A Little Library with a twist: West Hartford resident Devin Osick matches readers with mystery books.

By Melissa Cole

Devin Osick moved to West Hartford six years ago, and one of the first things she noticed was the Little Free Libraries all around the town’s different neighborhoods.

“When I moved to Connecticut, I saw the little free libraries and I thought they were the cutest things. I had never seen that before, so I always wanted one,” she said. “Then I thought, what if I put a little twist on it?”

So she made one of her own. Her husband built and installed it, while she handled the decorating, lining it with floral wallpaper and adding flowers to the outside. The twist: you don’t actually know which book you’re getting. It’s called “Blind Date with a Book.” Osick includes small clues about each book’s premise, but readers don’t find out what it is until they unwrap it.

“I’ll put fantasy books in there, biographies, dark romance, small-town romance, self-help books,” she said. “There’s always an array of genres, because obviously everybody likes something different. I want to keep it fair for everybody to take part.”

Because the books are new, and the idea is a little date night with a good read, there’s a small charge: $15 for adult books and $8 for children’s books. The community response has been wonderful so far, and she has already sold about 15.

“Some people had never heard of Blind Date with a Book before, so it was something new to them as well,” Osick said. “People would tell me, ‘What a great idea, I love it, it’s so much fun.'”

But Osick wasn’t always an avid reader. Her love of books came more recently, as the hustle of everyday life, computers and technology made her look for a way to unplug and decompress.

“I wasn’t always a big reader, but I got back into it a few years ago,” she said. “With everything being so online now, I really loved that picking up a book gave me a way to disconnect from all of that for a little while.”

Along with books, Osick also loves dogs. She and her husband have three, so visitors to her library will find something special for four-legged friends too.

“We’re obsessed with dogs,” she said. “So I added a little bone box attached to the post, so if a dog walks by and wants a treat, they can help themselves.”

Mystery books wrapped and decorated with little clues. Also, the bone box for dogs to enjoy a treat. Photo credit: Melissa Cole

The best part, Osick said, is introducing people to books they might never have picked up on their own, and then hearing that they loved them.

“It’s a fun way to say, ‘Wow, I probably would never have picked that book up at a store,'” she said. “Then you take it home and think, ‘That was actually a really good book.’ That’s the fun part of Blind Date with a Book. Maybe it wasn’t something you’d normally read, but it opened your eyes to something new.”

Osick wraps each book by hand and decorates it with ribbon and stickers, because for her, nothing beats the feeling of starting a good read.

“There’s nothing better than having a brand-new book and flipping through the pages,” she said. “There’s something so satisfying about it.”

Osick’s Blind Date with a Book library is on South Quaker Lane between Fennbrook and Woodmere roads. Her Venmo information is posted at the library for payment. She has had several books taken without payment, so she’s asking visitors to be good neighbors and pay for what they take.

She’s also planning on some themed books and decorations for the upcoming holiday season, for both kids and adults.

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