Pop Culture

Hide a Book Day: Goodreads Celebrates 10th Anniversary

Abby Hargreaves

Staff Writer

Abby Hargreaves is a New Hampshire native living and working as a Children’s Librarian in Washington, D.C. She fulfills the gamut of the librarian stereotype with a love of cats, coffee, and crocheting (and likes a good run of alliteration). Her MLIS degree enjoys the company of a BA in English from Hollins University, making Abby an advocate of women's universities. Her favorite color is yellow.

Inspired by Emma Watson’s work with The Book Fairies for which she hides books in various cities, Goodreads is promoting a similar campaign to celebrate their ten-year anniversary. The worldwide event called Hide a Book Day will take place Monday, September 18th.

Goodreads Hide a Book Day

Teaming up with The Book Fairies, Goodreads encourages users in this blog post to select their favorites and hide books in their communities. The two organizations developed stickers for the day, one of which includes the hashtag #hideabookday. The Book Fairies also sell bookmarks and ribbons for readers who prefer not to use stickers. Their shop includes other swag, including a promotional bundle if you’re looking to get a little bit of everything. Stickers and other materials are currently only available in English.

The Process

Goodreads recommends selecting your favorite books to hide so others can discover works you love. They remind participants to select hiding spots that are safe from weather events. Books should be hidden, but possible to find. Finally, you can join in more fun by sharing your hidden books on social media with the hashtags #goodreadsturns10, #hideabookday, #ibelieveinbookfairies.

Other Ideas

Some commenters on the blog post have requested printable bookmarks as an alternative to purchasing merchandise on The Book Fairies website. The option does not yet appear to be available. However, another user suggested using a sticky note on the inside of the cover as an alternative.

Although this event seems to be a one-time thing as far as Goodreads is concerned, the Book Fairies regularly hide books around the world. Another group, BookCrossing, works similarly and also includes a tracking system which allows users to find out where else a book has been.

Participating?

Are you planning on participating on Hide a Book Day? If so, tell us what you plan on hiding in the comments.