WATCH: Vending machine brings free books to St. Louis students

St. Louis bookstore owner Ymani Wince this week unveiled a free book vending machine at Herbert Hoover Boys and Girls Club on St. Louis’ north side. She said making books accessible in this way to the city aims to address book scarcity in the region and help fill in the area’s literacy gaps, but also to dispel stereotypes about reading.
“A lot of students, if they don't know how to read, they feel discouraged, they don't want to pick it up,” Wince told the PBS NewsHour. “It's not really about creating readers that are just as excited as I am - it's about trying to give students and children in Saint Louis and Black people a chance at their very best possibilities.”
State data from 2022 shows in the St. Louis region alone, 30% of third-grade students are reading at below a basic level. Further, across the state’s regions, the highest number of proficient readers of that same age group doesn’t exceed 27%.
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