This is purely in fun as there have been so many posts lately of people feeling like others are “stealing” from their LFL.

I like to laugh so I’m just being playful. And please note I understand both sides.

We've just put this up and so far it has been incredibly popular!

I’ve maintained an LFL for about 18 months now. There are quite a few in my neighborhood—one other for adult books and two for children.

I set mine up as a MG/YA/adult library, but am fine with people giving and taking picture books…except for the way it’s being done now.

The people that drop off picture books will drop off a double-digit number at a time (I walk my dog by every day, so I can see the jump from a couple of books to tons overnight), and will stuff the box until you can’t see in. Books get bent and damaged and shoved behind one another. At least one person occasionally drops off pamphlets and free booklets from local children’s museums. I regularly have to clean out the picture book stock when it goes months without moving (and no one ever takes the pamphlets).

The MG/YA/adult books turn over regularly when I manage to get some in there, so there’s a demand for everything. I don’t want to stop anyone from dropping off books, but I’d like to not have a box stuffed with things that people don’t take and that make it difficult to open.

Would it be rude to put up a sign saying something like: “If the shelf is full, please do not put books in front. This library is for people of all ages to enjoy!” Is there phrasing you’ve found that works? I want to keep it as a neighborhood resource for all age groups, not a dumping ground.

(I do plan to get an add-on shed for the picture books eventually, but it’s not in the budget right now.)

Hey. I reached out to volunteer to paint a little free pantry and library, and the wood is definitely needing some care. All I would know to do is put a primer on and paint over it. Is there any other way I should treat the wood before painting?

Just added a third home for more books! Have many for all ages, plenty of interesting short reads for school reports thanks to donations from a local elementary &!middle schools.

What the title says basically. I am getting rid of some of the books I had bought in my gloomy teen/early adult days to make room for my new era of middle age sci fi nerd. I have a lot of dark fantasy, literary fiction etc that I know will do well in a LFL but I also have some Anne Rice vampire chronicles books too. For those of you who own a LFL would those be ok to leave or nah? I’m a librarian so I know they circulate at the public library but idk what circulates in LFLs with way less shelf space. I’m not trying to load up a LFL with stuff the owner is going to have to just weed out.

Summer beach reading

Plus little free libraries

A perfect pairing

Hello! I’ve seen these libraries around but never really paid attention to them. More recently, I’ve gotten into reading and have really been loving it!

I went on a vacation a few months ago, and had just finished my book. I happened to walk by one of these libraries and thought “wow perfect timing, I can get another book to read during the rest of my trip”, but unfortunately didn’t have my book with me. It also happened to be my birthday, so it felt like a gift from the universe! But my boyfriend was adamant that it would be bad luck to take a book and not leave one in its place. We settled on me taking a book but leaving some cash in one of the other books as a surprise for someone else, but I’m curious what your thoughts are as owners of these libraries. Was I wrong for taking a book fully knowing I would not be likely to go back there to return it? I thought the point of these were to get people excited about reading but am fully willing to accept that maybe I am in the wrong and need to plan a return trip in the future to make sure all is right in the world. Thanks for the input!

The owners of the LFL that I posted a few weeks ago have put in motion sensor lights, so I can now show you more clearly what the little librarian's room looks like at night!

We stocked it full of books for all ages. I’m also leaving small crochet plushies that I create, as well as Pokemon cards in hopes that someone will trade cards with my son. We installed it over the weekend and have already gotten so many positive comments from the neighborhood.

I am fixing to put out a free little library. Any time we put out anything for free and say "take what you need" one neighbor will come in and take it all, idk if she needs it but most of the time it's decor and stuff we don't care or don't mind but other neighbors never get a chance. Sometimes it's baby stuff that other moms could use.

Should I put a little label on my library door saying only take ONE book please or please do not take books for resell. Idk if that's what she is doing but I really want my neighborhood kids to have a good chance of books. I'm worried she's gonna come while we are all sleeping and take all the books. I have put so much effort into finding popular kids books that I'm gutted picturing her take everything and add it to the pile of stuff on her yard.

I am an author and looking to put some of my self pub books into libraries around my town. As LittleFreeLibrary users would this annoy you or is it ok? Thank you for your thoughts!

We have a free library and inside it we had a little treasure chest for little doodads like bookmarks, erasers, things like that. It had instructions written on it being like “please don’t take this box, it’s for organizing small items”

Then our camera picked up someone literally almost emptying the library and she also took the box. So long story short I’m working on painting a new box and I’m planning on gluing this inside the lid. Is it too much? I might do it anyways.

In June of this year, my dad unexpectedly had a heart attack. Shaken by this experience we were both reminded that tomorrow is not promised. As we processed this event, we took inventory of our aspirations and the projects we wanted to accomplish. The most feasible project was to create a community library (something my dad and I have always wanted to do but never got around to it). Reading has been the catalyst for so much of our personal growth. My dad’s parents (my grandparents) were avid readers who I give credit to for helping my dad and me foster our love for reading. Reading has allowed me to learn about the world and people through lenses I would have otherwise never looked through. As a way to share knowledge and art, connect with my community, and as a positive outlet for my dad while he has been recovering, we began working on a little library. After weeks of planning, work, time, and love this is what we have created.

I hope this post brings you joy or inspires you to create your own community library in the future. I was so inspired by the creativity I saw on this thread so thank you all who have posted your libraries!

***The larger library is for adult books and the smaller one is for children/YA books :)