{"id":253140,"date":"2026-07-27T19:24:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T19:24:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/253140\/"},"modified":"2026-07-27T19:24:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T19:24:09","slug":"kc-sisters-build-little-libraries-to-promote-reading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/253140\/","title":{"rendered":"KC sisters build little libraries to promote reading"},"content":{"rendered":"

Three sisters started a business making little libraries<\/a>. From making sales to designing to installing, the girls are hands-on.<\/p>\n

Jane, Ruby and Lucy Longstreet had the idea when they were learning and practicing how to read. Jane is 10 years old, Ruby is 9 years old and Lucy is 7 years old. They stay in the Westport area and built their first library in their own front yard after their Dad, Joe Longstreet, built an at-home workshop in 2024.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt first, we couldn\u2019t read, and we wanted something unique in our yard that other kids who couldn\u2019t read could learn how to read,\u201d said Jane Longstreet. \u201cWe want everyone to learn how to read and practice reading, and it\u2019s really fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their first little library was for their own front yard, soon they made another for their grandparents and another for their school, Acad\u00e9mie Lafayette<\/a>. A former school teacher, who teaches Ruby art on weekends, wanted one too. They decided to open their market and make them for anyone who wanted one.<\/p>\n

Whether people are walking the dogs or on a run, the little libraries create a reason for people to stop, take a break and engage in reading. The libraries are a take-and-exchange system; take a book, leave a book.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really fun just to stop and look at all the details on the little libraries and say hi,\u201d said Jane Longstreet.<\/p>\n

Ruby made friends after the family installed their little library in front of their home, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe and my best friend, Sydney, started to be best friends when she started to come by our little library,\u201d said Ruby Longstreet. \u201cShe lives right around the block, and she\u2019s my very best friend, and now we\u2019re in the same class, and we just both think it\u2019s really fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

The business is split into three, with each sister responsible for a branch. Jane handles the sales, making pitches and attending meetings with potential clients. Ruby Longstreet is in charge of the design and color elements. She consults with the clients to make the little library a perfect match. Lucy manages the construction.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey get to learn about all different parts of business,\u201d said their father, Joe Longstreet.<\/p>\n

Although their business is focused on building and selling little libraries, it also gave Joe Longstreet a way to enjoy quality time with his daughters.<\/p>\n

While Mom, Megan Longstreet, keeps life running smoothly for the family, Dad is teaching the girls\u2019 entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n

Although Joe Longstreet is now a software engineer, he grew up and started his career in construction, which he did until he was around 23.<\/p>\n

He redesigned the inside of his house. What followed was the construction of a workshop in their own backyard, which serves as the home base for the little library business. Needing a space to work from home, Joe Longstreet built it himself over the years, with the help of his friends and family.<\/p>\n

\"Joe Joe Longstreet guides his daughter, Jane Longstreet, in using a nail gun in their home workshop. Zuri Primos <\/p>\n

\u201cI love it,\u201d said Joe Longstreet. \u201cIt\u2019s fun to work with them. I like teaching, and they like learning.\u201d<\/p>\n

He feels he has an unlimited creative energy that he likes to expend with his kids, passing it along.<\/p>\n

To Jane Longstreet, being creative means \u201cdoing all the details and just working together and making things, not perfect, but it makes everyone love it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The business brings their family closer, said Ruby Longstreet.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt brings everyone joy just to be together and work together, and it\u2019s really fun as a family,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n

As a family, they support each other as well. From fighting nerves before a business call or just needing a break, they find ways to be there for each other, said Jane Longstreet.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we need a break, we send out the other girls, and sometimes we do each other\u2019s jobs, too,\u201d said Ruby Longstreet.<\/p>\n

Building little libraries takes up a lot of time. The girls and their parents have found a way to balance it all and stay organized using a calendar.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do normally put school and homework and stuff first, but we still get the time to work,\u201d said Jane Longstreet.<\/p>\n

They work in the workshop before and after school, making time for homework just after they get home. They\u2019re typically in the workshop until bedtime. The two older of the three also participate in a theater program.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen they go to theater, I usually go out to the workshop to build little libraries and paint with my dad, and it\u2019s really fun because then we get more Daddy-Lucy time and we get better dinners,\u201d said the youngest of the three, Lucy Longstreet.<\/p>\n

Although the work brings them happiness, it can be frustrating, too, the girls said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes it gets hard, and sometimes it gets frustrating, but I think it\u2019s also still really fun,\u201d said Ruby Longstreet.<\/p>\n

Her favorite part about the little libraries is organizing the books in alphabetical order, and when there aren\u2019t many books to organize, she knows a lot of people have visited it, she said.<\/p>\n

In their own little library, they\u2019ve seen books traded for stuffed animals, handwritten notes and even a harmonica once.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels really nice that people like what we are making,\u201d said Ruby Longstreet.<\/p>\n

Jane, Ruby and Lucy\u2019s favorite books<\/a> include Harry Potter, the Magic Treehouse, Junie B. Jones and the Dork Diaries. They\u2019re excited to share their love of reading as their business grows, they shared.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most rewarding part for me is every single time someone stops by the little library,\u201d Lucy Longstreet said. \u201cI don\u2019t know every time, but when I see people stop by the little library and all the smiles on their faces, I just feel really happy.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Three sisters started a business making little libraries. From making sales to designing to installing, the girls are…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":253141,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[128,130,129],"class_list":["post-253140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=253140"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253140\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/253141"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=253140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=253140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=253140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}