I didn’t realize that Little Free Libraries were such a big thing. A few weeks ago I was walking with my family after a Little League game at Myrtle when we came across a mini library that was staked in the front yard of a Deep Cove home.
It was a small, freestanding mini-library whimsically designed of wood with a peaked roof and offered a selection of books inside, for free. We loved the idea of this unexpected lawn library.
Then last week when I was filling in as a relief reporter at the Tri-City News, the editor assigned me to write a story on the City of Port Coquitlam’s project to create five Little Free Libraries that are located throughout the municipality at parks and playgrounds.
Before I spoke to a librarian at Terry Fox Library I did some online research on the mini libraries and discovered this was a movement, not just a few book-loving residents devoted to sharing their love of the written word.
There are more than 36,000 Little Free Libraries worldwide and the concept is simple: Take a book, give a book.
There’s even a website dedicated to the subject where you can find free blueprints for designing your own small library, register it on a world-wide map, find out about little library events and festivals and read blogs dedicated to the subject.
Who knew?
In Port Coquitlam, I learned that the city was partnering with Early Childhood Development (ECD) committee and PoCo Building Supplies to create the little libraries because they promote literary and community.
Lori Nick at the Terry Fox Library heard about the mini libraries a few years ago and then with a small grant and help from her handy hubby she had one installed at a park near her home. It was an instant success and became a popular community meeting spot and now even has its own Facebook page.
Nick told me there were other small libraries already sharing books in the community, some in private yards and some in public spaces. And that same week I was contacted by a local artist whose husband had just created a totally cool all-metal little library for her that commemorated all the work she’d done for community literacy over the years, including delivering 4,000 books to a school in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina hit.
Nick said the Little Free Libraries are especially important for young readers because one of the fundamental building blocks of literacy is book ownership and these libraries can help children select books and start their own collection. During the summer months, when school libraries are closed, they also allow young readers to find books and keep up their reading skills.
The libraries are also great for community building, and bringing together neighbours to share and discuss their favourite books and what they are reading. Want to learn more about this little movement or find some locations of the little libraries here and beyond? Visit littlefreelibrary.org.
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