This year,
World Book Night comes to the United States for the first time. Armacost Library is supporting this international effort to promote the love of reading. We signed up to be a pick-up location for community members of the University of Redlands and the City of Redlands. We hope faculty, students, staff and administrators of University of Redlands will sign-up to participate.
What is World Book Night?
WBN-USA is an international event that promotes literacy and the joys of reading among teens and adults. It is predicated on the idea of individual volunteers going out into their own communities and sharing copies of a text they had previously read and loved. Intended recipients of WBN editions are, ideally, new or light readers or individuals with limited access to books. WBN-USA book giver volunteers will receive 20 copies of a title they have selected. They will then pick up these books at a pick-up location they select and go out into their communities to distribute them on (or around) April 23rd. It will occur in the US, the UK, and Ireland on this same day.
Interested in volunteering to be a WBN giver?
Great! There is a
sign-up process and some
terms and conditions.
Application sign-ups need to be submitted to WBN by February 1st. Notifications will go out in mid-February. April 23rd, the actual date volunteers go out to distribute books, falls during May term break for CAS students at University of Redlands. Because of this, here are a few helpful tips to keep in mind.
- Think about where you will be on April 23rd and plan to give out books in that city. You will be asked to provide a mailing and an email address in the online application. The mailing address will help WBN organizers optimize selecting possible pick-up locations for you to consider. The email address is needed to notify you if your application has been approved or not, which book title you will receive, and how to select your pick-up location. Of course, you can still select Armacost Library as your pick-up location and give out books in the city of Redlands before you travel.
- Think about where you will go to hand out books and why. You will also be asked questions about the location/s at which you intend to distribute books, to whom, and why. WBN will use the answers to these questions to select applicants. While community centers are great places to consider, WBN also suggests distributing books at coffee shops, bus stops, commuter trains, malls, churches, and hospitals. Do select locations other than libraries.
- Select books that you have personally read already. WBN has a list of 30 titles from which would-be volunteers can choose 3 books. Should WBN choose you as a book giver, they will select one of the titles you indicated in your application and mail 20 copies of that title to your designated pick-up location. The point of the program is to enable givers to say to a giftee, “I read this book and I really loved it. I think you may enjoy it, too.”
- Attend the WBN party hosted by Campus Diversity & Inclusion and Armacost Library on April 16, 2012! This will be a good time for Redlands WBN givers to meet other givers, ask questions about WBN’s process, and pick up the books you have signed up to distribute on April 23rd. Exact location and time is yet to be determined. Light refreshments will be provided. Stay tuned!
