No matter what your tastes are, a library card hits all the right notes.
Check out a classic story or hit shuffle and try something new. Find harmony at your library’s book clubs, movie nights, crafting classes, and author talks. A headphone kind of day? Find your focus in a study room or vibe out in a cozy nook. Compose your future with new skills in your library’s makerspace or check out instruments and tools in the Library of Things.
No matter what rhythm you find yourself in, there’s a seat in the front row at the library for you.
Laufey is the youngest ever and two-time recipient of the GRAMMY® Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album and has captivated a generation with virtuosic songs of love and self-discovery by manifesting her vision of jazz- and classical-infused pop music. An enthusiastic reader, she founded the Laufey Book Club in 2022 helping to foster a global community of readers. Her first children’s picture book, Mei Mei The Bunny, is a New York Times Bestseller and available now from Penguin Workshop, an imprint of Penguin Random House Children’s Books.
Laufey’s achievements have grown to include over 8 billion global streams, a social media audience of over 25 million, the largest jazz album debut in Spotify history, an album in Billboard’s Top 5, and honored as one of TIME’s Women of the Year in 2025. Last year, Laufey partnered with four U.S. public library systems—Boston Public Library, Fulton County (Ga.) Library, LA County Library, and Phoenix Public Library, as well as a library system in Iceland—to launch limited edition Laufey Book Club collaborative library cards and encourage library card sign-ups in celebration of her annual fan activation in August, A Very Laufey Day, and ahead of Library Card Sign-up Month.
Bring harmony to your walls with the official Library Card Sign-up Month 2026 poster!
Promote the joy of reading with Library Card Sign-up Month honorary chair Laufey in this new ALA READ® poster.
A library card hits all the right notes, but so can a shirt, tote, or hoodies from LibraryGiftShop.org!
Share these graphics all month long on social media and let everyone in your community know that September is Library Card Sign-up month! (Click to download)
Please visit ALA’s Library Card Sign-up Month Toolkit for more free tools and program ideas to celebrate in your local community.
Library Card Sign-up Month first started in 1987 as a response to then Secretary of Education, William Bennett, who stated: “Let’s have a campaign … Every child should obtain a library card and use it.”
The American Library Association took Secretary Bennett’s words seriously and teamed up with the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) to start the campaign, with a grant of $85,000 from the Reader’s Digest Foundation. A telegram was sent to Secretary Bennett saying, “We accept your challenge.”
The first theme was “The Best Gift You’ll Ever Give Your Child … A Library Card.” Because of the Reader’s Digest grant, Library Card Sign-Up Month was advertised on over 500 TV and radio stations, along with 200 magazines. Packets of information and ideas were sent out to libraries to help the campaign gain momentum and to inspire librarians. Ideas included circulating a letter from the librarian, awards and celebrations, PTA recruitment, and joint sponsors.
October 14 was the kick off celebration for the campaign, held on the Mall in Washington, D.C., with 500 children in attendance. The event included remarks from Chisholm, Newman, and Secretary Bennett, along with story and craft time, and free pizza.
The following year September was declared Library Card Sign-up Month. Since then, thousands of public libraries and schools have participated every fall, stressing the importance of obtaining a library card as a child’s most important school supply.
