Via San Petronio Vecchio, 57
Bologna, BO

Orari di apertura
Lunedì: 16:00 – 19:00
Mar, Mer, Ven, Sab: 10:30 - 12:30, 16:00 – 19:00

We chose it because: it is a place with a touch of poetry where you can take any book you like, bring other books, and free them.

Libri liberi is a small showcase in downtown Bologna, at a stone’s throw from the Arts Faculty, where books reign supreme. A specific feature tells it apart from other places in which books are sold: at Libri Liberi fiction and non-fiction books are not for sale – you can take them for free. The bookshop opened by Anna Hilbe works as follows: whoever wishes a book can take it, provided that they do not take more that three at a time. “That’s for a practical reason – explains Tina Mucci, who works at Libri Liberi on a volunteer basis because of her passion for literature – we have about 1,800 books and we must limit the outbound flow in order to be always well stocked”. The bookshop, in via San Petronio Vecchio, survives on donations of people who empty their houses and don’t know what to do with their old books, people who move out or simply have already read those pages and wish to donate them to someone else, so that their books can live a second life.

The project works despite market laws: since there is no obligation of bringing back the books you’ve taken, or donating new ones in exchange for those you have taken home, in this unique library there are no items for sale.

We stand out for