Catasauqua resident Kat Hinkle has a passion for reading, and she is sharing it with the community.

Hinkle installed a free library box on the side of her home at 823 Race St., off 15th Street.

It is a free-standing wooden structure with a small door. Inside are stacks of books. Patrons are free to take and contribute a book as they see fit.

She said her interest in reading began as a child. Her interest only grew with time, leading her to share the power of books with others.

"I wanted to share my love of reading with other people and since I have so many books, I tried to figure out how to get my already read books to other people," she said.

Hinkle found out about the concept of a free library after conducting an Internet search. She invested between $100 and $150 in supplies and solicited the help of her boyfriend, Rick Seruga, to build the structure. After Seruga finished the library box, Hinkle painted it, adding her signature "shabby chic" flowers.

"Books have been good to me," she said. "They filled the long, empty hours when I was sick as a child and books still hold a special place in my heart today. I just want other people to appreciate reading as much as I do."

According to Hinkle, there has been a great deal of interest in the free library since it was installed in May.

"I think the interest is not only in the books I offer, which have a huge range of topics, but it is kind of a novelty," she said. "I mean, where else can you walk down a pavement and see a colorful box filled with yummy books and a sign telling you to take as many as you'd like?"

Hinkle's free library includes children's books, car engine books, romance novels and cookbooks, along with books on doll making, sewing, biographies, autobiographies and mysteries. She also offers free recipes inside.

"You name it, I've probably had it or will have it," she said.

The free library has caught on because, as Hinkle explains, it's different.

"It's unique, it's fun and I don't always offer just books," she said. "Every week I change the books and I also change the little extras inside."