Designer Gillis Lundgren and his progenyIn 1979 Ikea introduced the Billy bookcase. In 2009, there are over 40 million Billy bookcases sprinkled throughout the world. It is the best selling bookcase in the history of mankind. They're still producing over 3 million a year. Bloomberg has even begun an index tracking the cost of Ikea’s standard Billy bookshelf in 38 countries (in case you're wondering, it is currently cheapest in the United Arab Emirates and the most expensive in Israel.)In the UK, to celebrate Billy's 30th anniversary Ikea released some rather cool limited edition bookcases and other goodies that cater...
Booktopia: Paju Bookcity aims to ‘Recover the Lost Humanity’
Is it a dream? Is it real? Have we found Heaven on Earth?It's called Bookcity and it's located 30km outside of Seoul, South Korea. It is a city built upon a foundation of books. It's planning and construction guided by "the principles of book making that we use everyday. Book making is similar to architecture in that it takes pains to design and if the design is not satisfactory, one begins again from scratch"It's goal is to concentrate the publishing industry in an "eco-friendly industrial city"Here are a few nuggets from their website:-From the beginning, the Bookcity project was planned...
Dropping the Books from E-Books
The race is on. Amazon, Google, Apple, Sony and a host of other companies are moving at breakneck speed to create the e-book atmosphere that will become your e-book universe of choice.In his insightful piece at the Huffington Post, Eebs: A History of Future Publishing, Giles Slade gives us a good look at the current battlefield."In the emerging world of e-Books, Kindle-Amazon will increasingly occupy a position similar to the iPod while Google (a collector and purveyor of e-Books) together with its partner Sony (a manufacturer of e-Readers) will forever be positioned at the lower end of the e-Book market...
Corporate Censorship Trumps School Library Censorship
“If Wal-Mart won’t carry a book because they think it’s steamy — or just good — that will affect your book more than any school district” Fran Lebowitz speaking at the launch party for the Free Speech Leadership Council sponsored by the National Coalition Against Censorship.Mokoto Rich, A Fireside Chat About Book Burning, at Paper CutsPhotos from the inaugural event.
About Those Blue Book Donation Boxes
Photo by Joseph Lyon / Kitsap SunHave you seen those blue book donation boxes that seem to be popping up everywhere? Ever wonder what the deal is?Well, here's how it works:The boxes are are owned and operated by Thrift Recycling Managment (TRM), a for-profit company. This alone should bring into question the 'Books For Charity' mantra emblazoned on the front and sides of each box.To date, about 15,000 boxes have been placed around the country.51% of books donated end up being pulped. Think revenue stream.25% go to non-profit organizations committed to various literacy and book-related causes with only a tiny...