Book Swaps are the BEST!
BOOK SWAPS ARE THE BEST!
Seriously. Going to a book swap was, like, the funnest book-related thing I've done probably ever.
Below are the books I came back with, both with lovely personalized inscriptions. Both, books I'd never heard of. One, a book I might never have heard of.
When my good friend Teddy invited me to the swap, I thought, "great, I have tons of books to get rid of."
Actually, I had a whole pile that had been sitting by my door for days, meant for a local Little Free Library.
But Teddy told me I could bring two - and only two - books. What?! I thought I'd get to offload my whole unwanted pile.
I had some words with him, quickly escalating into challenging him to give away his best books.
In case you can't read that last text message, it says, "All right, ^#%*)$. I'm bringing two of my best, two it's gonna pain me to give away. You BEST show up with the goods."
Which he kind of did. I, however, ended up bringing two of my top five: Eliot Weinberger's An Elemental Thing and Julio Cortàzar's All Fires the Fire, both of which I was deeply saddened to part ways with.
But when I was honest with myself I realized that I hadn't opened these beloved books in a while, and I wasn't likely to anytime soon. Better that they be actively enjoyed, not just sit on the bookshelf relegated to the role of being an attachment of my ego or extension of my identity.
When I saw the happy faces of their new foster parents cradling Eliot and Julio in their arms, I gave myself a little pat on the back, knowing they'd be off to loving homes, and not just some community recycling center called a "little free library."
Cuz cute and wonderful and random as those Little Free Libraries are, they are typically filled with things people are trying to get rid of. Rarely do they house books I'm actually interested in.
At the swap, though, I was intensely attracted to almost every book that was brought. No surprise; these were the books of friends and friends of friends, and, as luck would have it, some very knowledgable bookstore staff.
The night opened with each person gushing about their books and how they had been affected by them, trying to woo pickers-to-be knowing that if their book was chosen, they'd get next pick. This incentive motivated inspired speeches, vulnerable confessions, and even some spontaneous ecstatic love poems.
That was the highlight of the evening for me, even better than the actual material exchanges and the new friendships that might come from them. It was so affirming to celebrate my nerdiness, wordiness, and love of the literary with likeminded folks, something I realized afterward that I just don't get, like, ever. Besides, these folks were HILARIOUS! And now I have some new friends both human and paper.
Instructions for a Book Swap
- Have each person brings 2 of their best books and lays them out on a table for all to see.
- Set aside time to shmooze and get to know new people, ooooing and aaaaing over the selection.
- Have each person make speeches about how great their books are, knowing that their turn will come only when their book is selected.
- Choose the first person to pick a book.
- Take turns picking books. Encourage commentary from the peanut gallery.
- Have everybody write a personal inscription in their books to whoever chose them.
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I found the picture of a little free library searching on Creative Commons. It's by Beyond My Ken (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 4.0-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
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