We are joining the revolution and hoping to get enough votes to 'win' £5000 to support Borderline Books in placing more and more bookshelves in more and more local community centres and other spots where people can access them. At the moment we are still running unfunded, which limits us severely. We cannot continue to rely on private donations as it is just not sustainable.

So please vote for us - click here to get to the page

London + Book fair

Oh... the London Book Fair is a sad affair.... It was originally set up so that small independent publishers who could not afford to go to the Frankfurt Book fair could show their titles to publishers on their way to Germany (any excuse for a trip to London for Americans!)
Each time the LBF has 're-vamped' it has locked out more and more small publishers and ALL of the Black publishers. It is now a bland collection of hyper-super-multi-national sharks who have devoured so many independent houses (at least in the EC1 end of the Earls Court exhibition hall). The few small publishers who used to exhibit upstairs, before that was turned into an agent's centre are gone.... Some publishers use upstairs for their meetings, thus missing the chance to exhibit and pick up passing contacts, others band together in groups, making it possible either to reach the books they have on display or to sit at a tiny table to conduct meetings... not an ideal situation as it is almost impossible for anyone to browse the books on display...

EC2 has a few foreign publishers paying through the nose for a booth, and a lot of e-book companies and remainder dealers... and a few UK publishers , but very few - including our most generous benefactor this year Eddison Sadd (thanks again)

So... I escaped after 2 days into a London that seems like a foreign land to me after so many years. Found Charing Cross Road eventually (behind the builders' hoardings) and about two 'proper' second hand/antiquarian bookshops where there used to be dozens.

Just how much coffee does a city need?

***

Is this all too negative? Sorry, I did manage to buy a few books for friends and family while out on the streets - and one for myself called 'They Say': Ida B Wells and the Reconstruction of Race by James West Davidson.... a very, very interesting book which I am enjoying reading and from which I am learning a lot (like the Republicans used to be the party that supported Black people back in the day, while the Democrats and KKK did all they could to keep them down.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm

World Book Day/Night

Every time I see mention of this massive give-away of books I get antsy.
Ten years - well, ten years as of September - we have been giving away books in the Netherlands and the UK and no-one is writing headlines about what we do. We are not sponsored by anyone except those few publishers who understand that sending us their foreign language reading copies and copies of their titles in translation is probably a Good Idea.

For ten years we have been giving books to organisations such as Crisis, Shelter, Salvation Army, St Vincent de Paul, the Cyrenians, Womens Aid and all manner of small local groups helping refugees and those hoping to get asylum. Not to mention Barnado's, the YMCA, youth clubs and homework clubs. We continue to try to get a bookshelf into community centres and clubs, and promise to fill and refill the shelves as necessary.

Letting each place decide whether to make it a library or simply a 'free books' shelf is up to them. The main aims are (1) to prevent the destruction of perfectly good books and (2) to make books easily available to people who might not otherwise make the effort to go out and find them.
And - since we never know what we will get, if someone enjoys a book by a certain author, we can encourage them to go to the library to find more.

So, what will I be doing on World Book Day/Night? - Wishing I hadn't given away the wheelbarrow when I moved to the UK!

Our cup runneth over......

Can't believe I haven't written anything since Christmas. Things are on the move to the point of bursting... we have overflowed into an official storage space down in the valley. Staples are sending regular clear-outs of stationery and we recently received a gigantic amount of really good gel pens that everyone loves. The funding cuts in the UK means that youth services are being slashed, womens' services as well - there's probably more money for ageing donkeys now than there is for abused women.
All this means that organisations working in these areas are hugely grateful for our donations of stationery as well as books.
In some places the gifts of notebooks and pens are opening the doors for people to start thinking about putting a bookshelf where there was none. I say that we will fill it and refill it; that they can let people borrow the books and if they like them so much that they keep them - so much the better.

We have to do some fundraising - shoestrings are cool, but you still have to buy a shoestring (although we also get lots of stuff from Freecycle and use things til they can't be repainted any more). the only costs really are fuel (ugh), now storage because of the overflow, and some publicity costs - mostly cheap printing from Vistaprint. It's amazing really how much we can do for next to nothing.

I'd love to see more people starting up local Borderline Books projects - the idea works anywhere where some people have too many books and others have none. Most people do a 'cull' of their bookshelves now and then - it's so easy to pass them on.....

Next week we will receive about a ton of books from a London publisher..... more about what we get when they arrive and I dive into the boxes. I never tire of opening mystery packages of books - which is just as well!

Festive Greetings

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practised within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

In addition, please also accept our best wishes for a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2011, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make this country great (not to imply that this country is necessarily greater than any other country or area of choice), and without regard to the race, creed, colour, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual orientation of the wishers.

This wish is limited to the customary and usual good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first. 'Holiday' is not intended to, nor shall it be considered, limited to the usual Judeo-Christian celebrations or observances, or to such activities of any organized or ad-hoc religious community, group, individual or belief (or lack thereof).

Note: By accepting this greeting, you are accepting these terms. This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher at any time, for any reason or for no reason at all.
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dashing through the snow...

well, not exactly dashing, but doing our best to get books and more treasures to local organizations for Christmas and New Year.

We seem to have some special extras each year, and this time it is lots of wonderful stationery - lovely bound notebooks in 3 sizes, ring binders, mouse mats (the kind that work!), plastic folders, box folders, paperclips, magnet-clips and lots more - all brand new. This is all thanks to a huge donation from Staples.

Many of the local organizations helping people who are temporarily homeless arrange educational courses of many different kinds. The stationery will be a big help to people following these courses or doing workshops in creative writing. We're sure that the various women's projects will also be very happy with gifts of stationery as well as books.

We can't thank Staples enough for their generosity - not only for giving us this huge gift, but for shipping it to us from The Netherlands. - Our division in Leiden also took delivery of stationery supplies and we are also expecting a further delivery of pens and pencils.

We really need to get some more projects running in different parts of the UK. It makes little sense for everything to operate from the North-East. Ideally we should have Borderline Books projects in as many major cities as we can, so that deliveries can always be local, thus eliminating the need to drive long distances or ship books up and down the country.

We'd like to wish everyone a warm and safe 2011 - with plenty of books for all.

Giving away one million books?

Giving away a million books? - Yes a great idea, but at the same time I see this is getting publishers to print (even) more books rather than helping to find a solution to the continuing issue around pulping.
On the BBC website today

Well, yes as I say, it's a good idea, but I'd far rather see some useful self-help books being passed out to women in prison or in the probation system - or books on self-expression and self-esteem. Time after time I talk to people to see what is most needed and it's not escapist fiction but tools to help them rebuild their lives.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could get a site like the BBC to give a project such as ours some mega-publicity?
Of course, encouraging people to enjoy and share literature is lovely and wonderful, but I'm all too conscious of the people who need books to help them enjoy life.