View source for Bookmobile

{{short description|Vehicle with an onboard library}}
{{redirect|Mobile library|the library in Mobile, Alabama|Mobile Public Library}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
[[File:Bookmobile.jpg|right|thumb|The bookmobile of the [[Ottawa Public Library]]. This particular model is based on a [[Saf-T-Liner HDX]] chassis.]]
A '''bookmobile''', or '''mobile library''', is a vehicle designed for use as a library.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bookmobile |title=bookmobile |website=Merriam-Webster |access-date=October 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090423155510/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bookmobile |archive-date=April 23, 2009}}</ref><ref name="cooler">{{cite web |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-earliest-libraries-on-wheels-looked-way-cooler-than-todays-bookmobiles-1418682/ |title=The Earliest Libraries-On-Wheels Looked Way Cooler Than Today's Bookmobiles |last=Eveleth |first=Rose |author-link=Rose Eveleth |date=October 11, 2013 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |access-date=October 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140518213330/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-earliest-libraries-on-wheels-looked-way-cooler-than-todays-bookmobiles-1418682/ |archive-date=May 18, 2014}}</ref> They have been known by many names throughout history, including traveling library, library wagon, book wagon, book truck, library-on-wheels, and book auto service.<ref name="Bashaw 2010 33">{{cite journal |url=https://www.proquest.com/openview/410bdb80a01b5e4e419edffadbc754eb/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=52910 |last=Bashaw |first=Diane |title=On the Road Again: A Look at Bookmobiles, Then and Now |date=2010 |journal=Children & Libraries: The Journal of the Association for Library Service to Children |page=33 |volume=3 |issue=1 |access-date=April 23, 2022}}</ref> Bookmobiles expand the reach of traditional libraries by transporting books to potential readers, providing library services to people in otherwise underserved locations (such as remote areas) and/or circumstances (such as residents of [[retirement home]]s). Bookmobile services and materials (such as Internet access, [[large print]] books, and [[audiobook]]s), may be customized for the locations and populations served.<ref name="riot" />

Bookmobiles have been based on various means of conveyance, including bicycles, carts, motor vehicles, trains, watercraft, and wagons, as well as camels, donkeys, elephants, horses, and mules.<ref name="Bashaw 2010 33"/><ref name="riot" />

==History==
===19th century===
[[Image:WarringtonPerambulatingLibrary.jpg|thumb|The Perambulating Library of 1859 in [[Warrington]], England<ref name="riot" />]]
In the United States of America, [[The American School Library]] (1839) was a traveling frontier library published by [[Harper & Brothers]]. [[The Smithsonian Institution|The Smithsonian Institution's ]] [[National Museum of American History]] has the only complete original set of this series complete with its wooden carrying case.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Olmert|first1=Michael|title=The Smithsonian book of books|date=1992|publisher=Smithsonian Books|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=0-89599-030-X|edition=1.|chapter=The Infinite Library, Timeless and Incorruptible|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/smithsonianbooko00olme}}</ref>

''[[The British Workman]]'' reported in 1857<ref>{{cite news|work=The British Workman|url=http://www.mealsgate.org.uk/perambulating-library.php|date=1 February 1857|title=Perambulating Library|access-date=27 May 2011|archive-date=22 January 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120122045215/http://www.mealsgate.org.uk/perambulating-library.php|url-status=live}}</ref> about a perambulating library operating in a circle of eight villages, in [[Cumbria]].<ref name="promising">{{cite web |url=https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2012/04/11/bookmobiles-a-proud-history-a-promising-future/ |title=Bookmobiles: A Proud History, a Promising Future |date=April 11, 2012 |website=American Libraries |access-date=October 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170315223309/https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2012/04/11/bookmobiles-a-proud-history-a-promising-future/ |archive-date=March 15, 2017}}</ref> A Victorian merchant and philanthropist, George Moore, had created the project to "diffuse good literature among the rural population".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mealsgate.org.uk/george-moore.php|title=George Moore|website=Mealsgate.com|access-date=1 September 2011|archive-date=24 March 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324154348/http://www.mealsgate.org.uk/george-moore.php|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Warrington Perambulating Library]], set up in 1858, was another early British mobile library.<ref name="cooler" /> This horse-drawn van was operated by the Warrington [[Mechanics' Institute]], which aimed to increase the lending of its books to enthusiastic local patrons.<ref>{{cite book |last=Orton |first=Ian |title=An Illustrated History of Mobile Library Services in the UK with notes on traveling libraries and early public library transport |publisher=Branch and Mobile Libraries Group of the Library Association |location=Sudbury |isbn=0-85365-640-1 |year=1980}}</ref>

During the late 1800s, women's clubs began advocating for bookmobiles in the state of Texas and throughout the United States. Kate Rotan of the women's club in Waco, Texas, was the first to advocate for bookmobiles. She was president of the Texas Federation of Women's Clubs (TFWC). During this time, women's clubs were encouraged to promote bookmobiles because they embraced their ideas and missions. After receiving so much support and promotion, these traveling libraries increased in numbers all around the United States. In the state of New York from 1895 to 1898 the number of bookmobiles increased to 980. The United States Women Clubs became their primary advocate.<ref name="Cummings, Jennifer 1966. pp. 299">Cummings, Jennifer. "'How Can We Fail?' The Texas State Library's Traveling Libraries and Bookmobiles, 1916-1966." Libraries & the Cultural Record, vol. 44, no. 3, Aug. 2009, pp. 299–325. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1353/lac.0.0080.</ref>

===20th century===
[[File:Blount-county-book-mobile-1943-tn1.jpg|thumb|A "book mobile" serving children in [[Blount County, Tennessee]], United States, in 1943]]
[[File:Photograph of the Athens Regional Library bookmobile, Athens, Georgia, 1948 September - DPLA - f14b48f318bf6b4dcc9bcd2df89372e0.jpg|thumb|Photograph of Mrs. Asbell, a housewife with an invalid husband, coming out to meet the Athens Regional Library bookmobile in Athens, Georgia, September 1948.]]
The Women's Club movement in 1904, had the standard to be held accountable for the influx of bookmobiles in thirty out of fifty states. Because of the Texas Federation of Women's Clubs (TFWC), a new legislation to develop public libraries in Texas became possible after much advocating from TFWC for bookmobiles. This new legislation brought in library improvements and expansions that included establishing a system of traveling libraries in Texas. Women's Clubs wanted state governments to step in and create commissions for these traveling libraries. They hoped the commissions would boost the managers of the bookmobile's "Library Sprit". Unfortunately, the Texas Library Association (TLA) could not provide the type of service that is already provided to state libraries to bookmobiles.<ref name="Cummings, Jennifer 1966. pp. 299"/>

[[File:Rijdende bibliotheek doet zijn intrede Weeknummer 51-43 - Open Beelden - 63122.ogv|thumb|1951 video of a "bibliobus" serving small villages in the Netherlands]]
One of the earliest mobile libraries in the United States was a mule-drawn wagon carrying wooden boxes of books. It was created in 1904 by the People's Free Library of [[Chester County, South Carolina]], and served the rural areas there.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.libsci.sc.edu/histories/vts/vts09.html|website=Chester County Free Public Library|title=History|access-date=1 May 2010|archive-date=13 June 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613172509/http://www.libsci.sc.edu/histories/vts/vts09.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Another early mobile library service was developed by [[Mary Lemist Titcomb]] (1857–1932).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.whilbr.org/bookmobile/index.aspx|title=The first county bookmobile in the US, Western Maryland Regional Library|website=whilbr.org|access-date=14 July 2005|archive-date=29 November 2006|archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20061129031405/http://www.whilbr.org/bookmobile/index.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="pbs" /><ref name="WiegandDavis1994">{{cite book|editor=[[Wayne A. Wiegand]] and Donald G. Davis|title=Encyclopedia of Library History|year=1994|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-0-8240-5787-9 |chapter=Itinerating Libraries |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=WR9bsvhc4XMC&pg=PA315 |pages=315–317 |author=Joanne E. Passet}}</ref><ref name="wbur">{{cite web |url=https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2018/04/10/library-on-wheels-sharlee-glenn |title='Library on Wheels' Travels The Path Of America's First Bookmobile |date=April 10, 2018 |website=WBUR Here & Now |access-date=October 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180413145626/https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2018/04/10/library-on-wheels-sharlee-glenn |archive-date=April 13, 2018}}</ref> As a librarian in [[Washington County, Maryland]], Titcomb was concerned that the library was not reaching all the people it could.<ref name="pbs" /> Meant as a way to reach more library patrons, the annual report for 1902 listed 23 deposit stations, with each being a collection of 50 books in a case that was placed in a store or post office throughout the county.<ref>{{cite book|author=Washington County Free Library|title=First Annual Report for the Year ending October 1, 1902}}</ref> Although popular, Titcomb realized that even this did not reach the most rural residents, and so she cemented the idea of a "book wagon" in 1905, taking the library materials directly to people's homes in remote parts of the county.<ref name="riot" /><ref>{{cite news |author=Maryland State Archives|title= Maryland Women's Hall of Fame|work= Washington County Free Library}}</ref><ref name="promising" /><ref name="wbur" /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.appalachianhistory.net/2018/04/first-bookmobile-in-country.html |title=First bookmobile in the country |last=Tabler |first=Dave |date=April 16, 2018 |website=Appalachian History |access-date=October 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180419182910/https://www.appalachianhistory.net/2018/04/first-bookmobile-in-country.html |archive-date=April 19, 2018}}</ref> After securing a Carnegie gift of $2,500, Titcomb purchased a black Concord wagon and employed the library janitor to drive it.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Levinson |first1=Nancy Smiler |title=Takin' it to the Streets: The History of the Book Wagon |journal=Library Journal |date=May 1, 1991 |volume=116 |issue=8 |page=43-45<!-- |access-date=23 March 2023-->}}</ref> The book wagon proved popular, with 1,008 volumes distributed within its first six months. <ref>{{cite journal |last1=Levinson |first1=Nancy Smiler |title=Takin' it to the Streets: The History of the Book Wagon |journal=Library Journal |date=May 1, 1991 |volume=116 |issue=8 |page=43-45<!-- |access-date=23 March 2023-->}}</ref>
 
With the rise of motorized transport in America, a pioneering librarian in 1920 named [[Sarah Byrd Askew]] began driving her specially outfitted [[Ford Model T|Model T]] to provide library books to rural areas in New Jersey.<ref name=past>{{cite book|title=Past and Promise: Lives of New Jersey Women|year=1997|publisher=Syracuse University Press|pages=103–104|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h-6WCBQPZdoC|author=Susan B. Roumfort|editor=Joan N. Burstyn|chapter=Sarah Byrd Askew, 1877–1942|isbn=9780815604181}}</ref> The automobile remained rare, however, and in Minneapolis, the [[Hennepin County Public Library]] operated a horse-drawn book wagon starting in 1922.<ref name="MinnPost">{{cite news|last1=Ehling|first1=Matt|title=The Hennepin County Library system – connecting past with present|url=https://www.minnpost.com/politics-policy/2011/06/hennepin-county-library-system-%E2%80%93-connecting-past-present|access-date=26 March 2018|work=MinnPost|issue=Politics and Policy|date=30 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327212234/https://www.minnpost.com/politics-policy/2011/06/hennepin-county-library-system-%E2%80%93-connecting-past-present|archive-date=27 March 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Following the [[Great Depression in the United States]], a [[Works Progress Administration|WPA]] effort from 1935 to 1943 called the [[Pack Horse Library Project]] covered the remote coves and mountainsides of Kentucky and nearby Appalachia, bringing books and similar supplies on foot and on hoof to those who could not make the trip to a library on their own. Sometimes these "packhorse librarians" relied on a centralized contact to help them distribute the materials.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kywcrh.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/WPA-Project-pack-horse-librarians-in-kentucky-1936-43.pdf|title=Packhorse Librarians in Kentucky, 1936–1943|author=WPA|website=University of Kentucky|date=July 2012|access-date=2 April 2014|archive-date=21 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150221062716/http://www.kywcrh.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/WPA-Project-pack-horse-librarians-in-kentucky-1936-43.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

At [[Fairfax County, Virginia]], county-wide bookmobile service was begun in 1940, in a truck loaned by the [[Works Progress Administration]] (WPA). The WPA support of the bookmobile ended in 1942, but the service continued.<ref>Barbuschak, Christopher, Virginia Room Archivist/Librarian, City of Fairfax Regional Library, Statement by E-Mail, sent Thursday, 16 August 2018, 10:56:52&nbsp;pm:''[...]"in a history book entitled Fairfax County VA A History. On page 618, we found this sentence:  "Herndon's Fortnightly Club established a library in 1889, and for many years this facility and the county's bookmobiles were the only library services available in the northwestern part of the county."  Fairfax County did not have bookmobiles until 1940. " [...]''</ref>
 
The "Library in Action" was a late-1960s bookmobile program in the [[Bronx, NY]], run by interracial staff that brought books to teenagers of color in under-served neighborhoods.<ref>{{cite web|author=Attig, Derek|title=National Bookmobile Day: Aggregation Edition|website=HASTAC|url=http://www.hastac.org/blogs/derekattig/2012/04/12/national-bookmobile-day-aggregation-edition|date=12 April 2012|access-date=19 March 2015|archive-date=8 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150308213609/http://www.hastac.org/blogs/derekattig/2012/04/12/national-bookmobile-day-aggregation-edition|url-status=live}}</ref>

Bookmobiles reached the height of their popularity in the mid-twentieth century.<ref name="riot" /><ref name="wbur" /><ref>Berger, M. (1977). Reading, Roadsters, and Rural America. ''The Journal of Library History (1974–1987),'' ''12''(1), 42–49. {{JSTOR|25540714}}</ref>

In England, bookmobiles, or "traveling libraries" as they were called in that country, were typically used in rural and outlying areas. However, during World War II, one traveling library found popularity in the city of London. Because of air raids and blackouts, patrons did not visit the Metropolitan Borough of Saint Pancras's physical libraries as much as before the war. To meet the needs of its citizens, the borough borrowed a traveling library van from Hastings and in 1941 created a "war-time library on wheels." (The Saint Pancras borough was abolished in 1965 and became part of the London Borough of Camden.)  

The Saint Pancras traveling library consisted of a van mounted on a six-wheel chassis powered by a Ford engine. The traveling library could carry more than 2,000 books on open-access shelves that ran the length of the van. The books were arranged in Dewey order, and up to 20 patrons could fit into the van at one time to browse and check out materials. A staff enclosure was at the rear of the van, and the van was lighted with windows in the roof – each fitted with black-out curtains in case of a German bombing raid. The van could even be used at night, as it was fitted with electric roof lamps that could access electrical current from a nearby lamp-standard or civil defense post. The traveling library had a selection of fiction and non-fiction works; it even had a children's section with fairy tales and non-fiction books for kids.

The mayor of the borough christened the van with a speech, saying that "People without books are like houses without windows." Even after heavy night bombings by the Germans, readers visited the Saint Pancras Traveling Library in some of the worst bombed areas.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sinclair|first=Frederick|date=1941|title=War-time London's Library on Wheels|url=|journal=Wilson Library Bulletin|volume=16|pages=220–223}}</ref>

===21st century===
[[File:Bibliobús Puigdon es posa en marxa.webm|thumb|2016 video of a "bibliobús" serving small towns in Catalonia]]
Bookmobiles are still in use in the 21st century, operated by libraries, schools, activists, and other organizations. Although some{{who|date=April 2020}} feel that the bookmobile is an outmoded service, citing reasons like high costs, advanced technology, impracticality, and ineffectiveness, others cite the ability of the bookmobile to be more cost-efficient than building more branch libraries would be and its high use among its patrons as support for its continuation.<ref>{{cite news|author=Bashaw, D.|date=2010|title=On the road again: A look at bookmobiles, then and now|work=Children & Libraries|volume=8|issue=1|pages=32–35|url=http://www.ala.org/alsc/sites/ala.org.alsc/files/content/compubs/childrenlib/index_vol8.pdf|access-date=12 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141109174109/http://www.ala.org/alsc/sites/ala.org.alsc/files/content/compubs/childrenlib/index_vol8.pdf|archive-date=9 November 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> To meet the growing demand for "greener" bookmobiles that deliver outreach services to their patrons, some bookmobile manufacturers have introduced significant advances to reduce their [[carbon footprint]], such as solar/battery solutions in lieu of traditional generators, and all-electric and hybrid-electric chassis.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}} Bookmobiles have also taken on an updated form in the form of ''m libraries'',<ref>{{citation|title=Se connecter – ProQuest|language=fr|id={{ProQuest|875711389}}}}</ref> also known as ''mobile libraries''<ref>{{cite journal|last=Want|first=Penny|date=1990|title=The history and development of mobile libraries|journal=Library Management|volume=11|issue=2|pages=5–14|doi=10.1108/EUM0000000000825|id={{ProQuest|57089094}}}}</ref> in which patrons are delivered content electronically.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Brena Smith|last2=Michelle Jacobs|date=18 May 2010|title=Libraries and patrons on the move: from bookmobiles to "m" libraries|journal=Reference Services Review|volume=38|issue=2|doi=10.1108/rsr.2010.24038baa.002|issn=0090-7324}}</ref>

The [[Internet Archive]] runs its own bookmobile to print out-of-copyright books on demand.<ref name="SchnappBattles2014">{{cite book |author1=Jeffrey Schnapp |author1-link=Jeffrey Schnapp |title=The Library Beyond the Book |title-link=Library Beyond the Book |author2=Matthew Battles |publisher=Harvard University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-674-72503-4 |pages=103-104}}</ref> The project has spun off similar efforts elsewhere in the developing world.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://archive.org/texts/bookmobile.php|website=The Internet Archive|title=Bookmobile}}</ref>

[[The Free Black Women's Library]] is a mobile library in Brooklyn. Founded by Ola Ronke Akinmowo in 2015, this bookmobile features books written by black women. Titles are available in exchange for other titles written by black female authors.<ref name="Atwell">{{cite news |last1=Atwell |first1=Ashleigh |title=Bed-Stuy Pop-Up Library Focuses On Black Women Writers |url=https://patch.com/new-york/bed-stuy/bed-stuy-pop-library-focuses-black-women-writers |access-date=3 October 2018 |work=Bed-Stuy, NY Patch |date=28 February 2018 |archive-date=3 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181003101110/https://patch.com/new-york/bed-stuy/bed-stuy-pop-library-focuses-black-women-writers |url-status=live}}</ref>

==National Bookmobile Day==
<!--[[National Bookmobile Day]] redirects directly here and [[National Library Week]] links directly here.-->
In the U.S., the [[American Library Association]] sponsors National Bookmobile Day in April each year, on the Wednesday of [[National Library Week]].<ref>{{cite web|website=ALA|title=National Bookmobile Day|date=17 February 2021|url=http://www.ala.org/offices/olos/nbdhome|access-date=19 March 2015|archive-date=13 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150313152412/http://www.ala.org/offices/olos/nbdhome|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=Pinterest|title=Bookmobiles|author=ALA|url=https://www.pinterest.com/amlibraries/bookmobiles/}}</ref> They celebrate the nation's bookmobiles and the dedicated library professionals who provide this service to their communities.<ref name="riot">{{cite web |url=https://bookriot.com/history-of-bookmobiles/ |title=The History of Bookmobiles: Bookmobiles are here, and there and everywhere, to stay |last=Pan |first=Connie |date=April 12, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220412112749/https://bookriot.com/history-of-bookmobiles/ |archive-date=April 12, 2022}}</ref>

In February 2021, the American Library Association (ALA), the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services (ABOS), and the Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) agreed to rebrand National Bookmobile Day in recognition of all that outreach library professional do within their communities. Instead, libraries across the country will observe National Library Outreach Day on April 7, 2021. Formerly known as National Bookmobile Day, communities will celebrate the invaluable role library professionals and libraries continuously play in bringing library services to those in need.<ref>{{cite web|website=ALA|title=First ever national library outreach day|date=22 February 2021|url=http://www.ala.org/news/press-releases/2021/02/first-ever-national-library-outreach-day-take-place-during-national-library|access-date=14 March 2021|archive-date=25 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225223133/http://www.ala.org/news/press-releases/2021/02/first-ever-national-library-outreach-day-take-place-during-national-library|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="riot" />

==Countries==
===Africa===
* In Kenya, the Camel Mobile Library Service is funded by the [[National Library Service of Kenya]] and by [[Book Aid International]] and it operates in [[Garissa]] and [[Wajir]], near the border with [[Somalia]]. The service started with three camels in October 1996 and had 12 in 2006, delivering more than 7,000 books<ref>{{cite news|url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,1657232,00.html|title=Kenya's children of the desert|work=Guardian Unlimited|date=1 December 2005|access-date=1 June 2007|archive-date=12 October 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012143834/http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,1657232,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref> —in English, [[Somali language|Somali]], and [[Swahili language|Swahili]].<ref name="pbs" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://camelbookdrive.wordpress.com/|title=Camel Library Service|website=Kenyan Camel Book Drive|access-date=1 June 2007|archive-date=13 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140713072248/http://camelbookdrive.wordpress.com/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Masha Hamilton]] used this service as a background for her 2007 novel ''The Camel Bookmobile''.<ref name="Hamilton">{{cite book|last1=Hamilton|first1=Masha|title=The Camel Bookmobile: A Novel|date=1 January 2007|publisher=HarperCollins|location=New York|isbn=9780061173486|lccn=2006041316|edition=1st|url=https://archive.org/details/camelbookmobilen00hami}}</ref>
*"Donkey Drawn Electro-Communication Library Carts" were being employed in [[Zimbabwe]] in 2002 as "a centre for electric and electronic communication: radio, telephone, fax, e-mail, Internet".<ref name="IFLA">{{cite web|title=Donkeys help provide Multi-media Library Services|url=https://archive.ifla.org/V/press/pr0225-02.htm|website=IFLAnet (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions)|access-date=26 March 2018|date=25 February 2002}}</ref>
*In [[Nigeria]], Funmi Ilori, a former schoolteacher, founded iRead Mobile Library after receiving a grant from the federal government of Nigeria in 2013. The “books on wheels” initiative was realized to promote a sustainable reading culture in children that builds positive reading habits over time and leads to improved growth and development.<ref>{{Cite web |title=REVIVING THE READING CULTURE IN AFRICA |url=https://www.worldpulse.org/story/reviving-the-reading-culture-in-africa-24300 |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=World Pulse |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2025-03-02 |title=Funmi Ilori, Founder of I Read Mobile Library Reveals the secret behind her innovation in the Educational Sector |url=https://womenconnectng.com/funmi-ilori-founder-of-i-read-mobile-library-reveals-the-secret-behind-her-innovation-in-the-educational-sector/ |access-date=2025-03-02 |language=en-US}}</ref> The four iRead Mobile Library buses and their team bring a selection of over 13,000 books and service around 3,000 children with 44 stops per week at schools and community centers and a monthly stop to rural areas outside of Lagos state.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Charlotte |title=For the love of books: Mobile libraries around the world |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2018/4/23/for-the-love-of-books-mobile-libraries-around-the-world |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref>

===Asia===
[[File:2008 truck Idea Store London 3058628730.jpg|thumb|right|Mobile [[Idea Store]], London, 2008]]
[[File:Cape May County Bookmobile CMCH NJ.jpg|thumb|Cape May County Library bookmobile in [[Cape May Court House, New Jersey]]]]
*In [[Bangladesh]] [[Bishwo Shahitto Kendro]] pioneered the concept of mobile library. Mobile library was introduced in Bangladesh in 1999. Then the service was limited to [[Dhaka]], [[Chittagong|Chattogram]], [[Khulna]] and [[Rajshahi]] only. Now the service is available in 58 districts of the country. There are about 330,000 registered users of this library. These mobile libraries together gives the service of 1900 small libraries in 1900 localities of the country.
*In [[Brunei]], mobile libraries are known as {{lang|ms|Perpustakaan Bergerak}}. They are operated by [[Language and Literature Bureau]], the government body which manages public libraries in the country. The service was introduced in 1970.<ref>{{cite news|author=<!-- not stated --> |title=Perpustakaan Bergerak DBP mulakan perkhidmatan |date=5 August 1970 |newspaper=[[Pelita Brunei]] |number=31 |pages=1, 8 |language=ms |url=http://www.pelitabrunei.gov.bn/Arkib%20Dokumen/1970/5%20ogos%201970.pdf |access-date=14 July 2021}}</ref>
*In Indonesia in 2015, Ridwan Sururi and his horse "Luna" started a mobile library called ''Kudapustaka'' (meaning "horse library" in Indonesian). The goal is to improve access to books for villagers in a region that has more than 977,000 illiterate adults. The duo travel between villages in [[central Java]] with books balanced on Luna's back. Sururi also visits schools three times a week.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-32612216|title=The Indonesian horse that acts as a library|work=BBC News|date=6 May 2015}}</ref>
* In [[Thailand]] in 2002, mobile libraries were taking several unique forms.<ref name="Mobile Section">{{cite news|url=http://archive.ifla.org/VII/s38/news/mobile01-02.pdf|work=IFLA Newsletter|title=Mobile Section|number=1|date=Autumn 2002|access-date=13 October 2010|archive-date=30 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170330171252/https://archive.ifla.org/VII/s38/news/mobile01-02.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
*Elephant Libraries were bringing books as well as information technology equipment and services to 46 remote villages in the hills of [[Northern Thailand]].<ref name="pbs" /> This project was awarded the [[UNESCO]] International Literacy Prize for 2002.
*A Floating Library had two book boats, one of which was outfitted with computers.
*A three-car "Library Train for Homeless Children" (parked in a siding near the railway police compound) was a "joint project with the railway police in an initiative to keep homeless children from crime and exploitation by channeling them to more constructive activities". The train was being replicated in "a slum community in [[Bangkok]]", where it, too, would include a library car, a classroom car, and a computer and music car.
*Book Houses were shipping containers fitted out as libraries with books. The 10 original Book Houses were so popular, another 20 units were already being planned.
*In [[India]], the [[Boat Libraries|Boat Library Services]] were operated under the auspices of the [[Andhra Pradesh Library Association]], [[Vijayawada]], Andhra Pradesh State. [[Paturi Nagabhushanam]] initiated boat libraries to inculcate interest in reading of books and libraries among the rural public in 1935 October, as an extended activity of Andhra Pradesh Library Movement. He had run this service for about seven years to benefit the villagers travelling on boats, which was a major travel and transportation facility available in those days. These libraries facilitated [[Telugu language|Telugu]] literary journals and books.,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.apla.co.in/the-firsts-of-andhra-pradesh-library-association/|title = The First's of Andhra Pradesh Library Association}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Vijayawada/he-kept-library-movement-afloat/article5916193.ece|title = He kept library movement afloat|newspaper = The Hindu|date = 15 April 2014|last1 = Varma|first1 = P. Sujatha}}</ref>
*In northern [[Syria]] in 2017, the Mobile Library, run by a team from the Syrian NGO Dari Sustainable Development, created the project to encourage education through reading and provide escapism to children throughout the war-torn region.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Charlotte |title=For the love of books: Mobile libraries around the world |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2018/4/23/for-the-love-of-books-mobile-libraries-around-the-world |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref> The Mobile Library contains around 2,000 books and reaches thousands of children per year with a dedicated seven-person team. Shihadeh, a member of the Dari project team says, “ the Mobile Library also aims to empower society and the vulnerable people by encouraging reading and building confidence in these children.”<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-12-13 |title=Library On Wheels Brings Books To Kids In War-torn Syria |url=https://www.scrippsnews.com/world/middle-east/library-on-wheels-brings-books-to-kids-in-war-torn-syria |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=Scripps News |language=en}}</ref>
*In [[Ankara]], Turkey, sanitation workers came together to salvage books thrown in the trash to create a public library.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Magazine |first=Smithsonian |last2=Daley |first2=Jason |title=Turkish Garbage Collectors Curate Their Own Library |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/turkish-garbage-collectors-pick-out-their-own-library-180968015/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYcyn60mxIA |title=New Years Library: Garbage men build a library from "trash" books |date=2017-12-29 |last=TRT World |access-date=2025-03-05 |via=YouTube}}</ref> The library is located in an abandoned underground factory and contains a collection of over 6,000 books. The library offers a mobile option out of a repurposed garbage truck, which provides books to underprivileged schools and doubles as a book donation collection vehicle.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-05-06 |title=Books Rescued From the Trash Fill Libraries Across the Country |url=https://popupcity.net/insights/books-rescued-from-the-trash-fill-libraries-across-the-country/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Pop-Up City |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-10-07 |title=Turkish garbage collectors have created a library from discarded books. |url=https://lithub.com/turkish-garbage-collectors-have-created-a-library-from-discarded-books/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Literary  Hub |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Australia ===

* The First bookmobile in the State of [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]] was operated by Heidelberg Library (now [[Yarra Plenty Regional Library]]) in the [[City of Heidelberg]], [[Melbourne]] in 1954.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1 May 1954|title=Bookmobile to Aid Heidelberg Readers|pages=9|work=Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 – 1954)|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article205389173|access-date=3 June 2020}}</ref>

===Europe===
[[File:Mobile Library (geograph 3691202).jpg|thumb|right|[[Lincolnshire County Council|Lincolnshire]] mobile library covering small villages in this English county<ref>{{cite web |title=Mobile Libraries |url=http://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/residents/discover-libraries/mobile-libraries/ |publisher=Lincolnshire County Council |access-date=22 November 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111075443/http://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/residents/discover-libraries/mobile-libraries |archive-date=11 November 2013}}</ref>]]
[[File:Bookmobile at Turku Book Fair 2014 - Sastamala pix C IMG 2110.jpg|thumb|[[Sastamala]] town's bookmobile at the 2014 book fair in [[Turku]], [[Finland]]]]
*In [[Glasgow]], Scotland, in 2002, MobileMeet—a gathering of about 50 mobile libraries that was held annually by the [[International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions|IFLA]]—there were "mobiles from Sweden, Holland, Ireland, England, and of course Scotland. There were big vans from Edinburgh and small vans from the Highlands. Many of the vans were proudly carrying awards from previous meets."<ref name="Mobile Section"/>
*Since 1953, the Libraries of the Community of [[Madrid]], Spain, have operated a ''{{lang|es|bibliobus}}'' program with books, DVDs, CDs, and other library materials available for checkout.<ref name="Madrid">{{cite web|title=Bibliobuses: La biblioteca móvil – Historia|url=http://www.madrid.org/cs/Satellite?cid=1343065588602&idSeccion=1343066027484&language=es&pagename=PortalLector%2FPage%2FPLEC_contenidoFinalNavegable|website=Bibliotecas de la Comunidad de Madrid|access-date=26 March 2018|archive-date=27 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327144844/http://www.madrid.org/cs/Satellite?cid=1343065588602&idSeccion=1343066027484&language=es&pagename=PortalLector%2FPage%2FPLEC_contenidoFinalNavegable|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=La biblioteca móvil|author=<!--Staff writers; no by-line.-->|date=2015|work=Madrid.org|publisher=Comunidad de Madrid [city government]|url=http://www.madrid.org/cs/Satellite?cid=1343065588602&language=es&pagename=PortalLector%2FPage%2FPLEC_contenidoFinalNavegable|access-date=15 July 2015}}</ref>
*A floating library, aboard the ship ''[[Epos library ship|Epos]]'', was begun in 1959 and serves the many small communities on the coast of [[Western Norway]].
*In [[Estonia]], the bookmobile "Katarina Jee" has been running since 2008, serving patrons in suburbs of Tallinn.
*In Finland, the first mobile library was established in [[Vantaa]] in 1913.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.kirjastot.fi/kirjastoautot/kirjastoautohistoria/ |title=Kirjastoautohistoria |last=Kyöstiö |first=Antero |date=2004 |website=Kirjastot.fi |language=fi |access-date=30 July 2019 |quote=Suomen ensimmäinen liikkuva kirjasto toimi nykyisen Vantaan kaupungin, entisen Helsingin maalaiskunnan, alueella 1913–14.}}</ref> There are currently about 200 bookmobiles in Finland, operating across the country.
*In [[Italy]], Antonio La Cava, a retired teacher of 42 years, drives one of the smallest mobile libraries in the world. The ''Bibliomotocarro'' was created by La Cava from a converted 3-wheeler van and his desire to do more to help children discover books and the power of the written word.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-01-28 |title=The tiny library bringing books to remote villages |url=https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20190125-the-tiny-library-bringing-books-to-remote-villages |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=www.bbc.com |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Simmonds |first=Janet |date=2019-02-06 |title=The smallest library in Italy |url=https://educated-traveller.com/2019/02/06/the-smallest-library-in-italy/ |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=The Educated Traveller |language=en}}</ref> La Cava has traveled with his mini library of over 700 books into the hills and mountains of remote communities for over 20 years to promote literacy, encourage writing, and bring books into the hands of children that need them most.<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=Cat |date=2015-08-03 |title=Adorable Library on Wheels Brings Books to Children in Italy |url=https://www.shareable.net/adorable-library-on-wheels-brings-books-to-children-in-italy/ |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=Shareable |language=en-US}}</ref>
*In [[Amsterdam]], Netherlands, a mobile library called BeibBus, was created in 2010 to deliver books and reading engagement to children without access to a library. The Zaan region, just outside the city, consists of many smaller villages with very narrow streets and limited parking space.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-08-12 |title=A library on wheels |url=https://theurbanactivist.com/idea/a-library-on-wheels/ |access-date=2025-03-10 |website=The Urban Activist |language=en}}</ref> The BeibBus was designed by Jord den Hollander to solve this issue with a slimmer design and expansion capabilities. The Biebus is a truck-container travelling to 20 primary schools equipped with over 7,000 books and can accommodate 30-45 children. The unique trailer system offers a more traditional library space containing shelves of books with a transparent ceiling and a second space with a spaceship design to provide an enticing reading room experience.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BiebBus, The Expanding Mobile Library |url=https://www.domusweb.it/en/design/2011/04/11/biebbus-the-expanding-mobile-library.html |access-date=2025-03-10 |website=www.domusweb.it |language=en-gb}}</ref>

===North America===
*[[Street Books]] is a nonprofit book service founded in 2011 in [[Portland, Oregon]], that travels via bicycle-powered cart to lend books to "people living outside".<ref>{{cite news|title= Homeless Outreach in Volumes: Books by Bike for 'Outside' People in Oregon| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/10/us/homeless-outreach-in-volumes-books-by-bike-for-outside-people-in-oregon.html|author=Johnson, Kirk|work=The New York Times|date=9 October 2014}}</ref>
*Books on Bikes<ref name="SPL">{{cite web|title=Books on Bikes|url=http://www.spl.org/using-the-library/library-on-the-go/books-on-bikes|website=The Seattle Public Library|access-date=26 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327212238/http://www.spl.org/using-the-library/library-on-the-go/books-on-bikes|archive-date=27 March 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> is a program begun in 2013 by the [[Seattle Public Library]] that uses a customized bicycle trailer pulled by pedal power to bring library services to community events in Seattle.<ref>{{cite news|title=Books on Bikes Helps Seattle Librarians Pedal To The Masses|newspaper=NPR.org|url=https://www.npr.org/2013/08/11/210248982/books-on-bikes-helps-seattle-librarians-pedal-to-the-masses|access-date=4 April 2018|archive-date=28 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180328041318/https://www.npr.org/2013/08/11/210248982/books-on-bikes-helps-seattle-librarians-pedal-to-the-masses|url-status=live}}</ref>
*The Library Cruiser is a "book bike" from the [[Volusia County, Florida|Volusia County]] Libraries that debuted in Florida in September 2015. Library staff ride it to various locations, offering library books for checkout, as well as WiFi service, ebook access help, and information on obtaining a library card.<ref name="DBFOL">{{cite web|title=Volusia County Libraries Have a Book Bike!|url=http://daytonabeachfol.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/FOL-Newsletter-part-1.pdf|website=Friends of the Daytona Beach Regional Library Newsletter|access-date=26 March 2018|date=1 March 2016|archive-date=27 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327145001/http://daytonabeachfol.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/FOL-Newsletter-part-1.pdf|url-status=usurped}}</ref>
*[[Bookleggers Library]] is nonprofit mobile library program in [[Miami]], Florida founded in 2012 that expands access to free books.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Markowitz |first=Douglas |title=Bookleggers Library Launches Story Time Podcast and Mobile Bookstore |url=https://www.miaminewtimes.com/arts/bookleggers-library-launches-podcast-and-mobile-bookstore-in-miami-19495959 |access-date=2024-09-15 |website=Miami New Times |language=en}}</ref> The founding director, Nathaniel Sandler, and his library team have a mission to spread books across the city and encourage literacy. One way Bootleggers accomplishes this goal is though what Sandler refers to as “bookmobility.”<ref name=":0" /> In 2024, the library team created a book trailer they can utilize to haul books anywhere in the city.<ref>{{Cite web |title=LIBRARY TRAILER |url=https://www.bookleggerslibrary.com/bookleggers-library-trailer |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=Bookleggers Library |language=en}}</ref> In addition, Bootleggers first launched a multimedia Bookbike in 2021 outfitted with a unique shelving system, speakers, and Wi-Fi capabilities to offer even more access to free books.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BOOKBIKE |url=https://www.bookleggerslibrary.com/bookbike-tours |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=Bookleggers Library |language=en}}</ref>
*The [[Queens, New York|Queens]] Mobile Library in New York partners with social services agencies like Homes for the Homeless to offer outreach and support to underserved residents in the boroughs. The bus-sized bookmobile services immigrant families and the homeless by providing 2,000 books, free Wi-Fi, videos, and alternative language resources when needed.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Books on wheels: When the library comes to the homeless shelter |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Education/2019/1031/Books-on-wheels-When-the-library-comes-to-the-homeless-shelter |access-date=2025-03-11 |work=Christian Science Monitor |issn=0882-7729}}</ref> The Queens Mobile Library does tours to bring materials to senior care homes, parks, churches, resource centers, and community events.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mobile Library {{!}} Queens Public Library |url=https://www.queenslibrary.org/programs-activities/community-outreach/mobile-library |access-date=2025-03-11 |website=www.queenslibrary.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1Ctd2DgpvI |title=Mobile Library Tour |date=2015-11-09 |last=Queens Public Library |access-date=2025-03-11 |via=YouTube}}</ref> The Queens Library also has a Bookcycle program, launched in 2018, to bring books and library resources to people in less accessible areas.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dawson |first=Athena |date=2024-07-11 |title=Queens Public Library launches ‘Bookcycle Summer Tour,’ bringing books and services on three wheels – QNS |url=https://qns.com/2024/07/queens-public-library-bookcycle-summer-tour/ |access-date=2025-03-11 |website=qns.com |language=en-US}}</ref>

===South America===
* The [[Biblioburro]] is a mobile library by which Colombian teacher Luis Soriano and his two donkeys, Alfa and Beto, bring books to children in rural villages twice a week. [[CNN]] chose Soriano as one of their 2010 Heroes of the Year.<ref name="riot" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thegalleryofheroes.com/luis-soriano/|agency=CNN|work=The Gallery of Heroes|title=Luis Soriano|date=November 2014|access-date=1 April 2013|archive-date=1 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140601020641/http://www.thegalleryofheroes.com/luis-soriano/|url-status=usurped}}</ref><ref name="pbs">{{cite web |url=http://archive.pov.org/biblioburro/bookmobile/ |title=A History of the Bookmobile |date=July 19, 2011 |website=PBS |access-date=October 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190313151431/http://archive.pov.org/biblioburro/bookmobile/ |archive-date=13 March 2019}}</ref>
* In [[Buenos Aires]], Argentina, Raul Lemesoff transformed a 1979 Ford Falcon into a bookmobile to look like a military tank.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Griffis |first=Kelcee |date=2015-03-06 |title=Weapon of Mass Instruction: Artist Unveils Tank-Shaped Bookmobile to Promote Reading |url=https://mymodernmet.com/raul-lemesoff-tank-bookmobile/ |access-date=2025-03-06 |website=My Modern Met |language=en}}</ref> The book tank is equipped with a swiveling turret, a non-functioning gun, and built-in shelves to hold over 900 books.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=A |first=Alex |date=2016-03-09 |title=Weapon of Mass Instruction: Argentinian Artist converted a 1979 Ford Falcon into a bookmobile and went on to "spread the word" {{!}} The Vintage News |url=https://www.thevintagenews.com/2016/03/09/weapon-mass-instruction-argentinian-artist-converted-1979-ford-falcon-bookmobile-went-spread-word/ |access-date=2025-03-06 |website=thevintagenews |language=en}}</ref> Lemesoff created the travelling library in 2015 on World Book Day to spread the printed word with free books all around urban and rural areas of Argentina. Lemesoff’s motto is “Peace through literature.” He labeled the mobile tank his “weapon of mass instruction.”<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" />

==Gallery==
<gallery class="center" caption="Mobile libraries around the world" widths="200px" heights="160px">
Mobile library in Dhaka.jpg|Bangladesh - 2020
File:Bicicloteca de Robson Mendonça.JPG|Brazil - 2011
File:Bondinho - XV de Novembro.jpg|Brazil - 2017
File:Biblioburro.jpg|Colombia - 2006<br />[[Biblioburro]]
File:Bokbåt.jpg|Norway - 2011<br />''[[Epos (library ship)|Epos]]''
File:Gais20070413S693 1025.jpg|Switzerland - 2007
File:Bookmobile - Fresno County Public Library (exterior).jpg|Fresno County, California (United States) - 2019
File:Pojízdná knihovna 20230912 161016.jpg|[[Prague]], [[Czech Republic]] - 2023
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[Digital library]]
* [[Traveling library]]
*[[Boat Libraries]]

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=33em}}

==Further reading==
{{commons}}
* {{cite web|author=Finnell, Joshua|url= http://msuphilosophyclub.blogspot.com/2009/03/bookmobile-defining-information-poor.html|website=MSU Philosophy Club|title= The Bookmobile: Defining the Information Poor|date= 7 March 2009}} An article on the history of the bookmobile in the US.
* {{cite news|author=King, Stephen|date=2011|work=Read All Day|url=http://www.readallday.org/blog/the-magic-of-the-bookmobile-take-two/|title=The Magic of the Bookmobile, Take Two|access-date=19 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304042158/http://www.readallday.org/blog/the-magic-of-the-bookmobile-take-two/|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=dead}}
* {{cite book|author=Moore, Benita|date=1989|title=A Lancashire Year|location=Preston|publisher=Carnegie Publishing}} Based on experiences while working on the Lancashire County Library mobile library service in the 1960s.
* {{cite web|url=http://www.libraryhistorybuff.com/bookmobile.htm|title=A Tribute to the Bookmobile|work=Library History Buff|editor=Nix, Larry T.|location=USA}}
* {{cite web|url=https://bookmobiles.wordpress.com/|title=Bookmobiles: a History|website=Wordpress|editor=Ortwein, Orty}}
* {{cite book|author=Stringer, Ian|date=2001|title=Britain's Mobile Libraries|location=Appleby-in-Westmorland|publisher=Trans-Pennine Publishing in association with Branch & Mobile Libraries Group of the Library Association|isbn= 1-903016-15-0}}
* {{cite book|url=http://www.ifla.org/en/publications/ifla-professional-reports-123|title=Mobile Library Guidelines|date=2010|author=Stringer, Ian (coordinated by)|location= Paris|publisher=[[International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions|IFLA]]|isbn=978-90-77897-45-4}} {{ISSN|0168-1931}}.

{{Libraries and library science}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Vehicles by purpose]]
[[Category:Mobile libraries]]