Little Libraries of Kitchener-Waterloo

It seems that I am finding another group or community that is building or organizing 'Little Libraries'.  Here is the group from Kitchener-Waterloo.  Another in the growing 'Libraries aren't just Buildings Anymore' series.

Little Libraries of Kitchener-Waterloo is a loosely organized group of people who are really into the idea of Little Free Libraries sprouting up all over KW.  Our goal is to make buying/building, setting up and maintaining your Little Library as easy as possible.  Read on for more!

Why?

Here are some of our reasons for wanting a Little Library… what are yours?

• Neighbourhood Bonding – When you put out a Little Library, you are exchanging ideas and opinions with your neighbours.  As they walk by, they can take or leave books, and perhaps start a conversation about the books with you.  A Little Library is a great way to engage those who live near to you.  Put out books on art history, or on the biology of rabbits!  Put out 6 copies of a book that you want all of your neighbours to see!  You’re the steward of your Little Library; you get to curate it!
• Immediate Availability of Books – While we do have a great set of libraries in Waterloo, there is a tangible benefit to having a book immediately available for perusal and taking, with no registration or process required.  See a book that intrigues you?  Just take it!  Don’t like it?  Drop it back off, put it in another Little Library, or just give it to a friend.  No need to head over to the main library or bookstore; the book is right there, just for you!  You may pick up a book that you never intended to read, that you might have glossed over otherwise.
• A Marker of What We Believe – Just the presence of Little Libraries, perhaps even more so than the books in them, is a big part of the message.  Having Little Libraries all around town, and seeing them on a daily basis, reinforces that we in this community truly value literacy, thought, education, opinion, engagement.  We value knowledge over ignorance.  We value our millennia of personal experiences.  In short, we value books!  What better way to say that than to display them prominently?
• Personal Engagement – When we walk through residential areas, often we see houses that are very much separate from the public roadways we walk along.  We value the notion of private property, and our propriety doesn’t allow us to interact with what we see.  A Little Library is a way for a homeowner to reach out, to say “You are welcome here.  I want to engage with YOU.”