Washington Capitals become first NHL team to launch Free Little Library

The Washington Capitals have launched a Little Free Library book-sharing box in the lobby at MedStar Capitals Iceplex (MCI) in Arlington with various hockey titles as well as books identified by select Capitals players as a recent read or favorite book. 

It also includes titles written by Capitals alumni. Part of the organization’s Caps in School program, the library includes books for all age ranges.

Fans are encouraged to take books from the library with the knowledge that the exact book does not need to be returned. In order to keep the Little Free Library full of selections, fans are encouraged to share books in the library each time they take a book.

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Hockey titles included in the Capitals Little Free Library launch include:

  • As Fast As Her: Dream Big, Break Barriers, Achieve Success by Kendall Coyne  
  • Game Change: The Life and Death of Steve Montador, and the Future of Hockey by Ken Dryden
  • The Bulliest Dozer by Capitals alumnus Eric Fehr 
  • Dare to Make History: Chasing a Dream and Fighting for Equity by Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and Monique Lamoureux-Morando
  • Hockey Moms: The Heart of the Game by Theresa Bailey and Terry Marcotte
  • The Unforgettable Story of Hockey’s Forgotten 60-Goal Man by Capitals alumnus Dennis Maruk 
  • Hockey's Hidden Gods: The Untold Story of a Paralympic Miracle on Ice by S.C. Megale
  • Z is for Zamboni: A Hockey Alphabet by Matt Napier
  • NHL Mascots and Friends by Holly Preston 
  • 100 Things Capitals Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die: Stanley Cup Edition by Capitals radio host Ben Raby, featuring foreword by Capitals alumnus Craig Laughlin 
  • Brady Brady: All-Star Hockey Collection by Mary Shaw
  • FIGHTER: Defying the NHL Odds by Capitals alumnus Aaron Volpatti 
  • Hockey is for Everybody: Anthony’s Goal by Anthony Walsh  

Initial player selections that will be included in the Capitals Little Free Library launch are:

  • Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success by Phil Jackson – selected by Connor Brown 
  • The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister – selected by Nic Dowd, last read to his son
  • Factfulness: Ten Reasons We’re Wrong About the World – and Why Things are Better Than You Think - by Hans Rosling – selected by Lars Eller 
  • Twelve and a Half: Leveraging the Emotional Ingredients Necessary for Business Success by Gary Vaynerchuk – selected by Carl Hagelin
  • The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson – selected by Garnet Hathaway, last read to his son
  • Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan – selected by Darcy Kuemper
  • Wins Losses and Lessons: An Autobiography by Lou Holtz – selected by Charlie Lindgren  
  • Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey – selected by T.J. Oshie
  • Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault – selected by Trevor van Riemsdyk, last read to his niece 
  • Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World by Tim Marshall – selected by Joe Snively
  • Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, selected by Dylan Strome, last read to his daughter
  • A Marine, a Stray Dog, and Now they Rescued Each Other by Craig Grossi – selected by Tom Wilson

The Capitals Little Free Library was painted by Washington, D.C., based artist Taylor Kampa Olson.

Little Free Library is a nonprofit organization that expands book access for all through a network of volunteer-led Little Free Libraries. There are more than 150,000 registered LFL book-sharing boxes worldwide in all 50 states, 115 countries and seven continents. Through them, over 300 million books have been shared since 2009. 

The Capitals are the first NHL team to launch a Little Free Library. The Little Free Library is an extension of the Caps in School Reading Program, which is designed to encourage students to add more reading to their daily activity. 

More information on LFL can be found here. To learn more about Caps in School, click here.