BookCrossing
Today I became a BookCrosser, yesssss!
What follows is a detailed account of how I got to know about BookCrossing and then my documented journey to becoming a BookCrosser.
What is BookCrossing?
Wikipedia defines BoockCrossing as,
"the practice of leaving a book in a public place to be picked up and read by others, who then do likewise". The term is derived from bookcrossing.com, a free online book club which began and encouraged the practice. Bookcrossing.com's stated goal is to "make the whole world a library".
I first heard about this "BookCrossing" a while ago from the idiot box (+20 yrs to my age), I think it was discussed on an Oprah Winfrey show or something similar. I remember thinking what a cool idea that was.
This morning whilst checking my Last.fm page I did the standard viewing my recent visitors pages and came across something interesting on one of my recent visitors pages.
1972Galadriel had this in her sidebar,
"I love to read, listen to music and am addicted to Bookcrossing!".
Hmmm BookCrossing, I was intrigued I wanted more. It seems luck was on my side today for when I looked at her Recent Shouts I saw this shoutbox comment from Aenima136,
"What is "bookcrossing"???".
Notice the 3 consecutive question marks which implies more than just a passive curiosity.
I was also very curious to find out what this "BookCrossing" was about so I visited Aenima136's last.fm page to see if 1972Galadriel had replied to his enthusiastic question.
She had. I read her shout which said,
"Bookcrossing.. its about sharing your books with friends and/or strangers :) you can check it out at bookcrossing.com (no need to register unless you want to cross books)"
I went to BookCrossing.com and read with delight, my desire to be a part of this increasing with every page view.
I checked out my location, Adelaide, Australia and noticed that 82 books had been released in the last 3 days in Adelaide. Nice!. A lot of books had been "released" ... haha I love the sound of that, released on trains, trams and phone boxes in and around Adelaide. I am so going to keep a look out for books now in those places now. The website itself needs improving I must say but it is usable and fulfills its aims.
I registered with the my internet handle, n8kowald which is basically my name with the number "8" after an "n" to make (if you sound it out) "Nate" and then my last name. I have downloaded the labels which you place in books you release which includes the BCID (BookCrossing ID) number which you get when you register a book and a description of what BookCrossing is and how the person who finds the book can track the book they just found.
This brings me to now. I realised that I am out of colour ink and so I am on my way to Marion Shopping centre to get some more colour printer ink. So excited... yessssssss.
Okay, am back from Marion, colour ink is in printer, labels have been printed.
I thought that Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451" was a somewhat appropriate book for my first release due to the subject matter.
Here is a brief synopsis of the book.
"Set in the twenty-fourth century, Fahrenheit 451 introduces a new world in which control of the masses by the media, overpopulation, and censorship has taken over the general population. The individual is not accepted and the intellectual is considered an outlaw. Television has replaced the common perception of family. The fireman is now seen as a flamethrower, a destroyer of books rather than an insurance against fire. Books are considered evil because they make people question and think."
- I first found out about this book from this blog post (http://www.thesimpledollar.com/category/10-books-that-changed-my-life/).
- I really enjoyed this book and I finished with a greater appreciation of books and a desire to read more.
- I was a bit hesitant to release this book as I really like it and it would be good to keep in my collection but then I thought that I would probably not read it again any time soon so might as well release.
I hope that whoever finds this book enjoys it and gets something from it.
Okay, so the book has now been registered at BookCrossing.com and the BookCrossing label with registered BCID number has been attached via contact to the inside front cover.
Goodbye Fahrenheit 451 :*( I will miss thee.....
I just thought then that this "BookCrossing" thing kinda reminds me of what you might have done in Primary school or just for fun, that thing is getting a helium balloon and filling it with a message which says something to the effect of, "Hi... you found me! This balloon was sent by John Smith on xx/xx/xxxx. If you find this could you please write to me at this address and let me know that you found it." Then if you were one of the lucky ones you would receive a letter in the mail from someone (sometimes in another state) who had found the message :) We did this at my school but no one ever found mine :( or maybe they did but just didn't write back.
Anyway.... the book is all set to go. I am leaving in 15mins to go to see the "Klaxons" at HQ and I plan to "release the book" somewhere around Adelaide then.
I will post a photo of where I left it along with the location on BookCrossing.com... oh man... so excited right now :)
Okay am back from seeing the Klaxons at HQ, Adelaide. They were great.
On the way back from dropping off one of Sara's friends Sara suggested dropping the book off at a Bus stop. Bus stop number 2 on Sir Edwin Smith Ave, Nth Adelaide to be exact. I dropped it off and made sure nobody saw then took a few photos of it.
Right now (time of writing = 11:30pm, 22/10/07) the book is sitting at this bus stop waiting to be picked up.
Close up
Further back
I will post if someone finds it and goes to BookCrossing.com to say they found it.
Posted by Nathan Kowald @ 11:58 AM
17 Comments:
Oops..my last.fm nick is also 1972Galadriel.
*note to self* do not use to many nicknames!
*end note to self*
And in my total confusion, I deleted my first comment:
Oh well..lucky for me..there is a back button :)
Copy of 1st post:
Hi there :) Love your description of your beginning addiction. And you released a great book to begin with. It is one of my favorites (if i find cheap copys in used bookstores, I'll buy it just to release it). I hope someone will make a journal soon!
regards,
1972Galadriel (bookcrossing nick)
tuneviel (last.fm nick)
Nice story about how you became a bookcrosser ;)
1972galadriel - Thanks for getting me into this and for leaving a comment!
luielezer - cheers :)
And, has anyone made a journal yet, has anyone found your first release?
Jehanne - No not yet :(
It is the helium balloon disappointment all over again.
I left it at a bus stop at 11:30pm last night and all day I have been fantasizing that a homeless picked it up and used it for toilet paper .
I probably should have left it somewhere else more likely to get picked up by a 9-5er.
I will not give up hope.
Hello n8,
I noticed that you only put a lable inside the book. Perhaps it is an idea to put some stickers on the cover that make it clear what's the purpose of this book you left.
On the Duthc bookcross-site we got p.e. this one:
http://www.bookcrossing.nl/down/ikbenopreis.doc (hope this link works). The text means (I hope I translated this right): "I am not lost, I am on a travel. Just look inside my cover. Can I take a hike with you?"
The next ones I usaly use on my books:
http://www.bookcrossing.nl/down/freebookplakkers1.doc
For English books I change the text in : "I am not lost!
Please pick me up, read me and help me with my journey!
(See inside)!"
I hope you will leave more books and wil get a lot of catches!
See you on the forum?
Boekenspookje (another bc-adict)
Boekenspookje -
Thanks so much for the links to the word docs with the labels.
I have downloaded and will translate to English and use on my next book release!
Yeah I think that is such a good idea putting stickers on the front cover as this could NOT be misunderstood or missed.
If no one makes a journal I will not give up, I will choose a better location and put stickers/labels on both the front cover and inside. Make sure it can't be missed.
I must say that BookCrossers rule! :)
Hi Nathan,
Gala posted a link to your blog on the Dutch forum. Welcome to the bookcross community! I hope someone will find your book. You never know what will happen, that's part of the fun of it. I've released beautiful books with many labels on the cover in crowded places that never got caught, while a very small ugly free little Dutch book got caught and released many times and is now travelling in Spain. So you never know...but that's part of the fun of it. Enjoy your bookcross experience!
Oh, and by the way, I have released the exact same book in an 'independent' library in Cuba, i thought it was appropriate since in Cuba books are hardly available. See: http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/4801382
floddertje - Ahhhhh I was wondering how so many BookCrossers were finding my blog post :) Cool!
Thanks for your comment, It makes me feel better knowing the experiences of a seasoned BookCrosser and what has happened when you have released books.
Good call with releasing Fahrenheit 451 in an independant library in Cuba! Great idea.
That would be so good seeing a book you have released travel into a different country!
If I ever catch a release and am going overseas at the time, I will take it with :)
Uhm..yes..maybe I should have told you that I put your bloglink on the Dutch Bookcrossing forum :) and mayby this page is helpfull for getting started with bookcover labels http://www.geocities.com/saffista/
kind regards,
1972Galadriel :)
Dear N8,
Since Spring 2003 I am a bookcrossing fan and I have released some 600 books so far. Release sites vary from all over my hometown until Sout America. One of my books has left my hands here just around the corner and is now traveling in the US.
Let this be a warning: bookcrossing can be addictive! You only have to look at 1972Galadriel's statistics to see how far this can take you!
Enjoy! Happy reading! And you might find some nice people among the bookcrossing community, to swap books with. There should be some in Adelaide!
1972galadriel -
Thank you for posting this blog post in the Dutch forum, your doing so has resulted in many nice comments and useful information from BookCrossers :)
Thanks, the BookCrossing labels and flyers are great! I have downloaded them all. The flyer is a good description and the labels which say "FREE" or "This is a Free Book" I can see would be very effective! People get so excited when they see "FREE", well I know I do ;)
The yellow street sign logo is the best and would be good to use on a front cover label.
Biba89 -
Woah, you have been BookCrossing for ages! You are a seasoned professional. Please give me your tips about what to do to increase the chances of a wild release being caught.
BookCrossers are the nicest!
Going from these comments and BookCrossing forums.
Hey n8, firstly thanks for the comment on my blog. Also good work on an enjoying blog post. I feel like I've been swept along on this book's journey! Keep us all updated on your next 'release'
Thanks Keith!
Will do.
I love it! Have you become totally addicted to bookcrossing yet? Thanks for sharing your story.
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