History, mystery and adventure: A guide to Grand Rapids' Little Free Libraries

In this week’s Rapid Growth, Lauren Fay Carlson profiles the growing number of Little Free Libraries in Grand Rapids — little boxes of books that are increasingly popping up on streets throughout the city.

When we went to explore the books you can find in these libraries, we were thrilled with the range we discovered — whether you’re eight years old or 80, into mysteries or historical tomes, you’ll find something to hold your interest.

So, what can you pick up at the Little Free Libraries in our area? Here’s a sampling of the titles we got to glimpse on our library adventure:

Mackinaw Road SE

We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Irish Girls About Town by Maeve Binchy, Marian Keyes and Cathy Kelly
The Cobra by Frederick Forsyth
Curious George and the Firefighters by H.A. Rey and Margret Rey
Taylor’s Pocket Guide to Vegetables by Norman Taylor

Calvin Avenue SE

Lake Wobegon Days and We Are Still Married by Garrison Keillor
The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
Housekeeping by Marilyn Robinson
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary

Bates Street SE

Miss Timmins’ School for Girls by Nayana Currimbhoy
Cured by Bethany Wiggins
Deeper by Gordon Williams
Tunnels by Gordon Williams
Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Blind Courage by Bill Irwin and David McCasland

Benjamin Avenue SE

The Partner by John Grisham
Blue Highways by William Least Heat Moon
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them by Al Franken
Redemption by Leon Uris
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton
Ten Greek Plays

Briarwood Avenue SE

Golden State by Michelle Richmond
Mindset by Carol S. Dweck
Chicken With Plums by Marjane Satrapi
South by Java Head by Alistair MacLean
Read All About It! By James D. Squires

Diamond Avenue SE

I. Asimov: A Memoir by Isaac Asimov
Nightfall by Isaac Asimov and Robert Silverberg
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
Murder on the Yukon Quest and Dead North by Sue Henry
The Bhagavad Gita

Fulton Street East

Edible Grand Traverse
Numerous Poets & Writers magazines
Memory Man by David Baldacci
The Heist by Daniel Silva
Inventing Human Rights: A History by Lynn Hunt

Mack Avenue NE

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns
Don’t Shoot by David M. Kennedy
The Autumn of the Patriarch by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Pine Barrens by John McPhee
The Black Echo by Michael Connelly
Anthills of the Savannah by Chinua Achebe

Union Avenue NE (which has two Little Free Libraries, one for teen/junior books and another for adults)

The Republic by Plato
An American Childhood by Annie Dillard
A Time to Kill by John Grisham
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason by Helen Fielding
The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary
Next by Michael Crichton
Tracker by Gary Paulsen

Washtenaw Street NE

Henry and Ribsy by Beverly Cleary
The War with Mr. Wizzle by Gordon Korman (and numerous other Korman books)
Bucky’s Journey Through the Badger State by Aimee Aryal
Encyclopedia Brown Sets the Pace by Donald J. Sobol

Cambridge Drive SE

The Pelican Brief by John Grishman
Last Kiss by Luanne Rice
Shadow Song by Terry Kay
Sleep No More by Greg Iles
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
Wild by Cheryl Strayed
A Long Way From Home by Tom Brokaw
Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

To check out if there’s a Little Free Library near you, as well as the entire list of registered LFLs in our area, you can take a look at this helpful list. Happy reading, everyone!