A grocery store on Ararat Highway is home to the first little free library in Ararat.
Brandon Simmons officially opened the library at Dan River Grocery on Sunday after getting the idea from his wife who was thinning out the family book collection.
“I thought ‘why not have a place where the kids who come with their parents to get gas, can stop in and grab a book,’” Simmons said. “It will bring a little joy, a little more connection and a whole lot more books to our community.”
The Little Free Library movement was started in 2009 by Todd Bol of Hudson, Wisconsin, who built a model of a one room schoolhouse as a tribute to his mother; she was a school teacher who loved to read.
The movement has since grown to 50,000 around the world.
Little Free Libraries offer a way to share good things to read — favorite books from your childhood or books you would recommend to friends. It doesn’t cost anything and it doesn’t require a membership. Anyone can use it.
Take a book. If you see something you would like to read, take it. Share it. Return it or pass it on to a friend.
If your kids have outgrown some of their books, add them to the little free library and let others enjoy them.
Simmons named the new library “The Book Box,” but it looks more like a book bot or robot. Made from a decommissioned newspaper dispensary, the library was painted bright yellow and has a robot face with the mouth as the handle.
Although the idea began with kids in mind, the box is meant for all ages.
Little Free Library is a nonprofit organization honored by the Library of Congress, the National Book Foundation, and the American Library Association.
Reader’s Digest named them one of the “50 Surprising Things We Love about America.”
The new library outside the grocery store is registered with the official Little Free Library organization and Simmons is awaiting the membership plaque to add to the bot.
To learn more, visit littlefreelibrary.org.
One of the most successful ways to improve the reading achievement of children is to increase their access to books, especially at home, according to the release.
But up to 61 percent of low-income families do not have any books for their kids at home, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
Little Free Libraries play an essential role by providing 24/7 access to books, and encouraging a love of reading, in areas where books are scarce, the release stated.
