“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
? Dr. Seuss
Reading and travel are indescribably linked. Passionate readers know that the careful selection of a good book is the cheapest way to travel, enabling you to travel to faraway lands, even magical lands with a simple turn of a page. Those with wanderlust rely on books to fuel their desire for new places and to work out exactly where to go. Aside from family and travel, books have always been my great passion. Fortunately my kids seem to have inherited this love so I’m super excited about introducing them to the Street Library concept.
Years ago I got caught up in the Bookcrossing scene where I would release books I had read out into the wild with a tracking code. When someone captured my book, instructions inside led them to a website where they could log the tracking code and write a short report about finding the book. My kids arrived and my motivation to continue Bookcrossing petered off. I think Street Library is about to renew my excitement around sharing books and I am certain the kids will want to join it too.
Street Library, a registered incorporated not-for-profit charity, was launched in November 2015 in Sydney and has become a movement with over 100 Street Libraries popping up across the city. With the motto “Take a book, give a book, share a book”, the Street Library initiative promotes a strong community attachment. I love, love, love this idea and can’t wait to head out for a wander around my suburb to exchange a few books.
Let me step back for a moment. You may still be wondering what a Street Library actually is, right? A Street Library is a home for books which you plant at home or at work which is accessible from the street. Passersby can simply take a book from the library, replacing it with another, before continuing on their way. They can return the book later on or pass it on to their family and friends. “They are a symbol of trust and hope – a tiny vestibule of literary happiness.” What an amazing idea!
To start a Street Library you need to either build or buy your library, put a handful of books inside and then plant it in an appropriate place which will gain some attention and hopefully kickstart the library idea in your community. The hope is that within the next three years, 500 Street Library locations will be identified with their own little community around Australia.
To source Street Library locations across Sydney and find out more about the project and visit streetlibrary.org.au.