Hello, I'm a resident of Melbourne interested in reading lots of books, only, I haven't the financial resources to go and buy myself a whole library of books to read through. I was wondering if there are any established book lending co-operatives focusing on "left-leaning" material in Melbourne. If there are such groups, I'd love to be put in touch, if not, I'm interested in establishing a participatory, self-regulating book and discussion group.
The idea I have in mind, failing to find an established network, would be to generate a list of material sort after by members as well as a list of material already held by the collective. Perhaps, as a sign of goodwill, new members could aquire an item from the list of desired material, so that, as the popularity of such a group increases, the list of resources can be improved. I'd guess that a register of the location of materials, as well as any waiting lists for books already out on loan, would be maintained in a transparent manor. Essentially, I'm contemplating a collective organisation of resources that would maximise people's ability to temporarily obtain radical, obscure, hard to get books about social, economic and political visions, experiments and critiques etc. with minimal financial outlay. An added bonus to accessing books would be the social interaction generated, leading to a strengthening of social relations within our community. I'd guess that "hand over" meetings could be arranged in convenient locations where discussions could take place simultaneously to swaping books face to face. For example, on a given afternoon in a particular cafe in the city, ten different people could all arrange to meet and exchange requested books with each other, discuss particular books or other topics, organise events or projects etc.. An initial idea I'd love to find or build. Comments and suggestions are most welcome. Please reply to this list, or, alternatively, directly to me at: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Thanks for your time, Luke. -- -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Archived at http://www.cat.org.au/lists/leftlink/ Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Sub: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsub: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]