About Us

We're glad you're here

Kind Reads gives you a curated selection of quality used books at an affordable price with pick-up locally in Ottawa, and shipping options available across Canada.

Our volunteers sort through up to 12,000 book donations each week, and only the best & most recent titles make it to our online shop. New reads are added every week and every sale helps directly support the Ottawa Public Library. 

Kind Reads is owned and operated by the Friends of the Ottawa Public Library Association (FOPLA), a registered Canadian charity that supports and promotes the Ottawa Public Library.

For more than 15 years, FOPLA has operated used bookstores and sales in Ottawa, Canada with an amazing complement of volunteers. Our volunteers believe in the value of public libraries and the kindness they provide, which is why they sort and sell thousands of used books every year in our stores.

Since 2003, FOPLA has donated over $4 million dollars to the Ottawa Public Library to fund community-oriented programming and services. That’s an amazing record, but to add to this in 2021 FOPLA grew to open its first online store, and we could not be more excited!

What could be better than that, fellow bibliophiles?

Find great gently used books for you and support a beloved public library system at the same time. We also are firm believers in:

  • Offering used books as a more environmentally friendly option
  • Providing affordable access to book ownership
  • Encouraging literacy and education

If you want to learn more, or drop us a line, use the form below to say hello. In the meantime, happy reading!

Have inquiries about Kind Reads?