The project, entitled “Books on the Loose: Reading Everywhere” and already presented to the city council, is promoted by the Sines Library and aims to reuse donated and duplicate books from the library's collection.

“We realised that we have many duplicate books that we can't throw away, and we felt we should circulate these books among other people and spaces” in the municipality, librarian Sulina Guerreiro told the Lusa news agency today.

In addition to promoting access to books, she emphasised, the initiative also aims to transform waiting or rest periods into reading opportunities.

“We decided to install small bookshelves in places where people typically wait—laundromats, cafes, and other local venues—stocked with books people can freely take home,” she explained.

The project aims to “promote reading” and to guarantee free access to “books in public spaces”, emphasised the Councillor for Culture in the Municipality of Sines, Ana Dias.

“Rather than using their phones during waiting periods, people are encouraged to pick up a book and read, promoting a culture of reading,” she added.

The initiative, which will be launched on Thursday, World Book Day, includes books for all tastes, from children's books, novels, chronicles, poetry, and other technical books.

According to Sulina Guerreiro, the project promoters selected the venues for “the small bookshelves,” and the idea was enthusiastically received by establishment managers.

“Municipal swimming pools, where parents wait for their children's activities, or laundromats, where people wait for their clothes to be washed or dried, are some of the locations that will have the bookshelves,” he exemplified.

At the project's hosting locations, each bookshelf will display the Sines Municipal Library logo, a selection of books identified with a small sticker, and the rules of use.

“The books can be read on-site, taken home, returned, or not. If people want to return them, they can do so at any of the project's official locations,” he clarified.

In addition to not being mandatory to return the books, the initiative, which aims to “increase the number of readers in Sines,” will also “value the works of local writers,” supported by the municipality.