Comments on: Work-in-progress: The Ultimate Children’s Book Nameplate

By: Noreen

Noreen — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 05:55:30 +0000

Kind of like the concept of Book Crossing. I love releasing books into the wild for other to find. Though I must say I have not been that active lately. I have just been donating our books to the library
http://www.bookcrossing.com/

By: MIdge

MIdge — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:18:00 +0000

LOVE this idea. I think your label looks great as is.

By: AJ

AJ — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 04:22:01 +0000

Good point Lori. That’s why I’ll only be attaching the nameplate in those books of mine that have already been ‘defaced’ by previous owners.

As for nameplates in donated books, well, that’s the prerogative of the organization that bought the books to give away free.

By: Lori

Lori — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:39:51 +0000

I like the idea behind what you’re going for here (sharing the enjoyment of the book), but in my opinion putting this nameplate in a book is no different from the 10 ways to deface a children’s book you posted about earlier. It’s just defacing it in a different way.

Like you mentioned, the whole name in the kid’s book thing seems to be more for the parents than the actual kid, so how is this going to be any different? I’m sure it all depends on the age of the kid, but for the most part I think it’s still something more for the parents to fill out and enjoy.

By: Andrew

Andrew — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:18:01 +0000

looks like a good idea.

While I was reading this article, I also thought of a possible alternative. In books that have the “This belongs to:” field, one could cut a post-it note down to just the sticky part and place it on like a temporary sticker. That way, it could easily be removed when the time comes.

In the “Read-Aloud-Handbook,” by Jim Trelease, parents are actually encouraged to write the name of their child their books. It is meant to connect the child with the books or something.

In any case, your idea is good because it makes the child feel connected with the book but also encourages sharing.

By: Amber

Amber — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 04:07:41 +0000

adrienne makes an excellent point.

Whatever you decide to use for your label, make sure you use acid-free and not the cheap shipping labels that use the cheapest adhesive available. Especially if you want it to last through many owners.

By: RookieMom Whitney

RookieMom Whitney — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 03:55:45 +0000

I like your thinking here. I bought my husband a copy of PostSecret a few years ago, knowing that it’s a little silly to spend money on a coffee table book that he would look at for one day and then store underneath a stack of books, underneath the coffee table. So, I wrote inside that the book was FIRST given to him by me. Then I wrote that it was NEXT given to {blank} by him, so that it was clear that it was meant to be passed along. He regifted it with my full endorsement a month later. I hope it has been regifted multiple times.

By: adrienne

adrienne — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 22:09:44 +0000

Books die? Not on my watch, mister.

Just kidding.

Your bookplate reminds me of a book I received from one of my mom’s friends after a half dozen other people had enjoyed it.

This very funny book was still in beautiful condition, it kept circulating through my friends. Somewhere along the way people started writing their names in it and their brief impressions.

Periodically it would find it way back to my house, and I loved seeing what people had written.

The idea compelled me to join bookcrossing.com, but the response rate was so much lower than the inscription method. I often pick up that title at book sales to see if the book has found it way back to my life again.

Since then, a few of my favorite pass-around books have similar reader logs. I’m sure they wouldn’t please you, but some people find the comments and signatures quite charming.

Shipping labels aren’t great for books, so I prefer your stamp idea.

By: gertie

gertie — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 22:07:19 +0000

How about “This book was enjoyed and shared by…”

By: holly

holly — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:48:39 +0000

You’re bookplate idea reminds me of grade school. We would write our names in the back of our textbooks, below the name of who used that book the previous years. Also, just like the old check out cards that were inserted in the backs of library books (that are now illegal due to privacy isssues). It was fun to see who else checked out that copy of “Green Eggs and Ham”.

You could make the plates look like library cards. I like Book Caretakers. Or what about “This book read by…”?