If you have a child between 0-5 years old, you can enroll them in the Dolly Parton‘s “Imagination Library Program.”
The State of Illinois funds 50% and the other 50% may be covered by other organizations, depending on your county of residence.
In 2023, Governor JB Pritzker announced the state-wide launch of the program.
The purpose of this wonderful program is to provide developmentally appropriate books to children birth to age 5 at no cost to families.
Each month, the Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library mails a high-quality, age-appropriate book to all children who are registered for the program. The package is addressed and delivered to a child. A child enrolled at birth will have a personal library of 60 books by the time he/she enters kindergarten. The books contain instructions to parents on how to read to youngsters, as well as suggestions for ways parents can use the books to interact with their children.
You can learn more about the program, or enroll your child, on the official Illinois Board of Education website. There is a search feature where you can check your zip code for program availability. There is a 2026 Map of Illinois Coverage for the Imagination Library Program. This map is updated yearly.
There are 102 counties in Illinois. Listed below is the current county coverage break-down for Illinois as of June 20, 2026
- COMING SOON (3): Marshall, Stark, and St. Claire Counties.
- *NOTE: If you live in one of these three counties, please check the status of your community coverage in the ZIP code search feature often, so you can enroll your child as soon as a local partner organization launches coverage.
- *NOTE: If you live in one of these three counties, please check the status of your community coverage in the ZIP code search feature often, so you can enroll your child as soon as a local partner organization launches coverage.
- COMMUNITY PARTNERS NEEDED (8): Bond, Clay, Clinton, Lawrence, Montgomery, Monroe, Richland, and Rock Island Counties.
- *NOTE: In these 8 counties, the State of Illinois covers 50%, and under the Illinois Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), parents only pay a significantly reduced monthly co-payment based on their household income and family size. Please use the ZIP code search feature to see specific parental cost for your local community.
- *NOTE: In these 8 counties, the State of Illinois covers 50%, and under the Illinois Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), parents only pay a significantly reduced monthly co-payment based on their household income and family size. Please use the ZIP code search feature to see specific parental cost for your local community.
- PARTIAL COVERAGE (3): Cook, DuPage, and Effingham Counties.
- *NOTE: The State of Illinois covers 50% of the program cost, but Cook, DuPage, and Effingham counties currently have partial community partner support. This happens for two reasons: high-density populations make it too expensive for a single local partner to cover every neighborhood, while extremely rural areas often have smaller local groups with limited fundraising. If you live in one of these three counties, please use the ZIP code search feature for your home address to see if your specific community is covered.
- *NOTE: The State of Illinois covers 50% of the program cost, but Cook, DuPage, and Effingham counties currently have partial community partner support. This happens for two reasons: high-density populations make it too expensive for a single local partner to cover every neighborhood, while extremely rural areas often have smaller local groups with limited fundraising. If you live in one of these three counties, please use the ZIP code search feature for your home address to see if your specific community is covered.
- FULL COVERAGE (88) The remaining 88 counties not specifically listed above have 100% coverage, making the program completely free for enrolled kids.
- *NOTE: Please verify coverage for your community with the ZIP code search feature, as coverage status may change.
I encourage everyone to visit Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library official website. You can learn about what inspired her to create this wonderful program 30 years ago, and keep up with her latest news. Her efforts have reached children all across the USA, and also in Australia, Canada, Republic of Ireland, and the United Kingdom. In 2023, the Imagination Library gifted its 200 millionth book since inception! Dolly’s book program has been honored with several prestigious awards, and is backed by researchers around the world. 304,539,509 million books had been gifted since inception, by the end of 2025.
As of 2024, 1 in 7 children (14%) under the age of 5 in the U.S. receives a book in the mail each month from the program.
As of February 2026, 97,262 Illinois children were enrolled and 1,594,464 books had been gifted since the Imagination Library program’s launch in Illinois in 2023. Illinois covered 50% of the cost, and the other 50% is often fully or partially funded by community partner organizations. There are three counties that don’t have community support yet, but parents are offered copay assistance through the Illinois Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), reducing the cost significantly. 67 separate community organizations help provide funding for books throughout the state. Illinois has accomplished a great deal of progress in just two years!
News like this makes me proud to live in Illinois. It’s also very important to me, to share this knowledge with as many people as possible. Let’s get more Illinois kids signed up!
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