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| International Understanding Through Literary Exchange | |||
Frequently Asked Questions Why is it called the 100 Books Project? From Sharon Otterman, the project's founder: There's a story behind this. I was in Siwa, Egypt, a beautiful oasis surrounded by hundreds of miles of empty desert, staring at a perfect reflection of the sunrise in a placid salt lake. This is the same oasis Alexander the Great visited in 31 BC, home to one of the most famous oracles in antiquity. During my stay in the oasis as a travel writer, I met some spectacular young people who had taught themselves English to work in the tourist trade. But there were no English language books to read in Siwa beyond the few pulp novels travelers left behind. I thought to myself, what if I could bring 100 Books into the oasis? What would they be? This grew into a second set of thoughts. As tourism grows in Siwa, the mellow atmosphere and ability to really get to know Siwans is being lost. Tourism is becoming all about money and less about meeting one another across cultural differences. The idea emerged that a cafe, open to tourists and locals, filled with books and computers, could be a starting point for non-transactional interactions based around friendship and ideas. There could be language lessons and exchanges in Arabic and English. Tourists could do book readings for local children, or give talks about what they do. There could be displays of Siwan crafts and film showings. The underlying idea would be to develop tourism's positive human potential. Who I am sending books to? Each center will target a different audience. As the main source of English language materials in the oasis of Siwa, the Siwa Knowledge Cafe is seeking materials for children, young adults, and adults. It will also emphasize English language learning materials, such as dictionaries and children's books. Siwa is 350 miles west of Cairo and is home to a unique, North African Berber culture that is quite traditional. Most women in Siwa do not work out of the home and are fully veiled in public. Tourism, agriculture, and spring water bottling are Siwa's primary industries. The Al Balad Center in downtown Cairo primarily attracts college-aged students and other Egyptians between 18 and 35 whose English level is fair to good. Most will have had access to satellite television and will be Internet-literate, but will not have traveled out of the Arab world. Young artists, designers, and bloggers are among those who congregate at the center, which is located across the street from the American University of Cairo. The idea with the Cairo center is to link the patrons of this cafe with young people of similar age and interests in the United States through literature and dialogue, both in the cafe itself and ultimately online. Who will own the books? The local host organization. In Siwa, that will be a local nonprofit dedicated to sustainable development in the oasis, The Friends of Siwa. They will also determine lending policies for the books to ensure the collection is maintained. In general, this means readers will leave small deposits for the books, most of which they will get back when they return them. They will be able to charge a small fee to lenders, but reading in the cafes will be free. They will also have the final word over what books will be in the collection, and make requests for new books on behalf of the readers in the library. What kinds of books should I donate? The idea is to share the books we have liked and loved—the ones that have made us think, that have added to our understanding of ourselves and our world, or are in some other way meaningful to us. The kind of books you would share with friends, and that you think a bright young person overseas would enjoy. In addition to the books on the list, other books by the same authors are appreciated. Books you have written (and signed) are also particularly welcomed. If you have a book suggestion that is not on the list, please email the title to us at info@100booksproject.org before sending it along. What can't we send? Works with a great deal of profanity, sexual content (both heterosexual and homosexual), or violence cannot go into the centers. Works which are religious or anti-religious in nature or which may "inflame religious tension" cannot be considered. Works on sensitive political matters like the Palestinian-Israeli conflict should also be avoided. English-speaking readers in Cairo are generally quite sophisticated, and can pretty much handle anything. But the censorship laws in Egypt are purposely kept vague to allow the government to crackdown against what it choose--and we would like to stay on the good side of the censors. None of the books on the list are expressly banned. We will continue to monitor this aspect of the project. In general, 100 Books seed libraries in the Middle East are located within a socially conservative culture that values modesty, upright public behavior, and traditional familial roles. Most of the recipients will be practicing Muslims; some will be Christians. It may endanger the project and our local hosts if we stock overly provocative books. What English-language level should I be targeting? For adult books, please target an English language literacy level which is fair to good. You can think of this as a book a bright American high-school student could enjoy without much guidance. Children's books will be welcomed from the early learner to the young adult level. Should I write something inside the book? Yes! You can think of this almost like the staff picks section of a video store. In the spirit of people-to-people exchange, please write your name and a brief description of why you chose the book on the inside cover. You can also stick to your first name if you prefer. Should the books be used or new? Either. Is there a limit to the number of books I can donate? Definitely not. Will each collection have only 100 books? No, the idea is that each collection will grow over time based on additional donations. Book cafes can also choose to have a separate area called a book exchange shelf, where people will be able to take a book permanently if they leave one. The books from the central collection, however, will remain the property of the cafe. Aren't many of these books already available in Egypt? Yes, but in very small numbers. A new, imported book similar to what the project is offering costs between $20 and $40 US dollars in Egypt, way out of range of the average Egyptian (most families survive on under $200 a month). These are available only at a few English-language book stores in Cairo. As for libraries, there are a few in Cairo, but their English collections are very limited, and generally quite dated. There is no U.S. cultural center outside of the Embassy compound, like the British Council. Budget cuts in recent years have shut them down. There is an American Studies library inside the embassy, but because Egyptians have to go through security at the Embassy to visit it, many end up not going. There was great excitement among the Egyptians we spoke to about the potential of this project. I'm in Egypt, how can I help? For foreigners in Egypt: If you have unwanted, high-quality books you don't want to carry home after your stay, why not offer them to one of our centers? The project would also love your help organizing this project as it gets off the ground, especially with developing interesting programming around the book collections. If you would like to volunteer, please email us at info@100booksproject.org. For Egyptians: Let us know what books you would like to see in the collections. What Arabic-language books and movies would you like to see in future American collections highlighting Arab literature and film? Please let us know at info@100booksproject.org. We also need volunteers to help manage the centers and develop programming, like book talks, film showings, discussion groups, language exchanges--you name it. What other kinds of partner organizations might the Project have? We are looking into stocking children's books in a series of 20 youth centers in located in working class neighborhoods. We'd also like to find other places to house the adult collection over the coming year. If you are in the Middle East and would like to host a collection, please contact us at info@100booksproject.org. As for U.S. organizations, we hope to cooperate with many of them as we begin to grow both in Egypt and elsewhere. Bookmooch.com, an innovative site that allows people to trade their unwanted books with other users, has already offered to help: we are still working out the details. Room To Read, which is founding children's libraries across much of the developing world, is another potential partner. If you represent an organization with a possible synergy to this project, please contact us at info@100booksproject.org. Where will this organization go in the future? The most exciting upcoming project will be the online 100 Books Knowledge Cafes, where donors and recipients will be able to create wish and donation lists and share materials directly, either virtually or through the mail. There can also be international book discussions facilitated online. Translation is another key effort. In the future, the project will support the translation of books from English into Arabic and Arabic into English. It also hopes to facilitate the translation of high-quality English language films into Arabic and Arabic films into English, though sub-titling. If you have suggestions for books or films you would like to see translated, please email them to us at info@100booksproject.org Another vital role would be to serve as the source of information on international literary and film exchange between the United States and the Arab world. What works of film and literature have already been translated? Where are they available? What books have been banned? Right now, there is no central place to get this information. We know there are many other organizations doing exciting work in the field of literature exchange, and we hope to cooperate with many of them. Will you accept cash donations? Yes, though 100 Books is still working out how to do this. Cash donations will go to defray shipping costs or buying books, such as Arabic-English dictionaries, that are expensive and have not been donated. Thanks to our local partners, there are no paid staff and no few operating expenses at the moment, but donations to help the costs that do exist are of course welcome, too. What kind of other help do you need? Lots! This is a start up, grass roots project with a limited budget; we need everything! Including: --web development help --help carrying materials to Egypt! If you are traveling there, let us know if you have room in your luggage to take some books with you. |
How can I help? 1. SUGGEST. The first thing we need is your suggestions for the book list. If you have a suggestion, please email it to us at info@100booksproject.org. We are looking forward to your comments and suggestions. You can also express support for or disagree with an entry on the list. 2. DONATE BOOKS. If you have a book that is on the list--or another book by an author on the list--and you would like to donate it, we would deeply appreciate if you would send it right to us! Another option is to order the book from Amazon.com and have it mailed to us. The majority of the books on the list sell used through Amazon for less than $2, plus shipping. Please order used books in good or very good condition. Books can be sent to our shipping address at: The 100 Books Project, 40-12 72nd Street, Suite B, Woodside, NY 11377 Our immediate goal is FOUR of each title. You can check current inventory here. 3. DONATE FUNDS. If you would like to fund a library or send a cash donation, stay tuned. We should be ready to accept cash donations within the coming months. The project was incoroporated in April 2008 in the State of Delaware, and is awaiting its formal documentation.
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