A few months ago, while listening to a broadcast of
The Vinyl Cafe on CBC Radio, I was inspired to set up a "Little Library" in my front yard. Stuart McLean shared the history of this movement on a show devoted to the theme of libraries. According to the website of
http://littlefreelibrary.org/, the first little free library was built in 2009 in Wisconsin. This idea has grown so that there are now at least 15,000 little free libraries world-wide. While North Americans are blessed with large local libraries where books can be borrowed at no cost, many countries lack this resource. The little libraries in Ghana, Pakistan and Turkey are a way for people to access printed materials that may otherwise be unaffordable to them.
My talented husband designed and built our little library. He installed it this morning, and I have been pondering which books to include. It has a weather-proof front flap to lift and find the books kept dry inside. I hope it will be a way to meet more of our neighbours. It's a way of saying, "We care." We care not just about literacy but the well-being of the people around us.
4 comments:
Cool idea! Tell us which books you choose!
Most of the books inside it now are junior novels (Rascal by Sterling North, Run by Eric Walters, Mandie and the Secret Tunnel, among others) and a bunch of non-fiction titles for married folks (including The Marriage Book by Nicky and Sila Lee, First comes Love, then comes Money by Bethany & Scott Palmer, and Breaking the Communication Code by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs).
Sounds like I could visit your front yard for some books I've not read -- other than maybe the Mandie book from way back when. Is your library being well used?
Yes, it has been visited frequently. People have left books; it is my goal to update the collection at the beginning of each month as well. The variety of books is changing.
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