Free your books with Alexander McCall Smith!
From 18th April 2005, wherever you might be in the UK keep your eyes open. The book you see lying on your regular bus, train or tube, your local telephone box, park bench or even at your local pub might not have been left there by accident. Alexander McCall Smith, Ruth Rendell, Philip Pullman, Tracy Chevalier and Doris Lessing are among thousands of readers and other authors who will deliberately leave a book in a public place for others to find and enjoy. Over 1,500 books will be 'released' across the UK and further afield to celebrate the launch of Book Aid International's Author Association.
Book Aid International has been working for over fifty years to get books into the hands of readers who need them. In the developing world, hundreds of thousands of schoolchildren, teachers, doctors, nurses, lawyers, mechanics, farmers and book lovers have their lives enriched by the access to books and information Book Aid International provides.
We are a self-confessed nation of booklovers - an estimated 204 million books were purchased last year in the UK. From the Man Booker Prize to Richard and Judy's Book Club, people are passionate about books and reading. In such a book-rich society, it is almost impossible to imagine life without well-lined shelves at home, enticing bookshops on the high street and online, and our reliable local libraries.
This project highlights our passion for books and reading, linking Book Aid International with American-based BookCrossing. Added to the Concise Oxford English Dictionary in August 2004, bookcrossing n. is the practice of leaving a book in a public place to be picked up and read by others, who then do likewise. Both BookCrossing and Book Aid International share a simple aim: to share books with the world.
Keep your eyes peeled for them! All books 'released' will be marked with a special label designed by the illustrator Hannah Firmin, famous for her distinctive 'No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency' cover designs. The original artwork 'Opening up the World Through Books' will be auctioned on E-bay later in 2005, and the proceeds shared between BookCrossing and Book Aid International.
If you're lucky enough to find one of the books (remember, nearly 2,000 are being released), you can go online, discover who left it, what they thought of it, and register your comments. In turn, you can then leave the book in a public place for someone else to find!
Bestselling author Alexander McCall Smith is delighted to be taking part in the initiative: 'Nobody who has been in a developing country and seen the hunger for the printed word could ask what is the point of Book Aid International. The work of this organisation responds to that hunger and brings knowledge and pleasure to many, many thousands of people throughout the world. This is a cause which I recommend to you with all my heart. Please support it'.
If you would like to get involved, visit www.bookaid.org for more details and follow the simple steps to set your books free! For more information contact Lesley Pinder on 020 7733 3577 or by email.
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Book Aid International is a registered charity, no. 313869
Editors Notes:
The initiative is organised by Book Aid International.
Book Aid International, a UK-registered charity established in 1954, believes education is the route out of poverty. Their work, focus and scope are unique in the UK. Book Aid International:
• Sends over half a million books and journals each year to partners in 18 countries
• Targets most of its resources on 17 countries in sub-Saharan Africa
• Focuses over half of its output directly on children's education
• Recycles surplus UK resources as precious developing world commodities
• Works with local partners to ensure resources go where they are needed most
• Supports the local book chain through African book purchase schemes
• It costs them just £1.50 to get a book into the hands of a reader overseas
Strict criteria exist to decide both the countries in which they work (based on poverty indices), and the partner organisations which receive and distribute the books (based on readers' needs and equality of access). Partners include libraries, schools, colleges, refugee camps, hospitals and prisons. None of them has enough books for their readers, nor enough money to buy them. Each book sent will be shared and discussed for years to come.
Book Aid International's Author Association aims to harness the energy and enthusiasm of authors to promote reading and learning opportunities for readers in the world's poorest communities.