“Take a book, leave a book”: when the distributed library is a success

DIFFUSED LIBRARY –

To read It's an increasingly disused practice. Data reveals that the vast majority of Italians don't even read one book a year. Yet some virtuous pockets of resistance exist.. These are small exceptions that not only promote reading but They also help neighborhood collaboration by establishing virtuous circles to be proud ofThis is an initiative that with the slogan "take a book, leave a book” allowed a family who lives in the Modena area to create a real widespread library.

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THE OWL LIBRARY –

The idea came to Elena Barbieri and Luca Neri who, almost for fun, in 2013 They hung a box outside their garden where it was possible to take and donate books, all without any constraints.Like many positive experiences, this one also comes from a difficult time. The two Parents In fact, a few years ago, they discovered that their son Federico was suffering from leukemia and would be forced to retreat to his home in the coming months. So, to create a diversion, Elena and Luca decided to build a small wooden house with some text. Federico contributed to the construction by painting the little house. library in red. And in the months that followed, whenever some well-intentioned person approached, curious, it was the boy himself who explained how the exchange worked. Today the Owl Library, so called because it is also open at night, in Via Mancini 99 in Formigene, near Modena, has more than 10 thousand books, 7 branches and a warehouse that serves as a warehouse.And to think that all the friends of the Neri family, the first to donate books, were very skeptical about the success of the initiative.

WHAT IS A DIFFUSED LIBRARY –

The Owl Library follows a model already very widespread in the United States which is based on sharing reading that becomes a collective experienceIn the Anglo-Saxon world they call them “free library" and they are real neighborhood libraries. The "creation" of the Neri family, in particular, is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year and the curious thing is that night is the most profitable time for the exchange.

Today, three years later, the Owl Library is expanding and from a silent community it is transforming into a real opportunity to meet. In fact, more and more often, stalls are set up where some of the books Donated based on voluntary donations. All proceeds go to charity. And the results to date are very positive because the passion for reading in the area is growing rapidly, as are donations.

The photos are taken from the Facebook page of the Owl Library

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