August 2015

There were 32 posts published in August 2015 (this is page 3 of 4).

Recap of Our Little Free Library Grand Opening

[Editor’s note: This article was also published at BoffoSocko.com]

First a major note of thanks to everyone who helped to make the launch of Little Free Library Branch #8424 a lovely success.  Everyone’s support and encouragement is truly appreciated.

When I was setting up, I naturally brought a book to read, but I did it mostly thinking that only two people might actually stop by. (Hey, I’ll be the first to admit that this is a pretty nerdy and a very local pursuit. It’s easy to click “like” on a post; it’s a whole other thing to visit a small neighborhood library even one with free oatmeal cookies.) Fortunately and very pleasantly, there was a steady stream of people from start to finish, so much so that, as the host, I didn’t get to chat with the visitors as much as I would have liked. Apologies to those I couldn’t chat with more, and even moreso to those who heard answers to the same questions multiple times.

In the end, we had over 20 people and a few pets stop by our little event.

A Double Drive-by… booking?!

Under the heading of “Only in LA” I’ll mention that, the highlight of our grand opening was what I can only describe as a double “drive-by booking.” Fortunately no one was hurt.

About 20 minutes into the event a car drove up with two bibliophiles. They each had a book to donate, but apparently didn’t have the time to park and actually stop for a glass of tea or any cookies. So they simply dropped off their books anonymously and then drove immediately off into the sunset. A few minutes later, another car drove up and did the same thing: they donated a book, said hello, and then proceeded on their way without joining the party!  Maybe they had an important book signing or a library event to rush off to? Maybe the library police were chasing them for late fines?  The mafia probably would have called foul as they didn’t technically put a foot on the curb or call us out, but hopefully this is as dangerous as things get in the Little Free Library world. One of the donated books had its South Pasadena Library serial number filed off, possibly to keep it from being traced, but authorities are working diligently on the case.

As if the double drive-by wasn’t odd enough, we also had a minivan drove by with a brief stop to ask what was going on. The driver mentioned that the car of several people happened to include two librarians, so apparently we’ll have to keep our eyes peeled for possible additional drive-by bookings.

Thanks for the Donations!

Special thanks go to Adam and Darren who dropped off 3 lovely books. And to Delilah from down the street who was responsible for our first children’s book donation. And we can’t forget the massive donation of 8 books of literary fiction from Jeffrey Stewart making the largest, single one time donation. Several other neighbors dropped books off, and many browsed and found something interesting to take with them. I have to admit that I’m glad that I live in a neighborhood with such great taste in books.

The award for the longest distance donation goes to Samantha Marks who donated a signed copy of her new book A Fatal Family Secret which she shipped from Ellicott City, Maryland just in time for the Grand Opening. It counts as the newest book in our collection as it was just published in May. Since it was checked out almost as soon as it entered the collection, it also rates as our quickest check out; those in a rush may want to pick up a copy at Amazon or other fine booksellers.

In all we had a total of  26 donations for our Grand Opening, bringing our grand total to 49, so far.

As a special mention, the award for the furthest distance traveled to make our grand opening goes to Jocelyn, who came from London on her way to Oklahoma!

Again, a big “Thank You!” to everyone who helped to make our Grand Opening such a lovely success! We look forward to seeing everyone come back soon!

Website and Social Media

For those who weren’t able to stop by, we’re now open 24/7 365 days a year.  You can visit our branch online at its own website or by means of your favorite social media platform:

The oatmeal cookies and iced tea we served at the opening.

The oatmeal cookies and iced tea we served at the opening.

Quotes from our Guestbook at our Grand Opening

Quotes from our Guestbook at our Grand Opening

 

“This is sooo cool! What a nice addition to the neighborhood.”

-Mary Baldwin

 

“Quite a mini Reading Rainbow.”

-Adam and Darren

 

“Everyone smiles in the same language. Everyone reads stories to smile.”

–Jocelyn Ranne

 

“Neat box!”

-Ruth Fairrington

 

Children’s books have begun arriving

Yesterday evening at dusk, we got our first infusion of children’s books to our library:

I’ll note somewhat guiltily, that I read the Junie B. Jones and laughed out loud several times.  For adults walking by, it’s a quick and entertaining read! The others are short enough to read while walking by with your favorite toddler (it’s hot out and you might need a break while sweating your way up the hill), but feel free to take them home for bedtime stories.

As a reminder, we’ll note that we usually shelve the children’s books on the lower shelf to make it easier for short arms and legs to reach. The donors of two of the books didn’t need to know this as I think they could only reach the bottom shelf — thanks for stopping by and sharing your books with us!

 

Bookplates, boomerangs, and magazines – Oh My!

Bookplates

Our custom book plates arrived today!

Now it’s much easier to register books on Book Crossing and give them their own unique BCID’s. We’ve added them to the 12 books currently in our collection as well as the many books we’re getting ready for our Grand Opening this coming Sunday.

Patrons can enter the BCID numbers from the bookplates to see where the book has been before them.  They can also enter in their ratings, reviews, and comments before re-releasing them back to our library or passing them along to other Little Free Libraries or friends.

Little Free Library #8424 Bookplate

Little Free Library #8424 Bookplate

Our First Boomerang

Our very first outside donation, has “boomeranged” back to us. While we don’t always necessarily expect our books to come back to our branch, it’s great to know that they’re being read and appreciated instead of sitting on our shelves just looking pretty. The accompanying note in our guest book on the return was:

“Thank you so much for the great books. They are really appreciated.”

Magazines

We’d also like to note that one of our neighbors up the hill donated a handful of magazines including Time, Sports Illustrated, and Rolling Stone among many others. While we would typically discourage the donation of magazines, these are all popular issues that are current within the last few weeks.

Bookshelf Updated

Our current offerings have been updated on our Good Reads bookshelf.

Excitement and The McAllistar Family

So excited to see a FLL in the neighborhood.
Thank you! Will visit often ❤

8/6/15: The McAllistar Family is so happy to have a little library on our street. Thank you so much for building it!

8-6-15

Foreign Influence, The Interestings, & Department of Speculation

Courtesy of two new donors we’ve just gotten the following in stock:

Today’s New Books: Fiction and a Thriller

We must have a library fairy godmother! Yet again, in the late afternoon yesterday, we got two more donations:

Our bookshelves are slowly filling up!

Reminder: Our Grand Opening is coming this weekend.

Little Free Library #8424 (Adams Hill Branch) Grand Opening

About two years ago while surfing online I came across the concept of the Little Free Library and  instantly fell in love.  It turned out I had been driving by one on my commute regularly and had always wondered what it was and what was going on.  I immediately had big dreams for building my own.  I surfed their website for ideas and building plans.  I registered for my placard. I received my placard. I drew up elaborate plans for building my own.  I debated buying new parts versus recycling or upcycling parts. [Trigger warning for bibliophiles: addictive material to follow] I spent hours surfing photos of Little Free Libraries on their Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Flickr pages.  This is when Little Free Library Envy set in… for almost two years.

I’ve finally broken the spell! Supplies have been purchased. Work has commenced.  Drilling and mounting have been completed.

The first branch of the Adams Hill Little Free Libraries is now open!

 

Little Free Library #8424 Grand Opening

You’re cordially invited to the grand opening of the first Little Free Library in Adams Hill (Charter #8424).

Date: Sunday, August 9th, 2015
Time: 4pm – 5pm
Location: 1411 Dartmouth Drive, Glendale

Lemonade and cookies will be served.

Come chat with your neighbors, say hello, and check out the library.  If you’re so motivated, feel free to bring a book (or two) to help stock the library.

More information about the Adams Hill “branch” can be found at our library’s page Little Free Library #8424, but the scant basics are below:

  • The books in our library are always free and never for sale.
  • Feel free to take a book.
  • If you have a book you’d like to share, please feel free to donate it.
  • When you’re done with your book: return it, pass it along to a friend, or release it back into the wild.
  • You don’t need to “check the book out” or “check it in”, but we do encourage you to sign our guest book and participate via Book Crossing.

New Non-Fiction Arrived This Morning

Someone apparently knows my taste in non-fiction. An anonymous donor has brought us copies of:

 

Our First Native BookCrossing

Yesterday, we had someone donate our first natively registered Book Crossing release: Dean Koontz’s Life Expectancy. Thanks loveschocolate for visiting our library and making the donation!