Cabinets of wonder and curiosity have become a frequent site in front of Winnipeg homes. Some are simple boxes. Others feature more elaborate designs, looking like treasure chests or the homes they sit in front of. But they are all filled with the same things. Little Free Libraries, a type of public book exchange, have grown in popularity, adorning schools and yards across Manitoba and the world. CTV News spoke with several of the librarians about their work to get books in everyone’s hands. Origin stories A lifelong love of reading has been the main reason for some amateur Winnipeg librarians to set up their spaces. Cheryl Mason, who has a library on Gibraltar Street in Winnipeg’s Crestview neighbourhood, set hers up after her son was born. “I saw them popping up and I thought it was a really cute idea,” she said. “I was on mat leave with my son. I figured if I was ever too tired to actually take him anywhere or go to the actual library, if I had my own library up front, it might make it a bit easier.” Chantal de Rocquigny runs a Little Free Library in the city’s Island Lakes neighbourhood. She got the idea from one of her friends who had one in New Brunswick. “Reading has always been important to me, and I just wanted to share my love for literacy with the community,” she said. Mason’s library features a variety of books, including lots of books for children, romance novels, and thrillers she adds once she is done reading them. “The kids really like seeing when people stop by, and sometimes they’ll run out to check to see what new books are out there,” she said. It’s a similar situation for de Rocquigny. “I always made sure that I have a variety of books for every age group,” she said. Discovery In 2023, a Winnipegger began cataloging the locations of the libraries around Winnipeg and creating a map that the public could use to find them. Natalia Wong started the Little Free Library map not long after getting her own library set up and registered online. She soon realized she had an influx of books, prompting her to deliver them around the city. “I went on these little adventures where I would just go around the city and look for other little free libraries,” she said. “And then I noticed that a lot of them weren’t registered. So, I thought it would be cool to put them on a map and start connecting them all together.” Wong would grab her backpack and ride her bike or drive her car to different neighbourhoods, moving from street to street to map the locations. Now that her map is established, people will message her locations of the libraries, making it easier. The map, which lives in a Google document on Instagram, has more than 340 library locations, and it’s not complete. “I haven’t discovered the north of the city quite as much yet, so I’m sure there’s a ton there,” Wong said. The map contains photos and approximate addresses of the libraries. Some homes have created unique designs for their libraries, including one that resembles a treasure chest. Some have repurposed old newspaper boxes. Wong’s favourite libraries in her travels include Wednesday the Camel on Wellington, along with ones that look like a miniature version of the house they’re located in front of. Challenges While the owners of the libraries said they enjoy the libraries overall, they have also come with challenges. Theft previously was an issue for de Rocquigny, prompting her to briefly close. “Unfortunately, we had to put a camera up at one point, and then someone decided to steal that, and we had a lot of kids that were very disrespectful to the library,” she said. Eventually, de Rocquigny was persuaded to reopen after getting lots of calls of support from the wider community. “The only thing I could do was just bounce back and continue to offer books to the community,” she said. Mason ran into issues with her library this year following the storms that pounded the city in June. “The wood had split, so the door was off,” she said. “There were some books that had blown away in the wind, and I had to save the rest in a garbage bag while it was pouring outside.” Mason is currently having a new library built to replace the damaged one and is hoping to have it running again. Community connections For everyone involved with the Little Free Library movement, being able to talk with people about reading is the biggest joy. “Just seeing people walking by and then doing the double take and coming to grab a book and it just feels like community,” Mason said. “If I do see people outside, I try to catch them and find out what kind of books they’re looking for, what they really enjoy,” said de Rocquigny. “I’ve stockpiled a whole bunch of books in my basement, and so sometimes when I talk to the people that are there, and I ask, ‘What kind of books are you looking for?’ they might say books that I have downstairs.” Wong loves how the libraries help build communities. “You feel closer to the people in Winnipeg when you go visit their little free libraries,” she said. “Even though you don’t get to meet the person who owns the library, you can see a little bit of their passion through it.”
