A library for every child, built by the next generation.
Meet the Founders
To expand access to books, nurture a love for reading, and build a lifelong culture of literacy in underserved communities across Kenya and beyond.
To ensure every child, no matter their background, connects to new opportunities through stories, imagination, and the power of books.
Two sisters. One mission. A library for every child.
Co-Founder · Age 14 · Year 8
Premier Academy, Nairobi
Surina Kasaku is 14 years old and in Year 8 at Premier Academy, Nairobi. She is the co-founder of Books & Beyond — but her story starts with books before it starts with buildings.
A relentless reader from as far back as anyone can remember, Surina channelled that passion into a question: why should access to books depend on your postcode? That question became Books & Beyond.
What makes Surina remarkable is the breadth of her skills. She is not just the creative force and chief advocate of this project — she is also one of its primary architects. Along with her sister Keisha, Surina built the Books & Beyond website from scratch, bringing a rare technical depth to a cause that most would approach only with heart.
Beyond the classroom and the code editor, Surina is an active advocate for wildlife conservation — using her platform to connect young people with the natural world in the same way Books & Beyond connects them with books.
Co-Founder · Age 12 · Year 7
Premier Academy, Nairobi
Keisha Kasaku is 12 years old and in Year 7 at Premier Academy, Nairobi, and co-founder of Books & Beyond alongside her sister Surina.
If Surina asks the questions, Keisha is the one who won't stop until she finds the answers. With an insatiable appetite for reading and a sharp curiosity about the world, Keisha brings an energy to Books & Beyond that is entirely her own.
Like Surina, Keisha is not just a spokesperson — she is a builder. She was a primary force behind the Books & Beyond website, applying her technical skills in web development and robotics to a cause she believes in deeply.
Keisha makes time to visit partner schools and sit with the learners, understanding that connection — not just content — is what this project is really about. She and Surina are proof that age is no barrier to impact.
Surina and Keisha are the faces of Books & Beyond — but two people made it all possible.
Father · Mentor · Co-driver of every visit
Mother · The spirit behind the giving
None of the visits, none of the launches, none of the late nights would have happened without them.
Across rural Kenya, many children grow up without access to storybooks — but with an unshakable thirst to learn.
A visit to Kathonzweni HGM Primary School revealed there was no library at all.
"Most of our students have never read a book outside their textbooks."
— Ms. Rosina Muia, headteacher
That moment inspired us to bring knowledge, colour, and imagination into classrooms — and to give an equal chance to children like us.
When children read, they grow — and the whole community grows with them.
The barriers facing under-resourced rural schools are layered — each one compounding the last. Books & Beyond targets the layers it can directly change.
Each layer reinforces the next — without removing the core, the outer layers remain.
Books & Beyond was born in a Nairobi school, but it is being built in rural Kenya — and that gap is not a problem to be fixed. It is a strength to be celebrated.
Children from urban schools — like the founders themselves — carry access to technology, global exposure, and resources. Children from rural schools like Vitale H.G.M. carry something equally powerful: resilience, community, and a work ethic forged in harder circumstances.
When these worlds meet — through shared books, intern visits, joint reading sessions, and shared artwork on library walls — both sides grow. That exchange is the whole point.
In their own words — why they started this, and where they're taking it.