Little Libraries, Big Heroes

June 17, 2019
Paul (Nine Months) frames her nonfiction account of Little Free Libraries as a story about ordinary heroes. After Todd Bol’s librarian mother dies, he creates a small one-room schoolhouse on a stand and fills it with books to share her “love of reading with anyone who passed by.” But no one notices until he explains it to his neighbors, after which the “little library became the center of their neighborhood.” Bol’s friend Rick Brooks helps him dream bigger: Parra (Hey, Wall) shows the two of them talking excitedly, angular figures on pages textured like woodblock prints. They build many of the structures and, when they can’t sell them, install them all over the upper Midwest. Now there are hundreds, all over the world. Paul writes of the way Bol’s mother encouraged him as a child (“You could do anything,” she tells him in the story’s opening pages, a warm smile on her face) and finishes by nudging readers: “Tomorrow might bring another hero story, written by YOU.” The way the text traces Bol’s big idea back to its emotional source offers a path to heroes literary and ordinary both. Ages 4–7. Author’s agent: Karen Grencik, Red Fox Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Adriana Dominguez and Stefanie Sanchez Von Borstel, Full Circle Literary.

July 1, 2019
A book-sized celebration and history of the Little Free Library movement. Paul's heartfelt text delivers the story behind Todd Bol's founding of the Little Free Library nonprofit, which began as a tribute to his late mother in his home state of Wisconsin and has since spread around the world. Bol (who passed away in 2018 just weeks after a cancer diagnosis) built his first little library with discarded lumber, placing it at the edge of his yard and filling it with books for passersby to borrow. After seeing how it "became the center of [the] neighborhood" Bol approached his friend Rick Brooks for advice about how to spread what they came to call "Little Free Libraries" to other communities. Paul's text details the ups and downs of their grassroots efforts, noting that they were inspired by librarian Lutie Stearns, "who brought travelling libraries all over Wisconsin," and Andrew Carnegie, "who once built 2,510 libraries!" Parra's accompanying illustrations, rendered in acrylics, depict Bol and Brooks, both white men, and the diverse people from across the United States and around the world who became "stewards," or "community heroes" in the words of the text, of their own Little Free Libraries. Their flat aesthetic has something of a DIY/painted-on-lumber appearance, which adds to the homespun feeling of the text and the very movement that inspired it. A book to share about book-sharing at its best. (Picture book. 4-10)

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September 1, 2019

Gr 1-4-When he was young, Todd's mom, a teacher, shared her love and enthusiasm for books with him and the children in their neighborhood. When she died, adult Todd got an idea. "He cut up an old door and hammered the pieces together to make a tiny one-room schoolhouse. He stacked books inside...and placed the little library on his lawn. Now he could share his mother's love of reading with anyone who passed by." A neighborhood rummage sale was the spark that got his neighbors to notice the little library, and it became the center of the community. Todd told his friend Rick Brooks, and they worked together to bring their idea to life. Eventually, they planted 30 little libraries across the Midwest. The media spread the word, and Little Free Libraries sprouted all over the U.S. and other countries, including Ireland, Pakistan, South Korea, and South Sudan. An author's note provides more background information and celebrates the creators of these libraries. "Building materials have included an old TV set, a telephone booth, newspaper vending machines, a medicine cabinet, a mini-refrigerator, electronic waste, Lego bricks, and even a large block of ice!" VERDICT The childlike acrylic illustrations and engaging text make this title accessible to young readers, but the story will appeal to and inspire all ages to join the movement. An important book recognizing a true everyday hero.-Barbara Auerbach, Cairo Public Library, NY

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2019
Grades K-3 Kids curious about the little neighborhood libraries that look a bit like oversized mailboxes or book-holding birdhouses will be interested to find out how they came to be and how a simple idea can gain traction. Meant to inspire, Paul's story about Little Free Libraries is cloaked in superhero terms. While the word hero has become somewhat elastic, certainly Todd Bol had an extraordinary idea when he decided to memorialize his mom's love of reading with a small but unique creation bringing books for sharing to local neighborhoods. The narrative focuses on several ways individuals grew the concept, and Parra's illustrations are peopled with diverse communities enjoying books, from post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans to a school in El Paso, a refugee camp in Uganda, and a hiking trail. Using lots of earthy colors, Parra depicts people with blocky torsos and emphasizes the square sturdiness of the libraries. The author's note adds enriching opportunities for readers whose interest is piqued by the way somebody who seems ordinary can make a global impact.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)