The Wandering Donkey Library, founded by Luis Soriano, started in 1997. It visits villages in the Magdalena region on Colombia’s Caribbean coastline. From the beginning, two donkeys followed out into the villages, fully loaded with loan books, now it is one donkey and as a complement, Biblio Burro is building a small stationary library. Luis’ big dream is to be able to build a larger stationary library and a school canteen.
Despite the pandemic, the project has continued with its activities, got 10 000 children from different groups to start reading, improved Biblio Burro’s digital program, started a project for English teaching and involved volunteers in the activities. Social and cultural activities have been carried out in several places in the region, two schools and a digital centre have been built. They also provide food, clothing, and medical assistance to those in need.
The wish is that before the end of the year, both the library and the school canteen will be ready.
Biblio Burro was nominated for the 2020 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) .
The Book Aid contributes to purchase of books both for the donkey library and for the school library. The project has also received Corona support in addition to regular grants.
Motivation: Activities are in line with The Book Aid’s purpose of assisting children and adults in poor areas with books and stimulating reading among the weakest sections of society. Luis Soriano is also a fantastic role model. Despite many misfortunes and failing health, he continues to struggle with the same conviction, commitment, and ingenuity.