Welcome to Brainstuff, production of iHeart Radio. Hey brain Stuff Lauren Vogelbaum Here. Todd Bowle tore down his old garage door in two thousand nine, the year his mother died. Using the scrap wood, he created something new, a box shaped like a little red schoolhouse. He set it on a post in his yard in Hudson, Wisconsin, and included a door that opened to give access to the books he placed inside. His mother had been a school teacher, and this book box helped keep her legacy alive. He felt.
Bole died on October eighteenth, eighteen, at age sixty two of pancreatic cancer, but not before some seventy five thousand Little Free Library boxes had been created and the movement had spread worldwide. Today, the movement has over a hundred and thirty eight thousand boxes present in a hundred and twelve countries and on all seven continents, including one in an arcticle at the South Pole. They can be found on people's lawns, in public parks, at New York City
subway stops, and in a refugee camp in Uganda. People place books in them and take books away in an easy exchange. There are no memberships, no fines, and no expectations except for communities dedication to reading and sharing books. Both told The Washington Post in I put up my library and noticed my neighbors talking to it like it was a little puppy, and I realized there was some
kind of magic about it. When he realized people loved the idea of small free library boxes, he and a friend worked to extend the magic, building and giving away boxes. With national media attention in eleven, the movement grew exponentially, and both formed the nonprofit Little Free Library. He told the Minneapolis Star Tribune in oh what we have found is that the neighborhood starts to feel like it's the airs in today's polarized society. The boxes create a common
space that people are comfortable with. He said. He felt the boxes also had a folk art appeal. Although there are lots of different blueprints and tutorials aimed at different skill levels available on the nonprofit's website, you can build and decorate a box however you'd like. Bole himself was an erstwhile school teacher turned entrepreneur concerned with the public good. Among his ventures was a company that arranged funding for nurses to come from overseas to fill a nursing shortage
in the United States. Today, Little Free Library boxes are located in hospitals in Ireland, prisons in Wisconsin, police stations in Los Angeles, outside school in Sudan, and on the
Yamal Peninsula in Siberia, where reindeer herders live. The organization also launched Action Book Club, which encourages people to read and discuss books on timely topics and take part in service projects together, and the Reading Color Initiative, which encourages people to read and share books that amplify and celebrate diverse voices. And the Impact Library Program, which places little libraries and areas with little to no access to books
and unbound digital events series. If you're interested in building a Little Free Library or participating in the network in your area, go to Little Free Library dot org to get started. There's a world map where you can see whether there's already a little library in your neighborhood, plus lots of resources for getting involved. They're not a sponsor, We just think they're cool. Today's episode is based on the article how Todd Bowl started the Little Free Library
movement on how Stuff Works dot com. Written by Stell Simonton. Brain Stuff is production of I heart Radio and partnership with how stuff works dot com, and it's produced by Tyler Playing with assistance from Ramsey Young. For more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.