Give to charity, receive free books

June 26, 6:31 PMDC Books ExaminerCamille Tuutti-Winkler

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A novel idea: Concord Free Press will give you a free book
if you make a charitable donation.

Give, and you shall receive—that is the concept of Concord Free Press's "generosity-based publishing."

Based in West Concord, Mass., this publishing company publishes books and then gives them to those who have made a charitable donation, be it to the anonymous homeless guy on the street corner or to a well-known humanitarian-aid organization.

Whether the donation is $5 or $500 does not matter: Every donor gets a free book, either by requesting a copy on Concord's Web site or via a network of independent bookstores.

On why the nonprofit corporation is giving away free books, the Web site states:

Let’s get this straight right from the start—we’re not proposing free books as a cure for what ails modern publishing. That would be stupid. We like books. We buy books. We don’t think all books should be free—just ours. That said, we’re dedicated to a different kind of publishing, one that 'reconceptualizes the very goals of publishing.' We’re interested in making waves, challenging assumptions, and re-invigorating the book, which isn’t dead yet, by the way."

So far, only two titles have been released: "Give + Take" by Stona Fitch and "Push Comes to Shove" by Wesley Brown, but Concord is planning on publishing one or two books a year, according to its Web site.

Ready to get that free copy in your hands? All you need to do is request a copy on the Web site, read the book, make a donation, give the book to someone else who wants to read it, and then return to Concord's Web site and type into the "GivingTracker" your name, your location, the number of the book (all books have unique "tracking" numbers), how much you donated and where you donated. Your name will then appear on the list of people who have given and received. Currently, readers from all over the world, from Oregon to Scotland to Sweden, have donated more than $60,000.