The site allows people to borrow from complete strangers such works as Bruce Chatwin's In Patagonia and Yann Martel's Life of Pi. The website has ambitions to introduce thousands of paperbacks into its catalogue. Should anyone in Britain not already own at least one copy of The Da Vinci Code, the bestseller also features on the list, and there are plans to include books of all genres.
Although not the first online community built around sharing books - the not-for-profit BookCrossing.com encourages readers to leave books in public places so they can be picked up by others - My Book Your Book is unusual in trying to make money out of it.
Readers pay an annual fee of £8.95 (currently being waived) and pledge to share 10 of their own paperbacks, in return for access to the titles owned by the rest of the community.
After choosing a book, each reader sends a stamped addressed envelope to whoever owns the volume. The owner posts the book and the reader is allowed to keep it for up to five weeks before passing it on to the next person in the chain.
After beginning its journey from reader to reader, each book is destined to remain in circulation indefinitely. Anyone failing to keep the chain in motion will have membership frozen, although there are no plans to introduce library fines.
The website's founder, Peter Baillie, 64, said the plan was to encourage a community spirit, persuading people to share books that would otherwise gather dust.
"Most books I read once, but not again, and I'm sure there are thousands of people in exactly the same situation."
That sounds really neat, but I know I hate lending out books to some of my friends. I can't imagine a complete stranger having it. When a few of my friends borrow a book it comes back the worse for wear.
PkyBear said:
That sounds really neat, but I know I hate lending out books to some of my friends. I can't imagine a complete stranger having it. When a few of my friends borrow a book it comes back the worse for wear.
it says the books remain in circulation "indefinitely," so really it's equivalent to getting rid of a book. I guess you'd only send out the books you didn't care about. Which kind of defeats the purpose I think -- sharing books should be about sharing the books you love.
PkyBear said:
That sounds really neat, but I know I hate lending out books to some of my friends. I can't imagine a complete stranger having it. When a few of my friends borrow a book it comes back the worse for wear.
I've realized recently that my bookshelves are full of mediocre books - because the bad ones, I get rid of, and the good ones, I lend out and never see again. My Book Your Book sounds like a good way for me to get rid of all the middling stuff as well. Pity I'm not in the UK.
SomeOneUK
United Kingdom
June 2004
AUG 24, 2005 04:07 PM