Yesterday, while jogging in a neighborhood near ours, I saw something at the end of a driveway that just about made my day:
I did an Internet search and discovered that these adorable Little Free Libraries are cropping up all over the U.S. The movement was founded five years ago by a Wisconsin man who put a little box of giveaway books outside his home to honor his late bibliophile mother. The idea is simple: Lucky neighbors give a book and take a book at their discretion. You can search for a box near you at this site.
As far as I can tell, most of these Little Free Libraries cater mainly to adults, but how great would it be to set one up with kids books outside of your home, especially during the lazy, brain-draining days of summer? I’m going to look into it, as well as our town permit laws (unbelievably, for their generosity of spirit and literature, a few Little Free Librarians have been given citations for setting up illegal detached structures on their properties.)
In the meantime, don’t forget to patronize your own town library. April 12-18 is National Library Week; if you’re looking for some great kids’ titles, check out the 2015 winners of the American Library Association’s best children’s book awards in this earlier post.
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