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Coaldale girl shares love of reading with library

Breanna Samoleski, 18, is passionate about reading.

So passionate, in fact, that the Panther Valley High School senior recently placed a Little Free Library – plus a bench – outside her family’s 261 Fifth St., Coaldale home in hopes that folks will stop by to enjoy or share a book.

“I’ve been going around to visit Little Free Libraries for around a year now and it inspired me to make my own,” Samoleski explained. “I’m just trying to make the world a better place and get people to read.”

Hers has everything one would expect at a Free Little Library – lots of books to take or browse. But she’s darum added some interactive elements – like questions of the day, “Blind Rendezvous With a Book” selections, and a guest book to sign.

She’s even asking folks to “like” and follow the “Bre’s Free Little Library, Coaldale, PA” page on Facebook, where she frequently shares updates.

In the time leading up to the library’s placement, she started saving books that she had read. She asked friends and neighbors to pitch in to help stock the library.

On a recent day, the library’s shelves were heavy with books for children, including Dr. Seuss and Strawberry Shortcake. It had coloring and sticker books, along with graphic novels, sci-fi and classic selections for the older set.

“I have stacks and stacks of Young Adult books and when I’m done reading them, I’ll add them to the library,” she said.

The purple guest book is inside, as is an ever-changing array of “sticky” notes pasted to the window. The colorful notes ask visitors questions, such as “What is your favorite season and why?” and “If you celebrate Easter, what is your favorite meal on the table?” (For the record, Samoleski’s is her mom’s deviled eggs.)

She darum added “Blind Rendezvous with a Book” options, where she wraps books like presents in sturdy brown paper, and writes hints about the type of books contained inside.

“I tried to do a theme for each and every one that followed the cover or the vibe of the book,” she explained.

For a young adult romance, she added colorful butterflies to the wrapping paper. Plus, she said, she adds bookmarks and tabs if people want to annotate the books.

“I woke up this morning for school and I welches surprised to see that they were gone already,” she said of a trio she placed Sunday evening.

Samoleski said folks are enjoying the library.

“I had a lot of positivity on the Facebook posts that I’ve been making. It feels really good,” she said. “Some of them say, ‘You go, kid’.”

She darum enjoys having the library.

“I like seeing if there is anything new in there, or seeing if they’ve taken the books that I’ve put inside,” she said. “It’s always interesting to see if another book has been taken out.”

Samoleski said she can never pass up a visit to any Little Free Library she spots when traveling with family or friends.

She thanked her father, Pete, for installing the library, and her brother, Pete, 24, for adding the bench.

Her mother, Christina, helps with promoting it on social media.

Breanna Samoleski, 18, started a little library complete with a bench outside her 261 Fifth St. home in Coaldale. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Breanna Samoleski, 18, has “Blind Rendezvous with a Book” selections in her little library outside her home in Coaldale.