Today’s Staff Editorial
Obscenely overpriced textbooks have been a point of contention between students and professors (or booksellers) for years now. Students refuse to accept the flimsy justification vendors perpetuate for the high cost and are constantly angry as teachers continue to require $300 textbooks — we all know the story.
But there’s a way to take an easy step toward thwarting the costly system: Little Free Libraries.
The idea originated four years ago in the Midwest, where entrepreneur Todd Bol created a small wooden schoolhouse-model box outside his home and filled it with books, according to The Washington Post. The idea is to create, in essence, a mini library where people in the community can borrow, take and leave books. It has become widely popular across the nation, with more than 10,000 Little Free Libraries constructed. The movement has even spread to Washington, D.C., with neighborhoods taking on the project of building the small structures all over the city.
So how could applying this concept here help the university community? We are required to read some books for classes already — why would we want to add more reading to our workload, even if it’s just for fun?
The beauty it could bring to students, though, is truly unparalleled. First and foremost, it could provide a cheap option for students looking for textbooks. Often, students buy an incredibly expensive textbook to be told by the University Book Center or some other company that it will “buy it back” for only about $5. But think about it — if you don’t sell it for that $5, but rather choose to keep it in your own Little Free Library, you could give another student the chance to get the book for free, with your notes and insights helpfully included.
And it’s not just about giving to others. If the university embraces the idea of Little Free Libraries, you could find the books you need for next semester for free, too. So while initially you’re not getting paid back directly for the expensive book you bought, if everyone creates these small libraries, we could have a good chance of undermining the entire textbook system by simply trading books through the years.
Additionally, it can often be hard to find a book you would really enjoy reading by simply walking into a bookstore or looking on Amazon, because you can’t be sure that the recommendations in each of these retail options are sound and apply to college students. Little Free Libraries would provide students with reading material their peers recommend. Most of us would probably have a much better chance of enjoying something a neighbor recommends than something from a 60-year-old Amazon user who thinks it would be great to read a fictional book set in the Civil War era.
Something along the lines of a Little Free Library exists on campus already. In the Footnotes Cafe inside of McKeldin Library, there is a shelf for people to take and leave novels. This is a great start, and we should capitalize on what already exists. We can also start to make more public libraries, like in the dorms or apartment complexes. Resident assistants, we’re looking at you here. Start a box with some old textbooks you have or novels you love. Before you know it, that box could grow into its own Little Free Library and give members of your floor a new, intellectual topic of conversation.
College is where we can stay up late, experience adult revelry, make friends and have an all-around good time. We should find a way to include reading in this formula — or just use Little Free Libraries so students can use money they would have spent on textbooks to buy beer.
