Book Pass

When I finish a book worth recommending, I want to actively find the next person who it can resonate with, and pass it along to them. Lately I’ve been encouraging folks to continue this practice: if you read and appreciate a book I’ve given you, please pass it on to someone else! And if you don’t read it, or don’t like it, please pass it back to me, and I’ll try sharing it with someone else. Before you pass it forward, write your name in the book, so it slowly collects a list of past owners who found it worth sharing.

Perhaps this particular form of generosity could proliferate as a format for actively sharing books with each other! I made some stickers with a pithy description of this practice, and I’ve started distributing these stickers to my people. We can put the stickers inside the books we love, and start writing our names next to them. Here’s the sticker design:

Importantly, I want this process to remain as lightweight as possible. BookCrossing and other similar projects are wonderful, but much less intimate. We don’t need a centralized record of a book’s travels, nor do we need to share books opportunistically with anyone who might appreciate them. I’d like for us to stay focused on deep intentionality, and thoughtful human connection.

It’s quite possible that this idea will never exit my circle of friends, but I still think it’s cool. If you also think it’s cool, you can buy stickers here, or we can grab coffee in SF and I’ll give you a few.

In any event, consider passing a book to someone! Maybe they’ll read it, love it, and pass it forward.