Little Free Libraries

For my Artists on the News class in spring of 2024, I worked on an illustrated investigative piece about Little Free Libraries around Providence. I interviewed owners of these libraries to try to find out if they have an impact on the strength of the community bonds post-COVID. My question at the start was about the effectiveness of the libraries themselves, but at the end the most consequential discovery was about their geographic location. When combined with a map of income rates in Providence, and a map of regular libraries, a correlation can be seen between the number of libraries (whose basic starter kits cost nearly $300) and the wealth of the neighborhood. The disparity creates “book deserts” scattered across the city.