Breadline Book #2 Arrives - The Name of the Wind

Tony W. was kind enough to send a photo of his new book, The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss. Hope you enjoy it, Tony!

Remember, the drawing for Breadline book #3 will be held tomorrow night, so it's not too late to send in those requests!

A cool kid, a Wimpy Kid, and guest blogger Andrew J.

Well, it didn't take long for the first Breadline book to get delivered (3 days, exactly), and tonight we welcome our winner Andrew J. to talk about it!

Andrew: Above, a second grader poses with Diary of a Wimpy Kid #1, representing his school as the inaugural winner in Breadline Books' first book giveaway.

This fellow has already read the entire Wimpy Kid series, so this book will head to his school's "free bookstore" later this week to be owned by a yet-to-be-determined student.

Once a week, students go to the bookstore at lunch recess to "buy" books using gold-colored book bucks. One buck buys one book, and it's also required to gain admittance to the store, leading one parent volunteer to dub them golden tickets (in a Gene Wilder, not Johnny Depp sense, I hope). The bucks are earned through academic work and school spirit goals that are achievable by all students.

What are people asking for?

Just for fun, here are a few books in the drawing basket right now:

March Breadline Winner #2

Not to spoil the book or anything, but the name of the wind is Tony. Sorry if that ruined it for anyone. Tony also happened to be standing second in the breadline this month, and requested New York Times Bestseller, The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss.

I drilled Tony with some tough questions (okay, a question) and here's what he had to say:

"I've actually read this book before and have been meaning to buy it for some time, but never actually got around to it. This was a chance to add a great book to my collection."

More updates on Tony to come. Also, the breadline is still open--keep your requests coming! Chances of winning right now? 1 in 28. Not bad!

Winners Are Not Born; They Are Replied To

Congratulations to Andrew J., our first Breadline Books winner, a brave and honorable pioneer in the world of free book-getting. Andrew has chosen to receive Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and not for his own reading pleasure (or so he says) but for his free bookstore he operates from an empty classroom in his daughter's elementary school. A free bookstore. Sort of like this. Ironic, and very cool.

I sat down with Andrew (metaphorically) for an interview (one question), and here's how he answered:

"My book selection is for my daughter's elementary school's 'free bookstore' that we opened in January. I buy used books for 25 cents from a variety of sources, organizing and displaying them on shelves in our best attempt to create a bookstore-like experience. Students earn gold-colored "book bucks" as both an admission ticket and payment for the book they choose.

"I selected Diary of a Wimpy Kid for this contest because it's the most-requested book by our students and the hardest book for us to obtain. The first book was published in 2007, and copies won't be showing up en masse at yard sales for a few years. The second Wimpy Kid movie debuted in March, making the books just that more popular. It's a graphic novel with cartoonish illustrations, and some educators might turn their noses up at it, but my view is that anything that gets kids excited about reading is gold."

Check out Andrew's awesome blog, Thingamababy, and be ready for more information on how you can help support Andrew's bookstore.


One other note: The drawing for the final book of the March Breadline is still taking submissions until the end of the month, so keep sending in those requests! Chances of winning right now are one in twenty-two. Not Bad!

March 2011 Breadline Now Open

Everyone, the March breadline is now open! This means you can email your book requests to breadlinebooks@gmail.com. Remember, only the first two in line will receive a free book of around 10 bucks or less, so hurry up already! Everyone else will have to hope to get lucky in the drawing. Don't be bashful, now. Be the first one to get a free book!

If you're unfamiliar with Breadline Books, please read this post: About Breadline Books

Also, if you feel you have the means to buy all the books in the world, I encourage you to think of a friend or relative or anyone who may not be so fortunate, and to tell them about Breadline Books. Or just get in line for them. They'll appreciate it.