Being a book lover from childhood, I was pleased when Little Free Library kiosks, described in a recent Los Angeles Times article as "charming, birdhouse-like structures," began to pop up in different areas of Harlem, including two inside Marcus Garvey Park.
Not for one minute did I suspect they were a harbinger of gentrification, like a Starbucks or a Whole Foods store moving into a vacant commercial space or the construction of luxury housing.
To me, these book kiosks existed solely as a celebration and promotion of good literature by people like me, dyed-in-the-wool bookworms.
That was my thought until I read Jack Flemming's online Los Angeles Times real estate article, "Black-Trimmed Homes, Tiny Libraries, And Other Signs Your Neighborhood Is About To Be Gentrified" (December 7, 2023).
Flemming, a staff writer at the paper, assures the reader that the kiosks "don't cause gentrification." Instead they are "a product of gentrification" and that they "usually" appear "where home prices are rising and well-to-do residents are moving in."
And, he further notes, most of the books he has seen in these kiosks "generally seem to be stocked exclusively with James Patterson novels and unreadable how-to books."
Fortunately, the book kiosks in Harlem offer more diverse selections than the ones in the L.A. area. I have found children's books, black history books, reference books, travel guides, cookbooks, and novels by Octavia Butler, Michael Connelly, Amy Tan, Nadine Gordimer, Marlon James, to name a few. ( I have also donated many books, DVDs, and CDs.)
These kiosks may be a "product of gentrification," but I'm glad they're in my neighborhood, where there are no longer any bookstores. They, and the local branch libraries, are making literature available to everyone.
Like the community fridges that allow people to donate and take food, the Little Free Library kiosks have become community assets.
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