Cities ban dangerous menace: little free libraries

In recent years, "little free libraries" — which look like large birdhouses and are full of books neighbors can borrow or contribute to at will — have popped up in many towns around the country. But despite the fact that they're an unobtrusive and often adorable way to promote neighborliness, some cities have decided the tiny libraries are in violation of zoning laws.

This conflict has most recently appeared in Shreveport, Louisiana and Los Angeles California, where cranky neighbors have set town officials on little free library owners, asking them to remove the structures on pain of fines. A library owner in L.A. argues that the city is "wildly swinging its cudgel to destroy something that has made the city and this neighborhood a better place."

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