Patearoa Library features in the BBC World Service documentary The Search for Tiny Libraries in New Zealand. Photo / BBC
Patearoa Library features in the BBC World Service documentary The Search for Tiny Libraries in New Zealand. Photo / BBC
Backpacking trip inspired BBC documentary on Kiwi smalltown treasures.
Away from the bustle of big city life, some of New Zealand's - and possibly the world's - tiniest libraries sit quietly awaiting visitors. Usually no bigger than a bedroom or small garage, these libraries are cared for by a devoted few.
Next week, the stories behind these smalltown treasures will be shared globally in BBC World Service documentary The Search for Tiny Libraries in New Zealand.
The inspiration came from Julie Shapiro, one of two presenters, who backpacked around New Zealand nearly 20 years ago.
"I wandered around New Zealand and fell in love with the landscape and the feel of the country - so different from Midwestern America where I grew up," she says in the documentary. "The trip was remarkable for many reasons but I was especially struck by the libraries I found along the way. Not the bustling council libraries well supported by local governments and thriving in most cities across the country but the tiny libraries I discovered in the smaller towns in between."
She describes them as "handsome, sturdy structures ... with their handpainted signs and handwritten hours posted in the window".
Granity Library. Photo / BBC
Granity Library. Photo / BBC
Some of the libraries are based in old churches, some are attached to halls and post offices. Others, like the old corrugated iron shed in Patearoa, stand independently. One, in Waipiata in Central Otago, dates back to 1870. All of them set their own opening hours, which range from a few hours a day to weekly, monthly and "by request only".
"Each tiny library tells a particular story about New Zealand's past history and present culture."
•The Search for Tiny Libraries in New Zealand will air on the BBC World Service on Tuesday, July 28 at 5.30pm. Listen on 810 AM via the Auckland Radio Trust. The programme will also be available via bbcworldservice.com on Tuesday, July 28 at 2.30pm and Wednesday, July 29 at 9.30am.
