Hi, I’m Yves. We love libraries and librarians. But this post doesn’t really say much about how to start your own Little Free Library. You need permission that the box is not your property. How do you get shop owners and government officials like parks to get involved? How big should a shared box be? What kind of signage would be helpful?
If you are a reader directly involved in this project, we would love to hear your thoughts.
Damon Orion is a writer, journalist, musician, artist, and teacher living in Santa Cruz, California. His work has appeared in publications such as Revolver, Guitar World, Spirituality + Health, Classic Rock, and High Times. To learn more about his work, visit Damon OrionProduced by Regional Peace Economy
You’ve probably seen those little birdhouse-like cases in front of homes, grocery stores, parks, schoolyards, coffee shops, and other public spaces where anyone can take out books or place them there for others to enjoy.
These miniature libraries, also known as “mini town squares,” are a humble yet effective tool in improving literacy, ending book bans, and promoting social justice.
Anyone can create and manage a public bookshelf, but a nonprofit organization based in St. Paul, Minnesota Little Free Library (LFL) has been instrumental in spreading this trend. There are now more than 180,000 registered LFL Book Sharing Boxes around the world. They can be found in all 50 US states and 121 countries on every continent.The world’s largest book sharing networkLFL has worked with schools, businesses, institutions and public libraries to facilitate the sharing of over 400 million books since 2009.
One of the main motives of LFL is to develop a more literate population. Their motto is:Have a book, share a bookThe importance of this goal cannot be overstated. More than half American adults have a literacy level below the sixth grade level, 67 percent The percentage of U.S. students who achieve below proficiency in reading by the fourth grade is Reduce Studies show they are less likely to graduate from high school.
He is the Director of Public Relations for the LFL. Little Free Library Bookspoints out that access to reading materials is key. Forecaster It is the key to an individual’s success in school and in life. For example, in the United States, children from families with only 25 books I’ll be in school for two more years According to a March 2023 report by Scholastic, “The Home Library,” more children are reading than those who don’t have books at home.
A 2001 study by Susan Newman, a professor of early childhood education and literacy, found that in some poor areas of the United States: 1 age-appropriate book for every 300 childrenTo alleviate the lack of access to books 60 percent Targeting children from low-income families, LFL works to “make sure Little Free Libraries are established in communities that really need access to books. Maybe these communities don’t have public libraries and they don’t have access to books when school is out,” Aldrich explains.
To combat book shortages and low literacy rates in indigenous communities America and CanadaL.F.L. Facilitate Through the Indigenous Library Program, mini libraries are established in areas with large Indigenous populations. Established According to the blog Little Observationists, books are in short supply in places where they are scarce, including slums in Brazil, villages in South Sudan and refugee camps in Uganda.
LFL’s previous initiatives include the “Good Global Neighbors” program, in which American students create book-sharing boxes and send them to countries in Africa, India and elsewhere, and the “Friends Through the Years” program, in which young people and older people come together to read to each other and tell stories.
Promoting equality
LFL Read in color The program supports the distribution of books that promote social justice and racial equality and represent marginalized groups like BIPOC and LGBTQ+. According to Aldrich, “This is really important for both people who see themselves in the book and for people to learn about different perspectives.”
Aldrich recounts a story he heard from the father of the six-year-old girl who stole the book. Ada Twist, scientist A book arrived at their home from a Little Free Library. “On the cover was a little girl who was black like her, with the same fluffy hair as her, and she said, ‘Daddy, she looks just like me!'” And the little girl “started dressing up as a scientist at home and playing scientist. That kind of effect can last a lifetime.”
The “Read in Color” program opposes book bans in the United States. Nearly half Of these, 2023 will include books with BIPOC and LGBTQ+ themes. 87% of LFL stewards surveyed shareLittle Free Libraries collect banned books, and in doing so “preserve access to banned or controversial books,” according to their website. Little Free Libraries also help readers gain access to banned books through projects and initiatives such as: Unbanned Book Club, Forbidden Wagonand the Banned Books Week Association.
“We are proud to stand against book bans,” Aldrich said. “Our mission is to expand access to books. That is at the core of everything we do, and book bans, especially those that target Black authors, LGBTQ+ authors, and authors from other marginalized communities, go against our core values.”
History of the LFL
In memory of his mother, a teacher and book lover, the late Todd Bol built the first Little Free Library in 2009. Bol assembled the boxes, painted them to look like miniature school buildings and set them up in front of his home in Hudson, Wisconsin. The idea began to gain popularity when Bol and his friend Rick Brooks began setting up the bins in different parts of Wisconsin and in Midwestern U.S. cities such as Chicago and Minneapolis.
In 2012, the Little Free Library became a non-profit organization. That same year, Boll achieved his goal of creating 2,510 Little Free Libraries, breaking the record previously set by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Establish2,509 libraries worldwide.
As the idea caught on, Boll began shipping handmade bookcases to places like Australia, Afghanistan and Pakistan. By late 2016, 50,000 Registered Little Free Libraries are: 85Countries around the world.
In late 2018, shortly after LFL established its 75,000th library, Boll passed away from pancreatic cancer. Quote In a letter he left on his final days, he wrote, “I truly believe that there should be a Little Free Library on every block and a book in every hand. I believe that people can improve their neighborhoods, improve their communities, develop systems of sharing, learn from each other, and realize that there are better places to live on this Earth.”
Out of the box
Stewards (as LFL calls the Book Share Box curators) sometimes Stylize Build your little library in imaginative ways, including bookshelves modelled after houses, sheds, trees, phone booths, Victorian mansions, book scenes, rocket ships, fridges, robots and life-size replicas. TARDIS From the TV series “Doctor Who.”
At a TEDx event in 2013, the founders of LFL Explained In Arkansas, a small library is surrounded by an herb garden where visitors can pick cookbooks from boxes and pick herbs from the garden. “[Steward]told me that he always gets some of the food that’s left for him in the morning, like quiche,” Boll says.
LFL’s efforts are not just about delivering art to cities and regions, Inspired Create boxes for groups or individuals to share items such as seeds, knitting materials, sleds, toy cars, etc. Sponsored by the Church Blessing Box They provide access to food, clothing, toiletries, baby products, and other essentials. According to digital news magazine The Helm, these “miniature wooden food pantries” adhere to the principle of mutual aid and are “symbols of hope and solidarity.”
Make connections
As Aldrich points out, LFLs also help build community. She recalls the moment when she and her husband finished installing a mini library in front of their Minneapolis home: “Within three minutes of setting it up, neighbors we’d never spoken to before came across the street, saw the library, and started talking to us.”
She said that according to the LFL’s annual survey, 72% of stewards Meet more neighbors Because of the small library, 98 percent of people feel that the book sharing box has made their neighborhood a friendlier place.
Aldrich also says that many LFL stewards enjoy being part of something bigger than themselves: “The network is made up of about 200,000 Little Free Libraries around the world, so the stewards are part of a universal love of reading and bringing people together.”
