영국 남부 웨스트베리의 한 작은 마을에서는 ~공중전화 박스를 도서관으로 탈바꿈~시켰다.
서머셋의 웨스트베리서브멘딥(Westbury-sub-Mendip)이라는 마을은 인구 800명 가량의 아주 작은 마을이다. 이 마을 주민들은 통신회사 브리티쉬텔레콤(BT)이 더 이상 사용하지 않는 공중전화 박스를 활용할 아이디어를 공모한다는 소식을 듣고 주민회의를 통해 도서관으로 개조하자는 의견을 냈다. 이 의견이 채택되어 주민들은 500파운드의 상금도 받게 되었다.
이 마을 주민들은 일주일에 한 번 들르는 이동도서관을 이용해 책을 빌리고 반납할 수 있었다. 그런데 몇 달 전부터 그 서비스가 중단돼 독서클럽을 운영하며 책을 즐겨 읽던 마을 주민들은 매우 아쉬워하던 차였다. 새로운 이동도서관으로 개조된 전화박스에는 그림책을 비롯한 도서는 물론 시디롬과 디브이디까지 비치되어 있고 24시간 누구나 자유롭게 이용할 수 있다.
A village near Wells has made unusual use of an old phone box by converting it into possibly the country's - if not the world's - smallest mobile library.
As phone boxes are no longer used, BT gave Westbury-sub-Mendip the option of either having the box reinstalled, removed or they could buy it for ￡1.
The village opted for the latter and after a tea party was held, the idea to turn it into a library was decided on.
Bob Dolby from the parish council said he was thrilled with it.
He initially they did not know what to do with the phone box.
"The box looked empty, it looked a little bit sad and desolate," he said.
 The 'ground floor' of the library is for children's books
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When people found out that BT were holding a national competition
for creative uses of the phone boxes, it gave them the incentive to
search out ideas as to what could be done to convert the empty kiosk.
The only stipulation was it had to be useful to the community.
"Someone
had the idea of converting the kiosk into a shower, but that was felt
to be a little bit too public; it could have been used as an
information point with a map of the village and the other thought was
to convert it into a greenhouse but then one of my neighbours had a
brilliant idea," said Bob.
Resident Janet Fisher said: "At the tea party we were all mulling over the idea of what might happen to the phone box and I just had the idea that it could be a book exchange.
"We
used to have a mobile library here which called once a week on a
Monday, but that ceased a few months ago so it was missed and we're all
readers around here, have a reading group in the village.
