Little Free Libraries are popping up everywhere, from the hundreds in their place of origin in Wisconsin, to one that Tim Tobin of Andover, ME found near Killington, VT while hiking on the Appalachian Trail. They can be as simple as the Rubbermaid Tote Cassie Mason Szeliga placed in the Bethel, ME IGA or one of the $200 to $1000 models available online.
Rollie Bousquet, a retired school bus driver and custodian first heard about little free libraries from his wife 15 years ago and built one, which he installed in front of his restaurant and residence in Mexico. It was originally mounted on the wall of his building, but he moved it to its current position, on the fence, facing the sidewalk in front of the building 4 years ago.
Rollie and his wife Suzanne had hundreds of books when they started the little library and found friends near and far ready to donate books to keep it stocked. He said, however, “There were times that it was very low to empty over the years so we purchased books at yard sales to keep it supplied.”
Mr. Bousquet says the experience was nice but quiet. People mostly came at night and took books without putting any in. He points out, “that is ok because that is what I built it for.” He noticed that when he put nice hardcover books in, they were gone almost overnight , so he started looking at yard sales, only to find some of his tiny library books available for purchase.
Mr. Bousquet feels that overall, Little Free Libraries are a great thing to do for a community.
When Cassie Mason Szeliga heard that the library, many of whose patrons are termed ‘high risk,’ in her hometown of Bethel was going to be closing as a preventative measure in response to the COVID-19 virus, she thought a book exchange bin, or free library would be a nice way for her community to share resources.
She says, “I’m part of a Book Club here in Bethel and thought a lot of people would be spending their extra time reading.”
She hopes that when the public library re-opens, everyone will be able to go back to finding or requesting the titles they want, but in the meantime she placed a plastic bin full of gently used books inside the entry way at the Bethel IGA. She is hoping any leftover books can be either donated to the Bethel Library or to the book exchange shelf in the lobby of the Gem Theater in Bethel.
Wendy Newmeyer of South Paris first heard about the little free library movement on the Today show about 10 years ago. She says “I was immediately thrilled at the idea and knew I would eventually have one.”
Mrs. Newmeyer had around 10,000 books on diverse subjects, which she says was no burden, and she always swapped and shared them with family and friends. However she realized she could not keep all of the books if she wanted to buy more. In addition, her parents had recently given up their large home to move into a small apartment so they did not have room for their walls of books, so she added them to her burgeoning collection.
Mrs. Newmeyer’s husband Jack, an accomplished architect, quickly built their tiny library. Since he had been foreman on so many large and busy projects she says, “Building such a small item was a pleasure for him.” But, she also adds, “It also counted as my birthday present for the last 10 years.”
Their little book exchange on Morse Road in West Paris, has been up and functional since September 2019 and she “loves the community involvement and good vibes, with many people donating books to it.
Mrs. Newmeyer offers a few tips for those who are thinking of erecting their own Little Free Library, such as don't put it in as remote a setting as we chose for ours. The Newmeyers’ purchased a little piece of land which was too small to build on but which had what she described as “a perfect place to pull off the road.” However, she thinks that others should place their books in a good position where it is visible to many people.
Mrs. Newmeyer says, although we have had some minor vandalism, including books removed and thrown beside the road, her and her husband are planning to build a reading shed on the same small lot on Morse Road, since the view there is so lovely, overlooking a small brook. She added, “We are very committed to keeping it full in these trying times when public libraries have closed. Books are more important than ever.”
If you can not get to your local public library, or just want a different kind of book selecting and reading experience, look for a Little Free Library near you!
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