Since 2009 over 50,000 Little Free Library book exchange boxes have sprung up on lawns worldwide, though some are worthy of a surprised second glance.

You’ve probably passed a Little Free Library during a recent walk, ride or drive though your neighborhood. Odds are you passed it off as a personal project of some local do-gooder or over-achieving parent but the so-called “Little Free Library Movement” is bigger, broader and more organized than anyone could guess.

The first Little Free Library was created by Todd Bol of Hudson, Wisconsin as a tribute to his mother, a former schoolteacher and lifelong book-lover. Bol’s pioneering concept was meant to look like a miniature one-room schoolhouse but that design isn’t mandated, even for those who register with the non-profit Little Free Library Ltd. website and receive an official sign they can affix to their box. Size isn’t de rigeur either though the above Tardis library box is larger than most… especially on the inside. Flickr member ap^ snapped the example above from Bloomington, MN on April 27th of 2013.

Bustsellers

If you’re calling your Little Free Library “Headless Books“, it follows that your book box be decorated to display that fact. Crafted from a disused bREADbox and topped by a headless (and topless, at the risk of being redundant) mannequin torso scrounged from a local garage sale, The Headless Library can be found in NE Minneapolis.

Since September of 2012 the torso-topped library shared yard space with Penny’s Childrens Library – another ex-breadbox topped with a plastic lawn-ornament penguin because why not? Sadly, this library was trashed and the penguin stolen by unknown assailants during a spring blizzard in April of 2013… at press time the penguin was still missing. We suggest looking for it on top of a British woman’s TV set.

Book To The Future

Dubbed the Little Free Library 3D X, this futuristic little library comes to us courtesy of designer and Flickr member Robert Sekula (ethno folk funk architects) in cooperation with Andrej Poliak. Never thought you’d see the words “futuristic” and “library” in the same sentence, did you?

Morel Of The Stories

What is it about Minnesota and odd Little Free Libraries? Flickr member Marie Janssen (jamuraa) snapped the above “Little Tree Free Library” in New Brighton, MN, on August 11th of 2012. Another source states it’s modeled on a mushroom of the morel family.

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Book Box Bonanza 12 Freaky Little Free Libraries

The Michigan Urban Farming Initiative (MUFI) has developed a multi-acre urban agricultural campus in Detroit with gardens and an orchard designed to feed thousands of local residents.

This so-called “agrihood” reflects a different approach to neighborhood planning and growth centered around urban agriculture — it provides fresh and locally-grown produce to local households. In the case of Detroit, disused land has been repurposed to realize this farm project.

“Over the last four years,” explains MUFI cofounder Tyson Gersh, “we’ve grown from an urban garden that provides fresh produce for our residents to a diverse, agricultural campus that has helped sustain the neighborhood, attracted new residents and area investment.”

The program is about more than just feeding people — it addresses food deserts but also nutritional illiteracy, teaching residents about healthy eating as well as sustainable and local agriculture.

MUFI is currently working to convert an old deserted building into a new Community Resource Center as part of its non-profit educational initiatives. From there, they aim to build a local healthy food cafe and other amenities for serving and connecting with the community. They are also working on a basetern project (turning basements into cisterns) to provide water for the food they grow.

“We’ve seen an overwhelming demand from people who want to live in view of our farm, says Gersh. “This is part of a larger trend occurring across the country in which people are redefining what life in the urban environment looks like. We provide a unique offering and attraction to people who want to live in interesting spaces with a mix of residential, commercial, transit, and agriculture.”

Raising funds for an feline-focused area non-profit group, these architect-designed cat dwellings span the spectrum from adventure spaces to cozy nooks for your furry friends to explore or sleep within. If you also enjoy supporting canines, it is well worth checking out these 14 architect-designed doghouses likewise built to support a charitable purpose.

With proceeds going to FixNation, the Giving Shelter fundraiser (with photographer Grey Crawford) drew an impressive array for architects, firms and designers, including RNL, NAC, DSH, HOK, Wolcott, Lehrer, Space Int’l, Formation Association, Perkins + Wil, and Standard Architecture and Design.

With tunnels, tubes, ramps and platforms from wood, metal, fake grass and the materials used to make scratching posts, participating designers showed off the huge range of possibilities for catering to domestic cats, in some cases integrating elements of human functionality (with pieces doubling as furniture) as well.

Their robust materiality and construction is intended to make the shelters able to be placed outdoors. More photos from the live benefit can be found via Fixnation and Flickr.

Architects for Animals “Giving Shelter” is an awareness raising initiative. “The one-night event in Los Angeles benefitted FixNation, a 501c3 organization dedicated to helping community cats in need. Participating architectural design firms designed, built, and donated creative outdoor shelters.”

“These shelters were on display to the public at a one night event at the Herman Miller Showroom in Culver City. FixNation and Architects for Animals offered this unique exhibit and cocktail reception that combines the love of architecture with the love of animals. Attendees enjoyed hors d’oeuvres and wine from the open bar while viewing the original shelter designs.”

More on the non-profit benefiting from the series: “FixNation is a non-profit organization committed to cats, and to supporting Trap-Neuter-Return. We provide a free, full-time spay/neuter clinic for cats with two full-time veterinarians capable of sterilizing as many as 100 cats per day. We also provide low-cost, affordable spay/neuter services for tame pet cats. We loan out humane traps and equipment to the public free of charge, provide training on how to humanely trap feral cats and kittens, and offer guidance and information on long-term care and management for feral colonies. We are located in the heart of the San Fernando Valley and have been operational as a non-profit since 2007.”

Save perhaps lawyers, what is more ubiquitous in modern society than advertising? We are used to guerilla advertisements that promote a product or service for profit or subvert the status quo but many organizations, individuals and guerilla artists have begun putting a unique spin on guerilla action by advocating for important local and global issues. Here are just some of the growing number of subversive advertising campaigns that have been to raise global awareness.

This collection of Red Cross guerilla advertisements touches on a great variety of emergency situations, from ones close to home to others around the world. For the most part they emphasize the living conditions of others who are less fortunate, from those who need blood transfusions to others in war-torn and poverty-stricken nations. Such culture jamming strategies can bring an issue into public discourse.

Homelessness is also a contentious issue in the realm of public debate. Some people advocate more programs and assistance while others maintain the homeless should simply find their own way back to their feet. This collection of homeless advocacy advertisements illustrates the growing homeless problem, much like other creative urban artistic interventions question the status quo. Regardless of your position on the issue they certainly provide food for thought.

This collection of ads on humanitarian interests is not for the faint of heart (the most tame are shown above). Some of the advertisements are extremely graphic and provocative. Still, the messages they carry are therefore all the more powerful and they address some issues that are less frequently addressed in current global discourse including child soldiers, domestic violence and animal rights. Projects such as the melting ice cap mug above are a good example of simple and local ways to advocate creatively for environmental good. Other projects are intended to work more as examples that can be replicated on a global scale.