Around Amherst: Reader to Reader sending 7,000 kids’ books to Springfield schools By SCOTT MERZBACH AMHERST — A global literacy organization based in Amherst is donating more than 7,000 new children’s books to Springfield’s public schools. The books, from Reader to Reader and with a value of over $70,000, were provided by American Girl Publishing. “We are very excited to be able to make a donation of this magnitude,” Reader to Reader founder David Mazor said in a statement. “With the COVID-19 pandemic limiting children in school time, it is all the more important to get books into their homes.” The books are part of the Reading Success by 4th Grade Initiative.