📚 A monthly book club for kids in the hospital

One book. Many hospitals. The same page, together.

The Same Page Book Club sends the same book to pediatric patients across NYC hospitals every month, then brings those kids together to talk about it, debate it, and get to know each other, no matter where they're reading from.

Bring The Same Page to Your Hospital Learn More

What It Is

A shared story, even from a hospital bed

It's a place for kids spending time in the hospital, often far from friends and school, to find company in a story, and in the other kids reading it with them. Whether a stay is a few hours or several weeks, it can shape how a kid experiences that time.

That's why we distribute books to patients in the pediatric emergency room as well as those who are admitted. For the ED, we donate a few copies for the team to keep on hand, so a kid can read one during a short visit. And if they'd like to keep reading and join the book club afterward, they're always welcome.

Why "The Same Page"? Every kid in the club is reading the same book, at the same time, as another kid somewhere else in the city who understands exactly what they're going through.

How It Works

Simple for hospitals, meaningful for kids

We handle everything on the book side, hospitals just help us reach the kids.

1

Same book, every hospital

Each participating hospital receives copies of the same book every month, split by age group.

2

Monthly Zoom meetings

Each age group has its own discussion, where kids dig into and debate the book with others who get it.

3

Kids pick what's next

At the end of each meeting, kids vote on next month's book, so it's something they help build.

4

We run the club

Our team chooses the books, writes the discussion guides, and facilitates every meeting, start to finish.

5–8
years old
9–12
years old
13–18
years old

Why It Matters

Started by a brother and sister who understand the power of books

Alex spent high school and college volunteering in pediatric emergency departments and saw firsthand how much comfort a book can bring to a scared kid. Elijah struggled to read for years before a vision problem was finally diagnosed, and once reading clicked for him, it became a real source of warmth in his life. Between the two of them, they wanted to give kids in the hospital more than a book: a place to be understood by someone else going through something just as singular, and maybe even a friendship that lasts beyond the hospital stay.

Alex & Elijah Paul

For Partner Hospitals

What we ask of a partner hospital

There's no cost, and very little lift. Here's what it takes to bring The Same Page to your Child Life program.

🌤️ What we provide

  • Books for every participating patient, at no cost to your hospital
  • A full curriculum of discussion guides for every book, every month
  • Trained facilitators to run every meeting
  • Spare copies for the pediatric ED to keep on hand

🤝 What we ask of you

  • A point of contact on your Child Life team to spread the word and manage consent
  • Use of a HIPAA-compliant video platform your hospital already has approved
  • Occasional feedback so we can keep improving the club

Get Involved

Let's get your hospital on the same page

Reach out directly

We'd love to hear from Child Life teams, hospitals, families, and future sponsors. Say hello any time.

thesamepagenyc@gmail.com
Founded by Alex & Elijah Paul