It’s no secret that people love discovering things.  Scavenger hunts, hidden pictures, mystery dinners, escape rooms and geocaching have all fed into the thrill of the hunt.  The newest trend in this realm is BookCrossing, a celebration of literature, social networking, and connectivity of the readers who find the books.

 

Johnson Elementary Librarian Marylou Smith first heard of BookCrossing while researching how to connect students at a global level.  The interactive site began in 2001 and is now commonly referred to as “The World’s Library.”

 

Smith checked out the social media site and found that there are nearly two million BookCrossers  and over 13 million books traveling throughout 132 countries around the world.  The opportunity to have local students be connected with the program compelled her to create the first and only account in West Virginia for Johnson Elementary School.

 

“We currently have 12 books released for people to read and pass on,” said Smith.  “The books are placed in the Free Little Library Box in Bridgeport City Park beside the restrooms.  We will be getting our own Free Little Library Box for Johnson Elementary, but we will be releasing books at other sites around town as well.”

 

Each book gets its own unique identity code and is passed from reader to reader, where it is tracked on the site and connects all the readers.  The Johnson Elementary books will have a bright orange dot on the spine, making them easy to identify and differentiate from books that are not registered with the site.

 

“We ask that they register the code found inside the front cover at BookCrossing.com so that students at Johnson Elementary can track the journey of the books,” said Smith.  “Participants can register for their own account or as an anonymous finder.”

 

Additional information can be found at www.BookCrossing.com.