The Little Free Library movement has been evolving pretty rapidly. Their mantra is simple – “Take a Book, Return a Book.” When the movement began in 2009 most libraries looked like nothing more than an extra-large painted birdhouse or mailbox. Currently over 10,000 little free libraries grace the land and these days some pretty amazing ones are popping up all over the country.
Current map of Little Free Libraries in North America
In New York City, The Architectural League of New York and the Pen World Voices Festival are behind some of the latest and greatest that have been appearing on the streets of the city.
[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/71254919[/vimeo]
and here are a few of my favorites from the current crop of these community gems:
Mercer Street, NYC via
Beacon Hill Neighborhood, Seattle via
sterotank by Marcelo Ertorteguy and Sara Valente, NYC
word play by chat travieso, NYC
by John Locke via
Luckily the trend shows no signs of abating – Sarah Maxey wanted to get in on the action and bring the first little free libraries to Winston-Salem North Carolina. She started a Kickstarter campaign hoping to raise the $175 needed to do so. With a little over 2 weeks to go, the campaign has already raised over $8,000 with almost 500 supporters! Maxey now plans to bring the libraries to more remote parts of North Carolina and is partnering with literacy agencies in Africa and India to help bring the libraries to people in need.
Wow!
A different version of this post originally appeared on Book Riot