Community Corner
The Book Thing Featured On CBS Evening News
A Baltimore establishment was featured on the CBS Evening News in its "On the Road" segment.
BALTIMORE, MD — A month after it reopened from a fire, The Book Thing is doing what it does best: recirculating. Baltimore's free book mecca, which takes in donated books and gives them away, was featured Friday night on the CBS Evening News.
The Book Thing founder Russell Wattenberg appeared in the news show's "On The Road" segment, which spotlights ordinary people doing extraordinary things.
The goal of The Book Thing is this: "To put unwanted books into the hands of those who want them." And there are many in Charm City who want them.
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It had been on hiatus since a fire in spring 2016. When The Book Thing reopened on Oct. 14, readers from all walks of life flooded the stacks.
"I didn't realize people cared as much as they do," Wattenberg said of Baltimore's bibliophiles, who donated books and funds for the project to get on its feet again.
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Wattenberg told host Steve Hartman he was neither a writer nor a teacher, stating: "The only way I see to contribute to the written word is by doing this."
Watch The Book Thing featured in "On The Road" from CBS Evening News, which has declared Wattenberg "one of America's literary greats." According to The Book Thing, another segment aired on Sunday, Nov. 12.
It's not the first time The Book Thing has gained national attention. According to Baltimore magazine, it's been featured by the New York Times, People magazine and C-SPAN.
What is lovingly known as "The Book Thing" evolved while Wattenberg was a bartender at Dougherty's Pub and had a habit of picking up and giving away books, frequently to school teachers who ultimately helped him found a nonprofit in 1999.
After the fire on March 2, 2016, everyone from bars to bands to volunteers raised funds to get The Book Thing running again, according to Baltimore magazine. It is now located in a warehouse across the street from the building that burned.
The Book Thing is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday at 3001 Vineyard Lane, Baltimore, MD 21218.
Image via Pixabay.
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