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Bookcrossing is the practice of leaving a book in a public place for someone else to find and read. It is facilitated by the website bookcrossing.com, which tracks over three million books worldwide. Books are registered with a unique identification number and users can search for books in their area. Bookcrossing has become popular and has over half a million members who attend conventions and exchange books. Critics claim it hurts sales, but bookcrossers argue it sparks interest and increases sales.
The term “bookcrossing” is used to refer to the practice of leaving a book in a public place with the intent that someone else will pick it up and read it. It is inspired by the website bookcrossing.com, which registers users who wish to participate in bookcrossing and tracks more than three million books worldwide as they change hands through bookcrossing exchanges. Bookcrossing can also refer to sharing books with friends or giving away books.
In 2004, the Oxford English Dictionary recognized bookcrossing with an official definition, “the practice of leaving a book in a public place to be picked up and read by others, who then do the same”. While most bookcrossing is done through the BookCrossing website, technically anyone could trade books this way, and many people do. The idea behind bookcrossing is to introduce people to new authors and concepts and to build a kind of global book exchange library.
When a book is left for someone to find, it is “published” and if it is left in a public place, it is considered to be in the wild. When someone wants to publish a book, they log into the BookCrossing site to register it, by creating a unique book identification number that is written in the book or on a bookplate, along with the BookCrossing URL. The person who intends to release the book notes where and when it will be released, then goes out to release it.
Users can search the website for copies of a particular book or a list of books currently out in the wild in their area, then go hunting. When a book is picked, or captured, the person picking it goes to BookCrossing and registers the book, entering the ID number and information about where and when it was picked. After the book is read, it should be released again for someone else to read.
The concept of BookCrossing has made its way into popular culture, and the site boasts over half a million members. Bookcrossers hold conventions, exchange books by mail, and support community members in need. They can also attend regional meetings to talk about books and just hang out. Although some publishers have criticized the practice, claiming it hurts sales, bookcrossers counter that free book trading actually encourages people to pick up other books by the same author, or on the same subject, thus increasing sales because bookcrossing has sparked someone’s interest.
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