Friday, April 18, 2008

Free Book's Day

Today is the Book's Day in Brazil. At schools tales are told, and special visits to libraries and book shops are made to celebrate this essential tool for imagination.


As a family ritual, since Lucas was 2, we free a book on this very day. I don't know if any of you know about this activity. The international site is Bookcrossing. The idea is simple. At a certain date you choose a book from your bookshelf, put a message on the back of the cover (I print "Today is Book's Day, and I'm a Free Book. Take me with you, read my stories, and after you finished, leave me again somewhere so someone else will have the same pleasure you had by reading me"), leave it a a public spot, like subways, park's benchs, cafe tables, and someone else will pick it up, read it and luckly will pass it on.

Above is the book I chose for this year: Zelia Gattai's book, "Winter Garden", about her exile times in Yugoslavia with her husband, Jorge Amado, the Brazilian author, during Brazilian dictatorship years (because they were comunist - those were "Inquisition times"...). A great book.


I have fun watching people's reactions from a distance. Usually they pick the book up, take a look around, open the cover page and read the message. Some will take it with them, some will not, maybe ashamed of being watched. But usually it's taken.


This book was grabbed two minutes after it was left! See below the picture of the guy in light blue shirt and blue bermudas walking away with my book in his hands (sorry, it's so tiny and blurred, my camera has a poor zoom!):

After I started taking Lucas with me for this, he has fun with me, and the first time, he 'spoiled' the whole thing, by shouting "He picked it up, mom!!" out loud when a man took the book from the bench at a park near our house. The poor man dropped the book again and left in a hurry... LOL Since then, he learnt to stay quiet and just watch, only whispering excited when a person is "trapped".


Below is Lucas "freeing" his book - he chose one about baby care that I still had from the time he was born and he used to like watching the illustrations. He is wearing his uniform, because it was done on our way to his school, so we were getting late and couldn't watch the pick it up:


Have you ever found or a free book or have you ever free one?

6 comentários:

Anonymous said...

that is the most endearing ritual ever! my friends and i would enjoy doing that alot.

blessings on you and yours,
centaur

Dragonstar said...

What a lovely idea that is! Books are so important, and it's lovely to share them.

How is Beatrix now?

Kyanite said...

What a great idea1
I've recently joined a group called BOOK Crossings, whose idea is to release books into the 'wild' to be found by strangers...

Marcia said...

That would be a fun event! We don't do that here though. I mean, if you accidentally leave something, someone will probably take it. I'm not sure about books though. Some people throw out boxes and boxes of books for trash. It's so sad. V's doctor gives her a book or two (maybe 3 if she cries a lot) when she has a check up.

Stop by my page and enter my bloggy carnival posts!! I'm so excited it's here already. It starts tomorrow, but I'm too anxious :-)

Crunchy Green Mom - Suzanne said...

This is a delightful idea. I run a pagan book club here in Denver, Colorado and this is a GREAT idea. I'm going to offer it up to the people and see what they think of it!

I love it!

Texas Travelers said...

Thanks for the great idea. We have hundred of books that we can give away.

Troy