Supporting Children’s Literacy: CLiF

The NH Book Festival is proud to support nonprofit organizations that share our goal of creating literary experiences for NH schoolchildren, especially from underserved communities. Over the last three years, we have been honored to work alongside The Children’s Literary Foundation (CLiF).

Founded in 1998 and based in Waterbury, VT, CLiF provides free, inspiring literacy programs and brand-new books to children up to age twelve across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through dynamic presentations by accomplished authors, illustrators, poets, and storytellers, CLiF sparks a love of reading in thousands of children each year.

CLiF also plays a vital role in helping the NH Book Festival identify underserved schools that would benefit from our subsidized keynote event for students. During the festival, NHBF and our presenting sponsor, Ledyard National Bank, host a children’s book drive to support CLiF’s work—ensuring even more young readers leave with books of their own.

If you’re a parent, grandparent, teacher, or caregiver, check out CLiF’s free resources for at-home learning and fun reading-related activities.

And for schools, libraries, and other organizations working with kids, CLiF offers a wide array of grants. Three programs are still accepting applications for 2026:

Year of the Book: An intensive one-year program supports students, staff, and families in elementary schools across VT and NH by building a culture of literacy, and also offers a follow-up Momentum Grant to sustain enthusiasm. DEADLINE: March 15

Summer Readers: This program encourages children to read more often during summer vacation with lively storytelling presentations and new books children can select and keep. DEADLINE: May 18

Spark: This program provides $500 to help revive enthusiasm for reading and writing via a menu of literacy activities and events for grantees to select. DEADLINE: Rolling (until funds are spent).

—Elaine Loft