Bookworms gift their favourite titles to strangers, get 36 books in return

BENGALURU: In November, noted Kannada writer and critic H S Raghavendra Rao signed up for a unique book exchange initiative on Facebook. All he had to do was send one book to a complete stranger and get 36 books in return.
“It seemed a good way of improving the culture of reading and valuing books. You get exposed to different books and different genres by receiving another person’s favourite book.It’s not a commercial or profitable venture,” said Rao, who sent someone his favourite author J M Coetzee’s book, Life and Times of Michael K.
What the littérateur participated in is a social media experiment that has been doing the rounds for a while now. Status messages inviting friends to participate in virtual exchange of books have been flooding timelines and newsfeeds of urban Indians almost everywhere. From mothers to students to techies, anyone can be a part of these chains which promise a diverse reading experience by simply sending out one book.
The idea that has caught the fancy of netizens with hastags such as #savetheculture, #bookexhange and #bookloversunite is expected to foster reading habits in today’s fast-paced life. Khushi, a photographer from Delhi, participated in the “social experiment” on a whim. “I was both curious and excited about the idea of getting a stranger’s favourite book. I saw it as an exchange of ideas. I sent someone Herman Hesse’s Siddhartha because it means so much to me. It’s not about free books, it’s about exchanging stories. Here you can send a piece of yourself, without anyone judging you ,” she said, adding that she has even received books all the way from Dubai.
Khushi said that she loved getting new books to read, without having to choose the author herself. “I received Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In, which I wouldn’t have picked up on my own,” said Khushi, who has received five books through this exchange.
Satshya, a Delhi-based journalist, was studying in Chennai, when she participated in the virtual book exchange exercise. Today, she has a mini treasure trove of 32 new covers through the initiative. “I’m a pretty optimistic person, so I thought it’d work. And even if it didn’t, I liked the idea of gifting a book to a stranger,” she said.
The typical status message
Book Lovers Unite: Gift a book. I need six (may exceed) people residing in India, of any age, to participate in a book exchange. You only have to buy ONE book and send it to one person and you’ll receive 36 in return! Comment if you’re interested and I will inbox you the details. Also, please do it only if you will actually buy a book. This is not a prank.
The message you on agreeing to take part
Step 1: So, basically, you need to send one book to the address I add below. I am giving the age, gender and address. All of you need to keep that in mind and select a book and send it to the person. Step 2: Copy and paste my status on your wall. Then, when six people say ‘yes’, give them my address, name and age. Whoever says yes, will forward your name and age and address to the six people they get on their status. This way, complete strangers, send you at least 6 books. Now, the rules. 1. Please order the books in a week. 2. If you can’t, let me know. 3. Do not break the chain. My address (to be passed on to the people who message you).