Books Are Good!
Books-A-Plenty in Akron, Ohio
by chubsiewhubsieMarch 18, 2009
I am fresh back from Akron Ohio and the Family Reading Fest and wanted to share my thoughts. From elderly grannies to teetering tots, fun was had by all. There were author book signings, food and face painting. There was Clifford The Big Red Dog, games
and The Rubber City Book Posse. The RCBP is a group of local BookCrossers in Ohio and proudly, there was no shortage of love or books at the Family Reading Fest.
We, the RCBP, had 3,288 registered BookCrossing books on hand. Quite a few of the books came from generous BCers around the globe. People visiting the fest walked up in surprise and said, "What's the catch?" We exclaimed over and over, "No catch, these books are free!" Some gingerly took one book but some took box fulls. Little children were perched on the floor digging through books and then proudly showing their new treasure. Grown-ups stood eagerly scanning books on tables for a favorite author. Some adults even left with a new found author and genre. I can tell you this for certain, all left our RCBP tables smiling.
The power of books is a mysterous thing, something so simple as the written word can bring a city of people together. No matter the color, sex, creed or age the goal was the same, READING! Reading in a BlackBerry, iPOD, Twitter-Internet instant society. Books are good!
Editor's note: For some fun, check out the Release Challenge Chubsiewhubsie started shortly after this experience at the Family Reading Fest: Free Books? What's the Catch?. Though the challenge is closed now, it was a great idea and had some interesting responses.
We, the RCBP, had 3,288 registered BookCrossing books on hand. Quite a few of the books came from generous BCers around the globe. People visiting the fest walked up in surprise and said, "What's the catch?" We exclaimed over and over, "No catch, these books are free!" Some gingerly took one book but some took box fulls. Little children were perched on the floor digging through books and then proudly showing their new treasure. Grown-ups stood eagerly scanning books on tables for a favorite author. Some adults even left with a new found author and genre. I can tell you this for certain, all left our RCBP tables smiling.
The power of books is a mysterous thing, something so simple as the written word can bring a city of people together. No matter the color, sex, creed or age the goal was the same, READING! Reading in a BlackBerry, iPOD, Twitter-Internet instant society. Books are good!
Editor's note: For some fun, check out the Release Challenge Chubsiewhubsie started shortly after this experience at the Family Reading Fest: Free Books? What's the Catch?. Though the challenge is closed now, it was a great idea and had some interesting responses.
