BEMIDJI -- At first glance, they can appear to be a yard decoration or a birdhouse. Upon closer inspection, though, passersby can see these little buildings that have popped up across Bemidji are filled with books of all types.
The tiny structures visible in front of homes and in Bemidji parks are called Little Free Libraries and are part of a national movement to get more people reading and sharing.
"Basically the concept is take a book and leave a book," Bemidji Parks and Recreation Director Marcia Larson said. "It encourages people to start reading and exchange books, too. So if you have books that you've finished reading, you can put them in the library."
Because of the popularity of the free libraries on personal property around town, the city decided to add them to the parks as well.
"It's a super fun thing and we as the parks department, over the winter when we had some downtime, decided to create different free libraries that match the look of where they were set up," Larson said. "Sometimes it will get down to one book and the next day it will spike back up and be full. So people are really good about sharing the books."
Bemidji Mayor Rita Albrecht and her husband Mike have gotten involved in the movement, too, helping to bring a little free library to their church, United Methodist Church.
"I was aware of it and had seen them around and thought it was a really good idea," Albrecht said. "Another member of our church suggested that my husband make one since he's a woodworker, so we ended up putting that one up. Subsequent to that, he's constructed more and has given them away and sold them."
Albrecht said once the mini-library was set up, she received positive feedback on Facebook from people commenting that it was a good idea and that others were appearing across town.
"It's a good way to make books accessible. Our church is in the urban core so there's a lot of pedestrian traffic so there's a lot of people who walk by and it's a good opportunity to provide a service," Albrecht said. "Other people that aren't members of the church know that it is there and still bring in books, so it's become a community effort and a way to reach out."
One of the best features of the small libraries is none of them look the same, the mayor said.
"The unique part of it is how different they can look. The website for Little Free Libraries wants you to register and get an official number and plaque, but they don't have any design standards," Albrecht said. "I've seen a lot of really creative ones that are shaped like birdhouses or shaped circular rather than rectangular. There's just been a lot of fun ideas."
The Little Free Libraries movement that has come to Bemidji and other cities across the United States started in 2009 by Todd Bol, a resident of Hudson, Wis. Bol created the first little library in his front yard as a tribute to his mother and the project spread throughout the neighborhood.
According to the official website for the Little Free Library program, Rick Brooks, an educator at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, saw the project and helped Bol promote it to encourage reading across the globe.
The website states that by the end of 2011 there were 400 libraries across the country and by 2012, the program was established as a Wisconsin nonprofit corporation. This past January, the total number of free libraries in the world was estimated at 25,000.
For more information on the nonprofit and to find little free libraries in Bemidji, visit http://www.littlefreelibrary.org.
REFERENCE: http://www.bemidjipioneer.com/news/local/3837565-spreading-love-literacy-books-more-widely-available-thanks-mini-libraries-bemidji
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