The Covid-19 pandemic has stripped away the veneer of convenience, has altered what is important to many of us. One of those things that has become even MORE important to people like me during Covid is the reading of books.
Reading is the perfect escape from the stress of the pandemic, but the irony is that bookstores and libraries were closed for months, and online ordering was (is) as slow as the Pony Express.
This is where my Little Free Library comes in.
It’s the first season for my little library, which I had built for me last winter (I would never be able to build one as nice on my own). It’s not the kind that is affixed permanently in the ground, but rather sits on a foundation so I can move it to my backyard and out of commission for the winter.
When Covid hit this spring, I wasn’t sure if I should put my little library out. I worried that people would be too scared of germs to stop at it. By the end of April, I threw caution to the wind and put it out, figuring that people would be smart enough to treat it like any store they might go to, which means washing their hands immediately afterwards.
I had almost zero expectations, and so I was happily surprised to find my library extremely well used, and right away. Multiple people a day were stopping at it to take a book and/or leave a book. I get a big kick each day from checking to see what people have taken or left. I’ve even found a couple of books left in there that I was dying to read but hadn’t purchased yet!
Meanwhile, there have been many other surprises, like children’s books and a good cross section of mystery, suspense, even Christian romance novels. All of them books I don’t normally read myself and therefore wouldn’t be able to leave in my library for others.
But the real bonus of my little free library is that people in my neighbourhood have been gushing about how much it’s brought together our community. We’re all talking about books more, even recommending them to each other. We’ll stop and chat over the little library. I even helped a little boy pick out a book because he was too small to open it and peek in himself.
I highly recommend setting up your own little library has a positive community contribution. They can be made from just about anything, even old newspaper stands, phone booths, old bird houses, you name it.
Oh and if anyone is looking to get rid of their copy of Michele Obama’s autobiography, feel free to leave it in my little library!
Very cute little library you have!