Long-time Flathead resident Rusty Halaas loves wood crafting, and it's evident all over his Kalispell home. But recently Rusty channeled his hobby into something that could spark another favorite pastime -- reading.

"Of course you got all kinds of books now electronically on Nooks, etc," explained Rusty. "But there's nothing like a good book, you know?"

"We both like interesting things that are challenging and this just sounded good," said Mary Helen Halaas.

Rusty's wife is talking about her husband's Little Free Library, number 2754 to be exact. He modeled it after their cabin on Ashley Lake, a Norwegian Stabbur.

"A few pieces of wood were left over, formed it," said Mary Helen. "And that was kind of nice too because we could bring a little of the lake in. The lake has lots of memories."

The setup is part of a larger movement that encourages folks all across the country to set up free book nooks and build more libraries than Andrew Carnegie himself.

"Somebody said, 'What happens if someone just takes a book, steals it?' Well, that's not stealing here," Mary Helen exclaimed. "It's just take a book, that's fine. If you have one to share, that's fine too!"

Rusty has stocked number 2754 with many genres - children's books, cookbooks, even westerns.

"It will perpetuate itself. People will take a book, and leave a a book! This community... it will bring people together instead of tearing it apart," he hoped.

From planting trees in their backyard over 30 years ago to constructing Little Free Libraries today, Rusty and his family have added a new chapter to their home for everyone to enjoy.