Our mission: to uplift, comfort and inspire little warriors of childhood cancer during their battles and beyond, through the power of literature.
Emily Bhatnagar is a 20-year-old philanthropist, bibliophile, writer, and lifelong dreamer. Deeply impacted by her beloved father’s painful battle with cancer, she began For Love & Buttercup: a book drive to cheer up children with cancer. What once was a small project soon transformed into a national movement that gained the attention of thousands after her emotional story was featured in The Washington Post. Bhatnagar is the recipient of numerous awards, including The President’s Volunteer Service Award and CNN’s Young Wonder of 2023. Her love for books traces back to a very young age when a shy Emily struggling to make school friends would spend her weekends at Barnes of Noble with her father, picking out books for the both of them to read together under the Gaithersburg, Maryland sky in which she calls home.
Over 20,000 books donated.
packed with love from the East Coast
. . .to beyond.
-
Most books that For Love & Buttercup donates come from generous donations through our Amazon Wishlist. After we receive shipments of books, we organize the assortment based on genre and age group on a biweekly basis. Then, we package and ship these books based on a hospital’s specific requests. If you are a hospital or clinic looking to receive book donations, please contact us here.
-
As much as we wish we could accept every book donation we receive, hospital policies vary significantly and most require books to be in brand new or gently used condition. We evaluate used books on a case-by-case basis. To confirm we can accept your used books, please send a picture of them here.
-
-
Emily tries to constantly update and curate a list that reflects a wide selection of books from timeless childhood classics to books with strong lessons that stick. That being said, she loves it when people recommend her new titles to add! Text her what’s on your mind here.
-
While our focus is pediatric cancer patients between the ages of only a few months old to eighteen years old, we are always happy to donate books to other select causes close to our hearts as well. In the past, we have donated to under-resourced elementary schools, children’s waiting rooms in the ICU to comfort children while their parents are in critical condition and pediatric centers.
-
Most books are donated to hospitals across the East Coast such as Children’s National and MedStar Georgetown University Hospital as we are based in the DC region. However, we are always eager to donate nationwide! Please email us here if you are interested in receiving a book donation outside the East Coast.
-
We believe anything handwritten makes life sweeter, which is why we donate personalized, handwritten notes as well! Beyond that, we offer homemade bookmarks.
-
Not yet! However, we are diligently working on it and hope to come back with an exciting update soon!
-
Absolutely! Please email us here if you are interested in making a monetary donation. We thank you tremendously in advance—people like you allow us to keep our efforts going!
-
First, thank you for thinking of us! Feel free to email Emily here and she’ll get back to you in 1-2 business days.
“…Emily’s response to her dad’s illness is a good reminder to all of us that life’s challenges are not sent to destroy us...well done, Emily.”
— Judge Frank Caprio, “Caught in Providence”
“On behalf of the American people, I extend my heartfelt appreciation to you for your volunteer leadership…the country is counting on you.”
— Joe Biden, President of the United States
Introducing
CNN’s Young Wonder of 2023
On December 10, 2023, Emily Bhatnagar was recognized as CNN’s Young Wonder of 2023 at the 17th Annual CNN Heroes Tribute, presented by Anderson Cooper and Laura Coates in New York, New York.
