>>214542936 (OP)
Very commonplace around here. In big cities, the city council usually has the heavy-duty industrial ones installed, whereas in smaller towns it either leaves it to personal initiative or plants handmade ones that tend to be cuter or more creative.
As for the books in it, they are mostly the kind of books you read but don't keep, with loads of chick lit and dark romance, stuff kids study in school, religious nonsense (lds, xtian and new-age only in my xp), and the occasional gem.
Some bookcases have been destroyed by the kind of jackass that also plucks flowers from public parks but those quickly get bored, and eventually everyone can enjoy free books. Or maybe they just figured out it would be smarter to leave the shelves in place and harvest the books every now and then to make a penny by reselling them at the flea market.