Little Free Libraries


About a year ago I decided to use up some spare plywood I had lying around to make a little free library. Since I’m trained as a librarian (MISt) and am a self-described maker (New Toronto Makeshore), it’s a perfect match. Frankly, though, I had no idea how popular it would be.

We live on a pretty busy street with a lot of foot traffic. But as soon as I posted the library, I realized just how much foot traffic there actually is. Kids love to stop by and look for new books to borrow ( I made sure to install it low enough so that they could also reach inside), but there are also quite a few regular readers who lend and borrow.

There isn’t much to curate; the contents pretty-much refill all on their own. Although it was a good way to get rid of a bunch of books that we had hanging around the house, it has become a daily routine to see what’s new inside. I only stock it up with new contents every once in a while, and there are always books in there already.

For the most part the books cycle through on a regular basis. There have only been a couple of times when I’ve had to clear out some on account of space limitations, and there have only been one or two times when I actually had to remove anything. So far everything has been appropriate (although I am loathe to police the tastes of others) and no one has added anything too offensive.

There are a couple of books I would like to see come back that haven’t yet, but since it’s a library with no clear due-date, I guess it’s to be expected that books will be borrowed for longer than they might be at the public library.

Rather than try to keep an inventory list I just take pictures and post them to a Twitter account (@7thStLibrary), which also makes it easier for anyone to see what’s available before coming in person.

I have even updated the library itself; this is version 2, which is a bit wider and a little taller.

You know what? You should make one too. Put it up outside your house and be surprised as well by how many people stop and look. Plus, you’ll always have something to read…

Little Free Library the Seconde

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