mailman gives donated books to boy dnt_00013320.jpg
Needy boy gets hundreds of books after plea goes viral
01:49 - Source: KSL

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Matthew Flores reads junk mail instead of books

Internet plea for books goes viral, hundreds flood in

CNN  — 

Matthew Flores actually likes reading junk mail – not that the 12-year-old Utah boy has to anymore.

Letter carrier Ron Lynch was delivering mail to Matthew’s apartment complex in Sandy last week when he found him reading trashed advertising fliers and newsletters.

“I saw him reading ads, and then he asked me if I had any extra mail he could read,” Lynch said in a post to his Facebook page. “He told me his wish is to have books to read.”

Lynch suggested the library, but when Matthew said his family didn’t have a car and couldn’t afford the bus, the challenge was on.

Lynch took up Matthew’s cause, asking his Facebook friends to send books.

“Let’s help him,” he said. “I was given many books as a child, and it’s time to help someone else!”

The message went viral and hundreds of books are pouring in.

“It’s gone crazy from there,” Lynch told CNN affiliate KSL. “I’ve heard from the U.K., Australia, from India.”

And now Matthew has a bookcase filled with books.

“They said, ‘These books are for you,’” Matthew told KSL. “I thought they were mistaken, but they were for me.”

Lynch said he was touched by the boy’s appetite to learn.

“Most kids his age want electronics! It’s great to see his desire, and you should have seen him beam when I said I could help!”

As for new bookworm Matthew: “I’m just super happy.”