Best-selling author James Patterson has given a $3,000 grant to help Albert Hill Middle School in Richmond expand its library collection.
The writer is donating $1.75 million to more than 450 schools nationwide, and Albert Hill Middle School on Patterson Avenue is one of three in Virginia to receive grants.
Patterson, author of the "Alex Cross" series, is known as a passionate campaigner for books and reading. According to a story in The Richmond Times-Dispatch, "the grants are being administered by the Scholastic Reading Club, which will match every dollar Patterson gives with bonus points. These points allow teachers to buy books and instructional materials for their classrooms."