# Little Free Libraries **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 6, 2019, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058 "2019-11-06T01:26:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/1 "2019-11-06T01:26:22Z")
Does anyone here have one, or use one, or has seen one being used? I know of a few people who have these unlocked cabinets in their front yards but have never actually seen anyone emptying or filling them, and some charitable organizations have built them but keep them stocked with nonperishable foods and/or hygiene products. The closest I’ve come to seeing one being used was one in the lobby of a local community center in a low-income neighborhood; it’s filled with children’s books and light adult reading and does get some use. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/2 "2019-11-06T01:31:06Z")
There are three scattered around my mom’s neighborhood, one of which she built herself. I think she’s the primary stocker for them, but other folks add books, too. And my church has a library that’s based on the same principle, except taking up an entire room. I ended up as the librarian, mostly because nobody told me I wasn’t, and I do what I can to keep the books organized. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/3 "2019-11-06T01:46:57Z")
Mrs Piper put one up a couple of years ago. There are two or three others on our block, and they all seem to get a lot of traffic. It was a godsend for our house, overflowing with books. We’re both readers, and “you can’t throw out a book!” So we were drowning in books that " are really interesting and I’m sure I’ll read it again some day." But just putting them in the little free library is perfect. You’re not throwing it out - you’re letting someone else have it. The excess of books in our house has steadily gone down. Mind you, we’re in a neighbourhood with lots of walkers, so it works really well. If we were in a new developments, where the house is essentially attached to a garage and people just get in their cars to go everywhere, it probably wouldn’t work so well. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/4 "2019-11-06T01:51:28Z")
There’s one right outside my apartment building that I should start feeding, now that I’ve read **Northern Piper** ’s post. Never actually looked in it, and they’re all over St. Paul. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/5 "2019-11-06T02:05:47Z")
But occasionally you get somethings put int that you don’t want. A University of Manitoba course catalogue from 1966? Really, you can’t just huck it in trash? Then there was the autographed copy of David Duke’s autobiography. A bit creepy, knowing that someone in our neighbour had it and was passing it along ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/6 "2019-11-06T02:21:49Z")
I downsized a few years ago and really needed to get rid of boxes and boxes of old paperbacks so I checked out the LFL map, found a veritable crapload in my town and spent some highly enjoyable hours dropping off books all over my side of the city. I’d put three or four boxes into the back of my car then when I had nothing much else to do I’d go drop a few books here, few books there until I’d distributed them all far and wide. I loved seeing how each little library was decorated and what sort of books each one was accumulating. I ran into a few people who genuinely thought refilling the little libraries was my day job! It was a fun way to get rid of reading matter I no longer had room for and I like to think that at least a few people appreciated my offerings. Little Free Libraries are one of the sweetest ideas anyone ever had. I’m a fan. ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/7 "2019-11-06T02:22:02Z")
I ran into one by a lake in rural Quebec. One shelf books in French, the other in English. On the English shelf was a translation of Baudelaire’s poems. Go figure… ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/8 "2019-11-06T02:28:12Z")
There are lots in my town, and the books at the ones I visit rotate pretty regularly. Of course, sometimes there’s a bunch of neo-Nazi or anti-abortion propaganda, but that’s true at the bus stop[, too. ---
**Author:** ![goldmund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a4c791/32.png) [@goldmund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goldmund)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/9 "2019-11-06T02:35:38Z")
There is one on my road made out of an old post box, though I’ve never stopped or seen it used. I do notice the door is sometimes closed, so someone pays at least some attention to it. This is in rural Maine. I’ve never seen another, and this thread is the first time I realized this was “a thing”. ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/10 "2019-11-06T03:15:45Z")
My wife volunteered to take care of the one in front of the elementary school this year. She checks it every week or two, and removes age inappropriate books (would a precocious fifth grader read this?) Those get passed on to other free libraries. She also clears out the occasional propaganda pamphlet and outdated textbook. My contribution was to group it by author and title. At the start of the year both shelves were nearly full, but now one of the shelves is almost completely empty, so somebody is taking books, and I hope reading them. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/11 "2019-11-06T03:27:19Z")
My wife takes care of one of those where she works in Providence. The homeless find books very useful. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/12 "2019-11-06T04:21:02Z")
I’ve borrowed books from a few. And I’ve deposited books in a few. I’m thinking about putting up one of my own. I’ve got a couple of boxes of boxes I want to get rid of and this would be a good way to do it. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/13 "2019-11-06T05:07:02Z")
I have one in front of my house which I built from scratch, not from one of the kits sold at the LFL website. I’m on a residential street that gets a fair amount of foot traffic, with two elementary schools a few blocks east and west of me and a couple of bus routes at either end of the street. The LFL stays pretty well stocked. Every now and then I cull any books that no one is ever going to want to read. And every few weeks my Jehovah’s Witness neighbor puts in some religious indoctrination books and I throw them away. But people have left some excellent books, too. Mostly they’re good. The neighbor directly across the street brings over his 2-yr-old daughter every couple of days and they make a big production out of exchanging books. It’s very sweet. My cat likes to sit out next to the LFL and get petted by visitors. For Halloween I put out a fake cat skeleton in her spot on a leash attached to the LFL post. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/14 "2019-11-06T06:57:10Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > But occasionally you get somethings put int that you don’t want. > > A University of Manitoba course catalogue from 1966? Really, you can’t just huck it in trash? > > Then there was the autographed copy of David Duke’s autobiography. A bit creepy, knowing that someone in our neighbour had it and was passing it along David Duke can write his name? Srsly, both of those might be worth something on eBay. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/15 "2019-11-06T07:07:11Z")
Now that I think about it, I took an out-of-town overnight trip last year and they had their version of an LFL in the lobby - unofficially, a shelf of adult (as in “not for children”) books, mostly Westerns because that’s what people had left behind, and a shelf of kids’ books. I had some library castoffs in my trunk and left an armful there, and the rest at a thrift store down the street. My old town had a similar kind of thing at the Amtrak station and their airport, which was fairly small, and a library volunteer who lived in the neighborhood maintained them. Many local food pantries, including the one at my church, also have books available for people to take if they want them, mostly children’s but also “clean” adult books, both fiction and nonfiction. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/16 "2019-11-06T07:30:44Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Now that I think about it, I took an out-of-town overnight trip last year and they had their version of an LFL in the lobby - unofficially, a shelf of adult (as in “not for children”) books, mostly Westerns because that’s what people had left behind, and a shelf of kids’ books. I had some library castoffs in my trunk and left an armful there, and the rest at a thrift store down the street. Reminds me of the time my car broke down in a city about a thousand miles from home. Repairs were covered by warranty, but they would take a day or two to complete, and I’d have to leave my car at the shop there at least one night. Well, I got a hotel room, went out and explored the city a bit, and went back to the hotel. I planned to grab a bite and a drink in the bar. To my dismay, the hotel bar had no TV, but to my delight, the hotel bar did have a shelf of books. A few shelves, actually. “Help yourself,” said the barman. “We operate it like a Little Free Library. People are always bringing books in, so don’t worry about leaving one behind. If you want to take one, go ahead. That’ll make more room for future donations.” I selected a novel, and began reading. It was gripping from the start (some kind of thriller, as I recall), and after my meal, I took it to my room and kept reading. The next day, my car was ready, and I took the book with me–I hadn’t finished it, after all. I eventually did, and my ex-wife enjoyed it too, after I had finished it. Little Free Libraries are a great idea, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/17 "2019-11-06T08:52:36Z")
I haven’t found one in the town I now live in, but there’s a few in old phone boxes in villages round here. I’ve nosed in a few and I’d guess someone’s maintaining them- they’re a bit heavy on the Dan Brown type stuff, but it’s not _junk_ junk. There was one in the launderette near where I used to live, that I used to try and keep supplied. Books went, they didn’t seem to come in as fast as they went out, but it was right next door to a halfway house type shelter, so I’m guessing there were quite a few people around there with not a lot to swap. Fair enough. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/18 "2019-11-06T09:18:12Z")
A good friend of mine has one in Alexandria, VA, maintains it carefully and posts about it on Facebook. Her neighbors use it in the generous spirit in which it is offered. There’s also one near my brother’s house in Bainbridge Island, WA, right near the beach where he walks his dog. These are both fairly ritzy neighborhoods with well-educated neighbors, so I don’t know much about the places where these little libraries are vandalized. ---
**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/19 "2019-11-06T10:03:47Z")
They’re all over the place around here, in front of schools, at the edge of peoples yards, on random street corners just about anywhere in town, but usually near a church or school or some such if downtown. Did a move last year, on pack day the neighbor had an old skinny china/curio cabinet full up next to the garage. When we came back the next day to load, our customer told us the HOA prez got into it quite loudly with the homeowner over it right there in the street. The little library was gone though. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2019, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058/20 "2019-11-06T10:44:59Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > I haven’t found one in the town I now live in, but there’s a few in old phone boxes in villages round here. I’ve nosed in a few and I’d guess someone’s maintaining them- they’re a bit heavy on the Dan Brown type stuff, but it’s not _junk_ junk… I knew of this (phone box libraries) from fairly regularly cycling past [one in Cowden, Kent](https://www.google.com/maps/@51.1438931,0.0930977,3a,75y,41.36h,107.65t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1scwCXxQsPmzWn5q6U25n53w!2e0!7i13312!8i6656), but it looks like it’s [quite the phenomenon](http://thickcreamydischarge.blogspot.com/p/phone-box-library-list.html). (That blog has a mysteriously ugly title, but it appears to be just a list of phonebox libraries). j [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-free-libraries/843058.md?page=2)