Leeds BookCrossers

ou can't come regularly. What is Bookcrossing? The easiest way to explain is to quote directly from the website (www.bookcrossing.com): "The idea for BookCrossing came to Ron Hornbaker back in March of 2001, as he and his wife Kaori were admiring the PhotoTag.org site, which tracks disposable cameras loosed into the wild. He already knew about the popularity of WheresGeorge.com (which tracks U.S. currency by serial number), and that got him thinking: what other physical object might people enjoy tracking? A few minutes later, after a glance at his full bookshelf, the idea of tracking books occurred to him. After two hours of research on the Internet, Ron realized, to his surprise, that nothing like BookCrossing had been done on any significant scale. And so they went to work. By 3 A.M. that morning, they had decided on the name (zero hits for "bookcrossing" on Google), registered the domain, and Kaori had sketched the running book logo on a crossing sign. The rest was merely ex*****on." So what do Bookcrossers actually do? We register our books on the Bookcrossing site and then "release" them, either into the wild (leave them somewhere to be found randomly by a member of the public), in a controlled release (giving them to a friend or fellow Bookcrosser), or at a Bookcrossers' Meetup meeting. Because the books are registered and have a unique number written inside we can track the life of the book after it has left our hands, and any subsequent readers who go to the site and write a short journal entry about it will also be alerted when the next person has it. What goes on at the meetings then? They are very informal and sociable events smile. We bring along some registered books and have a good rifle through the pile for something to take away in return. The conversation often starts about the books but can wonder all over the place. The beauty of the meetings is that through talking to other Bookcrossers about what you have enjoyed reading you will find that recommendations are soon being thrust in your direction - you won't be allowed to leave empty handed! I don't think I'm very well read so I don't think I'll be able to contribute much. EVERYONE who comes along contributes something - it's not a "how many books have you read" competition, nor will you be judged on your reading taste. I felt a bit daunted the first time I went to a Meetup but I was soon made to feel that my opinions were just as valid as everyone else, and actually I was able to recommend authors that others hadn't heard of before too. I'm still not sure it's for me. Why not come along once and meet us? - you have nothing to lose and you may have a really good time! You are welcome along to any of our scheduled Meetups.