It’s little. It’s free. And it’s a library.
The burgeoning worldwide movement known as Little Free Library got its latest addition Monday in Pembroke outside the police department substation near Miller Village apartments.
A joint effort between Bryan County Family Connection and the Bryan County UGA Extension Office, the goal is to put about two dozen of the LFLs around the entire county.
“We want to put them within walking distance of neighborhoods or places that people frequent,” said Wendy Sims, director of the Bryan County Family Connection. “We’re not trying to compete with the actual libraries, this is more of a complement to them.”
There is already on LFL in South Bryan County at Plantation Apartments, which Sims said was created as part of the summer lunch program. Sims and UGA Extension Agent Trish West have about 25 plastic red boxes like the one in the picture to the left to use.
Morris Multimedia, parent company of the Bryan County News, donated the boxes, which previously were used for displaying real estate guides inside stores.
“This is a lot easier than making each one,” West said. “And they’re water proof and bug proof as well!”
The concept behind LFL started in 2009 in Wisconsin when a man mounted a wooden container on a post in his yard that was designed to look like a school house. He did so in honor of his late mother, an avid reader and former school teacher. LFLs are filled with books that appeal to every age and often have a sign that reads “Take a Book, Leave a Book.”
The free exchange allows people to borrow and donate books. To date there are more than 15,000 LFLs registered on www.littlefreelibrary.org in all 50 states and 40 countries. The website has map that is searchable by ZIP code, city or state.
West said she’d eventually like to see people adopt each LFL to help keep them stocked, and that books will be rotated among sites in order to give visitors new selections on a regular basis.
Anyone with gently used books to donate can contact West at (912) 653-2231 or Sims at (912) 653-3824.