Monday, May 13, 2024

Little Free Library Sightings

It's always fun to see a Little Free Library "out in the wild!"  I love to spot them, browse their selection, leave a book if possible, and then look them up on the official website, because sometimes they have interesting stories to go along with them!  There's also an app you can download to find local Little Free Libraries where you can even "check in" to keep track of the ones you've visited!  Here are a couple I've visited recently!

#129722 - I stopped quickly at this Little Free Library on the way home from a birthday party.  I love the bright white library and the story that goes along with it - "Ryan built this little library as an anniversary gift. Melissa is an English teacher and loves sharing books with others!"  How sweet!  The street it's on is very narrow, so parking was a little dicey and I only spent a minute perusing.
#170072 - How fun is this library?  It's made out of an old newspaper bin, the kind that pulls down from the top.  There is a row of books against the door window, and there are more shelves inside.  It was completely full with books, which was great to see!  I left a children's book but didn't take anything.  This one was located not far from the previous one.
#9915 - On our recent weekend trip to Maryland, I spotted this LFL in a lovely neighborhood.  The weather wasn't great, but Tom convinced me to stop!  This is another one with a great story - "I love and treasure books, and own over 800 of them, but even I need to cull sometimes! This library is what happens when I have multiple copies of a book, or perhaps when I outgrow a particular story. Every book has something to recommend it! The books are split fairly evenly amongst books for young children, YA books, and books for adults."  I love that the owner is always sharing books from their own collection and that they have such a great variety of books - something for everyone!
#54230 - We stopped in Baltimore to walk around the Inner Harbor for a couple hours and Tom asked if there were any LFLs I wanted to stop at nearby.  I checked the app and saw there was one at a museum just a couple blocks away, so we walked over.  Here's the story - "The Star-Spangled Banner Flag House & Museum’s Little Free Library was made possible by the Little Free Library Impact fund. It is the first Library in our historic Baltimore neighborhood, Jonestown. Our Library will serve the families and children of Baltimore and the more than 6,000 school age children who visit the museum each year. The Flag House is the historic home of Mary Young Pickersgill, maker of the Star-Spangled Banner Flag (1813)."  I thought the library would be accessible, but unfortunately, it's inside the grounds of the museum, which was not open the day we went.  So, this was the best photo I could get from behind the gate!  I wish the library was outside but it's still wonderful for the neighborhood.

 

And lastly, something fun - my husband actually sent me these pictures of a lending library he spotted out in the wild!  He was at the Bay Head rail station and next to the building is the "Railside Garden."  Someone installed this lending library, which I think is just perfect for train commuters!  It's not an official LFL, but it was still a cool sighting!

18 comments:

  1. How fun that Tom is sharing your love of spotting LFLs! The one built as a gift is such a sweet story, too.

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    1. Haha, he knows me too well! Yes, I thought that was such a lovely gift!

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  2. I love these posts, Angela! These little free libraries always look so much more adorable than the ones here in Belgium.

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    1. Thanks, Stephanie! I love how people put so much love and personalization into them.

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  3. I love a LFL. They are things that bring such joy.
    www.rsrue.blogspot.com

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  4. Love these! I wish we had more where I live. I'm pretty sure there are at least two out and about here, but I have yet to come across them personally!

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    1. That's why I love using the app, because it can show you exactly where they are!

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  5. It's such a good idea to have a little free library (or in this case a lending library) next to a train station! Such a fun thing for commuters.

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  6. Love all of these, especially the Inner Harbor one!

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    1. I wish we could have gotten a closer look at that one!

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  7. I love the story that goes along with the first one! Makes my heart melt. :)

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  8. I get so excited whenever I see a Little Free Library, haha. I love the anniversary gift one–how adorable! The newspaper bin one is also so fun.

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    1. The newspaper bin was one awesome - I love the creativity!

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  9. How fun! I love that some of them have stories. I think I've found all the LFLs close to my house. I need to start branching out.

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    1. There are still a couple sort of close to me, but I love using the app to look for some when we're away from home.

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I'm so glad you stopped by, and I would love to hear your thoughts! Comments are always greatly appreciated!