John Cotton Dana

“ The "home libraries," if they do no more, serve as a bond of common interest between the children and their parents, and the persons who wish to add to their lives something of interest and good cheer. As a matter of fact they do more than this. They lead not a few to use the library proper, and they give to at least a few boys and girls an opportunity for self-education such as no other institution yet devised can offer. ”

“ A home library is a small collection of books, usually only 15 or 20, with one or two young folks' periodicals, put up in a box with locked cover. The box is so made that it will serve as a bookcase and can be hung on a wall or stood on the floor or a table. ”

“ Under a few very simple regulations the librarian lends the books in the home library to the young people of the neighborhood. If the experiment is successful the first set of books is changed for another, and the work continues. ”