In Pictures: Bookhouses in your backyard
A simple idea to house free books in tiny wooden buildings on posts is spreading throughout Toronto, bringing neighbourhoods together. When Carolyn Swadron and Bill Wrigley started the first little library in 2011 in Toronto's east end, they were afraid that they would run out of books. Not so
The first official Little Library in Toronto. It was built by Bill Wrigley in the image of the neighbourhood's library, in the Upper Beaches area. The Little Free Library Project, a movement to share books with your neighbours in tiny wooden libraries, is quietly expanding in Toronto.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail
Bill Wrigley and Carolyn Swadron, in their backyard, stock up their little library. For Ms. Swadron and Mr. Wrigley, it’s been very gratifying to see how neighbours who have been living on the same street for years got to know each other while browsing through the books in their little library. In the past two years, they have received multiple thank-you notes and drawings from young readers.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail
A little library containing mainly children's books stands on the front garden of a private house on Swanwick Ave, in Toronto's East End. The Little Free Library Project, a movement to share books with your neighbours in tiny wooden libraries in the backyard, is quietly expanding in Toronto.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail
Bill Wrigley painted this little library.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail
Bill Wrigley builds little libraries in a carpentry workshop in his basement. The little library in the picture was decorated by his son Bill, who is a muralist. The Little Free Library Project, a movement to share books with your neighbours in tiny wooden libraries, is quietly expanding in Toronto.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail
A little library containing mainly children's books stands on the front garden of a private house on Swanwick Ave, in Toronto's East End. The Little Free Library Project, a movement to share books with your neighbours in tiny wooden libraries, is quietly expanding in Toronto.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail
Dylan Meinders checks the books in his little library at Winners Circle. Antoinette Meinders, who is the stewardess (or librarian) of a little free library near Ashbridge’s Bay Park in the Beaches neighbourhood, sometimes chooses a theme for the week, such as mystery books, and she even gets petitions for specific titles.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail
Some people will leave thank you notes or even drawings, like the one in the image, to thank the stewards or 'librarians' who set up and maintain the little libraries.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail
This little library in 35 Melbourne Ave. was built by Andreas Duess in the fall of 2012. Andreas and his wife Anja find that homeless people, who may not have library cards, tend to use it often.Gloria Nieto/The Globe and Mail