For three decades, trick-or-treaters on Palm Beach’s North End have led their families to Sally Alice Smith’s front lawn for a special Halloween treat: a free book.
“There’s one little boy who said to me last year, ‘I always come here first,’” Smith told the Daily News. “Another boy said, ‘this is my favorite stop.’”
Countless books for all ages and of all genres are on display each year. So many, Smith noted, that she often uses the family’s surfboards as makeshift stands.
It’s not a neighborhood secret, as signs on the front lawn and backyard remind passersby to drop by the ‘Book Lady’ — her nickname with local kids — home during the spooky holiday, which falls on Thursday.
The 30-year tradition began when she ran out of candy one fateful Halloween evening, she said.
“’What can I give these kids?’ And I had some books,” the retired librarian said. “After that, I thought ‘boy, why do I bother with candy?’ So, from then on, I started giving books.”
At first, she just handed out books, but Smith said as the tradition continued, she wanted the trick-or-treaters to have a choice.
“I think they should be allowed to pick the book they want to read,” she said.
So, she began to spend her summers visiting libraries, thrift stores and garage sales to buy as many books as she can, with titles ranging from classic children’s books like Robert McCloskey’s “Blueberries for Sal,” to nature-based coffee table books.
Before the pandemic, the books were displayed inside the curved staircase of her home on North Lake Way, with trick-or-treaters invited to peruse the selection for the special book they wanted to bring home, she said.
With the pandemic, the book giveaway moved to the home’s driveway, where it has remained.
The giveaway has become a neighborhood effort, with some of her neighbors helping out with set up and keeping track of the number of books given away, Smith said.
The best part of the night, Smith said, is seeing the trick-or-treaters joined by their entire family dressed in costume.
With 30 years under her belt, Smith could soon be giving out books to the kids of the first generation of book receiving trick-or-treaters.
“I’ve watched the kids grow up. I’ll ask the mother and she’d say ‘the girl is off at college, and the boys are in prep school now,” she said. “Some other family whose boys used to come regularly told me their boys completed college.”
For Smith, the giveaway is all about igniting a passion for reading.
“We have to keep these kids’ reading, and it begins when they’re young,” Smith said.
Diego Diaz Lasa is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at [email protected].
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