Homegrown library inspiring readers

Published 2:30pm 4 August 2021

When Jessica Wright announced on a couple of community Facebook pages that she intended to start a street library at Mango Hill, she thought a handful of people might be interested.

Instead, she’s found a community of readers united by a passion for sharing books.

“I thought one or two people would comment,” Jessica says.

“It’s way more popular than I was anticipating.”

Made for sharing

Having worked in finance for more than 17 years, Jessica says she’s delighted to be moonlighting as a librarian.

“I have a massive library inside my own house filled with fiction and non-fiction,” she explains.

Jessica’s Hamptons-style library was made by her husband.

“I wanted (a street library) myself because I love them when I see them,” she says.

Ever-changing range

She describes the tastes of her fellow Mango Hill bibliophiles as eclectic and says contributions to her little library range from children’s books and biographies to romance, thrillers and DVDs.

“I’ve been working from home since last March and it’s nice to have the ability to duck out when I want to and change the books over.

“I have a huge box full of stuff – there’s people there every single day, which is great to see.”

How you can create your own

Jessica’s library is registered with the not-for-profit Street Library organisation, which launched its first library in 2015 in NSW with the aim of bringing neighbourhoods together.

There are now more than 3000 Street Libraries registered across Australia, all of which are mapped on the organisation’s website – and they hope to have 5000 registered by the end of the year.