b'final mattersTurning Our Familys Book Problem Into a Community WellspringLaunching the Little Free Library that couldBY DONNY LEVITW e admit it: Our familytify, Horn was released after the prosecutors case was has a book problem. found to be inconclusive.Mywife,Nicole,Were proud to say that freedom fighter is the in-and I suffer from a ter- spiration for the Zoia Horn Little Free Library of rible case of tsundoku,Maplewood. Around our house, we refer to it simply aJapanesetermthatas The Zoia.mightexplainthatOur grand opening in June included a ribbon-stack of books that you havent cracked open. WhencuttingandaDr.Seussreadingfromthekids. we first moved to our Brooklyn apartment, NicoleNeighbors showed up with books including Diary and I discovered that we each had copies of Superof a Wimpy Kid and Judy Blume novels, as well as Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart and thatworks by Jeffrey Eugenides and Shakespeare.huge Gotham tome. Nicole had Murakamis 1Q84One visitor dropped off a heavy box meticulous-in Japanese, and I had the English translation. Andly packed with holiday books. You can hold onto yet, we kept them all. Illustration by Ken Stanek. these until later this year, she told me.The kids arent much better. They regularly checkI occasionally catch the kids noses and our dogs out five books at a time from the Maplewood Library. Westruggledabitcomingupwiththerightsnouts(weveaddedasecondcanine)pressedup Our book problem was getting worse and worsemoniker for ours. Using our last name didnt seemagainst the window while a passerby is searching foruntil a particularly dreary winter day. The kidsvery stewardlike. We wanted to celebrate the righta book in our LFL. I encourage the kids to give the noses and our dogs snout were pressed up againstperson. And lets be honest: Librarians are the unher- browser some privacy, as Zoia Horn would have rec-the window as they searched for something to el- alded rock stars of the literary and research worlds. ommended. But we cant blame them for engaging in evate their spirits from the postholiday doldrums. Zoia Horn was a Ukrainian Jew who emigrat- the analog pleasure of watching someone take a book.After some kvetching from the kids, we all stum- ed with her family from Odesa to Brooklyn in theIn October we filled our LFL with a heap of Hal-bled over to a muddy patch on our lawn near the1920s.AfterattendingBrooklynCollegeandtheloween titles. Now its time to dust off that box of sidewalk. What would you all think about a gettingPratt Institute School of Information and Libraryholiday books we received in June.a Little Free Library? I asked. The vote was unani- Science, she was hired as head of the reference de- We know the postholiday doldrums will eventual-mous. The kids charged up to their rooms to figurepartment at Bucknell University. ly return, so we look forward to you trudging over in out which books they wanted to donate, and thenIn 1971 Horn received a call from the FBI re- your winter boots to check out The Zoia. Were near we headed to the hardware store, where we beganquesting library records of the Harrisburg Seven,the intersection of Rutgers Street and Tuscan Road.an intense debate over paint color. By the end of theagroupofantiwaractivistsallegedlyengagedinAnd to all of you who have dropped off books day, we were stewards of Little Free Library Chartercriminal plots. When Horn was subpoenaed to pro- from your collection: Theres a good chance your #159933. vide information on the groups library activity, sheneighbors are digging into them as you read this.TheLittleFreeLibraryorganizationboastsarefused on the grounds that her testimony wouldPlease follow us on Instagram: @zoiahornlittle-network of more than 150,000 miniature librariesthreaten intellectual and academic freedom. freelibrary. spread out over 120 countries. The term stewardGovernment spying in homes, in libraries andDonny Levit, a writer and Maplewood resident, is the simply means that youre responsible for your LFLsuniversities,shesaid,inhibitsanddestroysthisauthor ofRock n Roll Lies: 10 Stories. You can check upkeep. As opposed to owning an LFL, a stewardfreedom. outhisradioshowsonInstagram:@undertheinflu-maintains it for the community. Jailed for three weeks because she refused to tes- enceradio, @newishradio, @kindofpoolradio.50/ matters magazine / holiday 2023'