This Beloved Makati Library Lost Many Books to the Habagat—Now It Needs Your Help

(SPOT.ph) Reading Club 2000, the neighborhood library in Makati where anyone can pick up a book for free, is temporarily closed after a tree fell on the house where it operates during the habagat.

The library first announced on August 18 that it would close until further notice after an incident affected its facility. A few days later, it shared the extent of the damage on August 23: A large tree had fallen onto the house where Reading Club 2000 operates, allowing rainwater to reach many of the books kept inside and around the property.

Cleanup has been ongoing since then, with the family removing branches and debris to keep the damage from spreading to the rest of the collection. However, the fallen tree is too large for them to handle on their own. Reading Club 2000 said it had already reached out to the Makati City government for an update on its removal.

In the meantime, the library is asking for help from anyone who can assist with its recovery. Those interested can coordinate with Lyell Ross Guanlao, the child of founder Hernando “Mang Nanie” Guanlao, at 0908-931-5149. They have not specified what kind of assistance they need, so it’s best to get in touch first before sending anything.

Although the library remains closed, Reading Club 2000 said it can still accommodate book requests from the provinces through its Facebook page.

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For those unfamiliar with the place, Reading Club 2000 has been around since 2000, when Mang Nanie began putting books outside his family home along Balagtas Street in Barangay La Paz, Makati City for anyone to read.

More books arrived through donations until they filled shelves, tables, boxes, and much of the space around the house, with the collection spilling out onto the sidewalk.

Unlike a regular library, there are no membership cards, borrowing records, or due dates. People can take books home, while others donate books to keep the collection going.

Over the years, the project has also sent donated books to schools and communities outside Metro Manila, particularly places where reading materials can be harder to come by.

The advocacy has since gained recognition beyond the Philippines. Reading Club 2000 was among the nominees for the 2026 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, an international award that recognizes authors, illustrators, storytellers, and groups promoting reading among children. It was also featured in Lonely Planet’s 2024 Hidden Libraries, which profiled 50 unusual libraries around the world.

Reading Club 2000 has yet to announce when it will reopen.

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