My wife and I lived in Baltimore for three years, from 1999 until 2002, when she was going to nursing school and later working at Johns Hopkins. We lived in a fun part of town called Charles Village. It was a weird mix of Hopkins students, professional academics, eccentric crusaders, and middle class folks all trying to find affordable housing in a safe neighborhood.

Down the street, literally six blocks, from where we lived, there was a hidden gem that I never got the chance to check out. It’s a project called The Book Thing run by Russell Wattenberg. Basically, he gives away books … for free. Anyone can wander in and sift through the stacks and stacks of books and take what they like. No payment is required. It’s a wonderful idea. I never got the chance to explore the place, but now that I’m living elsewhere, I wish I had.

The whole operation is non-profit, relying on volunteers, donations (books and money), and word of mouth. Recently, the building in which The Book Thing rents their basement space has been sold. There’s a good chance they will have to relocate.

If you can help them out in any way, now is the time to act. They love to receive free books. Money is always helpful. If you know of a cheap place for them to relocate, that’d be helpful, I’m sure.

The main website is here. You can read more here and here.