Little Free Libraries. Those are the little boxes that appear in neighborhoods and communities where people can drop off and pick up books to read. Books are donated, books are borrowed, books are read. They used to be few and far between, but you can hardly go through a neighborhood without seeing one now. It seems that they experienced a surge in popularity during the Covid months that has not really waned.
There are also now non-profit organizations devoted to supporting those who want to establish and use these amazing resources. You can even find maps showing where these Little Free Libraries are located, so that if you are on vacation somewhere, you can have access to books to borrow and read. I even read somewhere that they have popped up in some airports!
Authors are an ideal advocate and support for these wonderful ways of getting books to readers. Author Marla Frazee started her own little free library in her community in Pasadena, and author Kate DiCamillo, when she has a new book published, gathers up copies and distributes them into the Little Free Libraries in the communities near her home in Minnesota.
My elementary school is a neighborhood school. Lots of kids walk or ride bikes to school. Residential streets wrap our campus. We decided we wanted to put out a Little Free Library so that our students and their families would have access to great books even when the school was closed.
Luckily, I am married to an extremely talented man who can design and build just about anything. So Jeff jumped in and designed a library that reflects our school. The school logo adorns the box, as does our mascot (the Star). Stars are door handles, and rulers edge the windows, it is painted blue and yellow, our school colors. He even added a “back porch” for oversized books that may not fit into the front shelves.
I am happy to report that the library is packed! And used. Every time I go out to check on it or to donate another book or two, I can see evidence of the little hands that were perusing the shelves for a book to read. Books in upside down or backwards. New titles appearing and others that I had seen for weeks, now gone. It warms my heart.
