Book house: Family encourages passersby to take a book/leave a book

Posted 10/19/18

A tiny whimsical cottage on North Douglas Street looks like it belongs in a storybook — which is quite fitting, given its purpose.

Within its brightly colored walls, the little home holds …

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Book house: Family encourages passersby to take a book/leave a book

Posted

A tiny whimsical cottage on North Douglas Street looks like it belongs in a storybook — which is quite fitting, given its purpose.

Within its brightly colored walls, the little home holds books, beckoning passersby to take one or share one.

“We see a lot of foot traffic,” said Anna Hardy, “and I hope that the dog walkers, [Rocky Mountain] Manor residents, college and Parkside students, and anyone else who strolls past our book house will find a book for their journey.”

Hardy’s husband, Luke Robertson, built the book house as an anniversary gift for her.

“I grew up in a family of readers and loved sharing my books with them, as well as hearing about what they were reading,” she said. “Sharing books with others might be my favorite thing about reading, now that I think about it!”

The exchange of books comes naturally for Hardy, who worked as a librarian at Westside Elementary School.

After she talked about wanting a free little library for her birthday, Robertson started looking at possible designs.

“I found a picture online of a book house with a whimsical design with the roof that had the cedar shakes on it,” Robertson said.

He didn’t have a blueprint, but just eyeballed it and came up with his own plans.

“Initially, it started with me just building the basic shape, and then I thought, ‘I want to do a little bit more,’” Robertson said. “So that’s when I started making siding and the little scallops.”

His creativity and attention to detail paid off; Hardy loves the custom gingerbread house-like details that he hand-sculpted.

“The book house seems like something out of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ or ‘A Series of Unfortunate Events’ (except with a cheerier paint scheme),” Hardy said.

While Robertson has undertaken numerous renovation projects at the family’s home, he had never built anything quite like this.

“I think every time you build you learn something new,” he said.

On the book house, he worked with plexiglass for the first time; he also used his coping saw and brad nailer a lot more than he had on past projects.

Wanting to repurpose materials, he used old 2x4s and leftover paint from previous kitchen and bathroom updates.

“As far as cost, it wasn’t that expensive, because most of the stuff was scraps and things I had around the house,” Robertson said.

The couple ordered a custom-made “Take one, leave one” sign from Back Alley Metals in Red Lodge, Montana, but the company ended up donating it because they thought the book house was a cool idea.

Robertson started building the little library in the summer of 2017, but took a break from the project when the weather got cold; he finished it this summer.

Hardy said she’s proud of the book house “and glad that he made and remade certain aspects until it looked just right.”

‘An amazing love for books’

Passersby have exchanged several dozen books — mostly children’s books — since the little library went up in front of the Robertson-Hardy home.

“I think it’s a neat idea, because surely people have books that were loved once, and they’re done reading them and can put them out for someone else to enjoy,” Robertson said.

The couple’s 3-year-old daughter, Briar, has especially enjoyed the book house.

Briar’s love for reading started when she was just a baby, listening intently to her parents read book after book.

“Briar has an amazing love for books,” Robertson said. “I catch her at night with her nightlight and books out, just reading until she falls asleep.”

Now almost 4, she loves reading to her 1-year-old brother, Bruin, who enjoys looking at the pictures, pointing at things and following along.

“That’s his thing now — he wants to turn the page,” Robertson said.

When Robertson sees new arrivals in the little library, he lets Briar know.

“Briar and I love finding new books in our book house,” Hardy said. “It’s like Christmas morning on a random Tuesday or whenever!”

They try to read any new arrivals that pique their interest.

“There have even been a few so good that Briar wanted to trade a book in her collection for one of the ones in the book house,” Hardy said.

Briar’s favorite find so far: A book titled “Pinkalicious.”

“She picked up Purplicious ... last year, and we have read it many times,” Hardy said. “It was a revelation to her that there was a book ‘just like Purplicious, but better, because, Mom ... IT’S ALL PINK!’”

Though they may pale in comparison to Pinkalicious, some of the books left in the little library appeal to adults.

Hardy was happy to find “The Names of the Stars” by Pete Fromm, as her brother had introduced her to Fromm’s “Indian Creek Chronicles” a few years ago.

“Fromm’s descriptions of nature, voluntary isolation, and the perils of soloing in the backcountry are captivating and almost make me want to give up my cozy life to slog up a muddy hill in pouring rain,” Hardy said. “Almost, haha.”

As soon as she finished “The Names of the Stars,” she shared it with her brother.

That exchange of a book — from one reader to the next — is what the little library is all about.

“Sometimes we forget to slow down, turn the page, and breathe in a different story,” Hardy said. “I hope that my book house will help people experience new viewpoints and embark on journeys they would never take in their real lives.

“Even though the sign says, ‘Take one, leave one,’ it is perfectly acceptable to take one (without leaving one) and start your journey right now,” she added.

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