [after receiving them].”

Curious about the program, I also signed up for the Book Box. The sign up process was streamlined and easy to follow. When I got my books at the beginning of the month, they came in a little package with a bonus eraser and sticker. As for the books, I was pleasantly surprised. Overall, I enjoyed two out of the three books gifted to me.

While I was initially skeptical about the books selected for me, I found myself hooked on plots I would never have taken a chance on outside this program. Even though I did not enjoy one of my Book Box books, this program offers a form to give feedback on your Book Box. This makes me hopeful my book recommendations will just continue to get better as I continue to engage with the program.

I think this program is very helpful,” Haridas said. “[It] made me feel happy and at ease.”