More people than ever before have joined the bookshelf of the Human Library. In total 437 new Books have been trained, edited and published at events in 2022.  

It is a feat in itself to be able to add over 400 new editions and it speaks volumes to the growing interest for the Human Library from Books and Readers around the world. 

New Content from 22 Nations

This year we are fortunate to have been able to welcome new Books from 22 different countries. Adding more opportunity and more diversity to our local Book Depots. The new Books have joined us from Australia, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, India, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Greater Diversity in Content

As the Human Library continues to grow, we are excited to continue to expand the range of topics that we can offer our Readers. From individuals who have experienced homelessness to refugees, survivors of domestic abuse to people with Bipolar disorder, our Books offer a unique opportunity for Readers to engage with people from many different walks of life.

If you are thinking about becoming an Open Book for the Human Library then please visit this page for more information.

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From Paris to Amsterdam to Borrow an Open Book

Orestis Christoforides reading an Open Book at Café Amstel Hoeck

With support from our friends at Heineken, the Human Library Book Cafe was open daily to readers at Café Amstel Hoeck. Three days in a row our Readers could borrow a Book while enjoying local drinks and dutch snacks. As always the services of the Human Library are free and so we registered more than 120 loans to readers. We were joined by Readers from Argentina, Belgium, Denmark, France, Hungary, Netherlands, Switzerland, USA, and Uruguay. One reader traveled from Paris in order to experience the Human Library:

“I traveled to Amsterdam specifically for the Human Library event as there were no events planned in France for the time being. I have been aware of the Human Library for some time after reading about it in the news. Being able to meet people who have such unique identities or are easily labeled or discriminated against seemed like a unique opportunity“, said Orestis Christoforides, who took a day off from work to become our reader. 

All Access to our Bookshelf

Our Book and their Reader at the Amstel Hoeck Café

In Amsterdam, our readers had a free choice of topics from our bookshelf and it was common that readers would borrow more than one book during their visit.“Time flew and I ended up staying for 5 hours and reading 5 different books”, said Orestis Christoforides about his experience. 

Among the topics, readers could choose from were Bisexual, Holocaust Survivor, Self Harm, Bipolar, Victim of Abuse, Victim of Stalking, Muslim, Transgender, and Body Modified to name but a few and as always our Librarians encouraged our Readers to be brave and curious when asking their questions: “Reading a human book is a fantastic experience. We are encouraged to ask very direct questions, so the conversations were incredibly open and comfortable. What pushed you to see a therapist? Have you done time? Do you have any prejudices of your own?”, says Orestis Christoforides. 

Here is what some of our Readers had to say:

There is also room for smiles in serious conversations

“It was really awesome to hear someone else’s experience that is so different from my own, and I felt super comfortable asking questions, which was lovely! Thank you!!”

“I think I’m just amazed at how much courage and openness it takes to tell strangers your stories and I’m grateful that the Human Library exists.”

“My conversation with a transgender person was a beautiful philosophical exploration with many great insights: like there is no truth, don’t make assumptions on how people behave.”

“There was a lot more going on behind the title. The books exposed their own human limitations and weaknesses very honestly, which is what I ended up relating to. I can say I returned from my short journey with the impression of having made friends and  feeling more capable at “unjudging” others, even people which I disagree with (or even dislike!)”

A thank you to our partners from Heineken for making it possible for us to contribute to the Amsterdam Pride Week program.

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We are proud to announce the introduction of a new Human Library book depot for New York City. Over the past months members of many different communities have come together and joined forces to help us create safe spaces, where we can learn about our diversity.

Based in Brooklyn

New York now joins a list of cities across the US to host a local Human Library Book Depot. San Francisco, LA, Chicago, Muncie, Fort Wayne are others. It is not an easy task to build a book collection from scratch and to establish a strong group of librarians that can help publish our books to readers.

Technically the new book collection is based in Brooklyn and spearheaded by among other librarian and book depot manager Leslie Lucas Gallager.

“New York City is such a big place, but it’s really a patchwork of neighborhoods and personal networks. It has been a wonderful challenge for me and for our librarians to tap into those networks and find our friends (and friends of friends) who not only have a challenging aspect of their lives but are also willing to talk about it”.

Human Library founder Ronni Abergel is excited about the potential for impact in the city.

“New York and especially Brooklyn is one of the most diverse places on earth. So it is wonderful for us to finally be able to help build understanding across the many communities living here. With the resources now in place, we will be more available to local libraries, schools, colleges, universities, festivals and work places”.

Partnerships that are crucial to the sustainability of the book depot.

Publishing virtually at first

Due to the pandemic the first meeting with readers will be online and its planned for January 24th. A selection of the new book collection will be published using the Zoom platform.

Among the titles expected to be available you can find books on: “Unseen Disability”, “Homeschooler”, “Mother of a Transgender Daughter”, “Intersectional Blackness”, “Refugee”, “Mother of a son with Down’s Syndrome”, “Transracial Adoptee”, “PTSD”, “Non-binary”, “Lesbian”, “Lonely”, “Buddhist”, and “Formerly Incarcerated”. 

Rising demand online

The demand for the Human Library’s online events is rising sharply and more than 60 sessions are already planned for 2021. The January 24th event is free to readers and you need to be able to set aside two hours to become our reader.

You can find more information about the opportunity to participate in the launch of the new book depot for New York City by following the link below.

https://fb.me/e/13glTh8i0

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Tomorrow marks a historic day for the Human Library in the UK and especially for our readers in Scotland. It is the day where our new book depot in Edinburgh start its operations and journey toward sustainability. Soon readers will be able to take advantage.

Two years with support from Heineken UK

The new book depot is part of a two year project to build a sustainable book depot, that will enable us to serve our readers and partners in the city. The new book depot has been made possible only with support from our first and largest diversity partner in the UK, Heineken.

Human Libraries available in Edinburgh

For the members of the community in Edinburgh this means that soon we will be able to accommodate invitations to publish our books and to meet the demand from our readers. Typically we host our events in schools, libraries, universities, festivals and work places. It is always free to readers.

Books and librarians needed for the bookshelf

You can have no library without a proper book collection so readers can dive in. Soon we shall start advertising for new books to join our book depot and for other volunteers to join us as librarians. And so the recruiting and training of new books and librarians is underway. We expect to be able to offer our readers access to the first events in the fall of 2019. A book depot with critical mass can typically host 24-30 events annually (Copenhagen carried by 140 members).

Want to get involved?

From now on and onward, we will always need more great books to fill up our bookshelf. To help us answer questions from our readers. If you are able to speak openly about a stigmatizing topic and through your experiences help us challenge the prejudices and stereotypes, then please think about signing up to be published or to become part of the librarian team that does.

How demanding is it to be a volunteer in the Human Library?

If you volunteer with the Human Library, it is because you are able to donate at least 4-6 hours of your time a month. To come out and be published at least once a month. Sure if you miss one month that is fine, but this is what to expect. Before you can be published we must verify your content and provide you with training to become a book.

More information on how to join the Human Library can be found here:

How to become a volunteer book

To reach out directly to our book depot manager in Edinburgh, click here

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The news are good if you are living in the city of Hamburg. With the help of a local group of dedicated champions of the Human Library, it has been decided to open an official book depot for the Human Library.

The Human Library so far has had limited presence in Germany and predominantly in local ngo partnerships. This will be the first book depot to be organized and operated by the Human Library Organization in Germany.

“We are excited and grateful for the opportunity to build a strong and sustainable book depot that can serve thousands of readers from Hamburg over the next years”, says HLO founder and library creator, Ronni Abergel.

The Human Library Book Depot in Hamburg can also set an example for other German cities to draw inspiration from. Once fully stocked and with critical mass, a book depot can host anywhere from 10 to 30 events annually. Our books are published in schools, libraries, universities, festivals and workplaces.

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Report from the Human Library Book Awards 2018

“This is the first time I win something, where the prize is not a beating” said one winner of the Human Library Book Award, Oskar Zytnik,in a moving speech held at the fourth annual awards ceremony in Copenhagen this Saturday.

He received the Human Library Book Award in the category “Best publication on TV” for his episode in Season 2 of the Human Library on TV2 Lorry talking about being “a victim of bullying”.

Recognizing the volunteer books and librarians

This year the award show featured 14 categories of book prizes for members of the Human Library Book Depot in Copenhagen. The awards include “Best New Edition”, “Book of the Year”, “Librarian of the Year”, “Most published Book” and many more. The purpose is to recognize the tremendous contribution the 150+ members of the depot make to society at an annual 30 events.

Our own awards

The Human Library has won many awards around the world and also great recognition. But to be able to honor our own and appreciate their time is very important for us. It is the volunteers that enable us to convey thousands of conversations. It was an evening full of recognition, love and respect. Love for what Human Library is and what it does for people and between people.

The most diverse community

When looking out upon the congregation of happy faces you quickly realize that this is most likely one of the most diverse communities in the world. There are people in the depot with very different backgrounds, ethnicity, religious belief and sexuality. People who otherwise might never have met. And perhaps they would never have become friends, like many of them do.

All in the same boat

Tonight they are together, they are happy and they appreciate and respect each other. Not because they have to, but because they have come to understand each other and they understand that their differences are not dangerous. Above all, they understand that they are all in the same boat on an ocean of stigma.

Beautiful inside and out

The whole idea of the Human Library being a safe space to challenge stigma, stereotypes and prejudices. A space where others volunteered to answer your questions and not judge you. Is very beautiful in itself, but it is even more beautiful to see and experience that these very different people not only get along, but appreciate each other and find common ground despite the differences.

Stigma is the common denominator

Some have had to flee from their country to avoid war and have now found a new life here. Others are born here, but have never been treated properly or been seen as the human being they are. Everyone has met and suffered the negative consequences of stigmatizing stereotypes and negative prejudices.Their starting point is the same and so is their motivation for being on the bookshelf.

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Human Library Book Awards

As we get ready to host the 4th annual Human Library Book Awards and to celebrate our heroes. Let us take a look at what the book awards actually mean for us and why we have decided to host them annually.

From collection to book depot

Five years ago, our founder created the first Human Library Book Depot. Driven by a need for more events, more reading opportunities. In fact it was a small book collection that was converted into a depot and then more and more books have been added to the collection. Today more than 150 people are part of the Human Library Book Depot Copenhagen. This includes the depot managers, the librarians, the books and other volunteers. Each year members of the book depot are published up to 30 times.

From annual party to award show

One year into the new book depot, many more people had joined the collection and the volume of events had increased significantly. Denmark was sleeping for a while, but all of a sudden events were available every month and now it is almost every other week, you can find an event here. The many activities build a family out of the book depot, a special bond across culture, religion, ethnicity, gender and social background. Or despite some might say. It was decided to host an annual social gathering in order to better appreciate and recognize the contributions the volunteers were making to the library and society.

Best new edition to hot topic

This year we have 14 categories to hand out statues of our “Bookey”. Including the best new edition, classic of the year, most published, best audiobook (podcast), best picturebook (TV), school read of the year, hot topic, Corporate Bestseller and Bestseller of the Year. The winners all receive a small wooden “Bookey” Award and a framed certificate. Also a copy of all winners certificates are mounted on the Human Library Wall of Fame in the secretariat in Copenhagen.

Honor the courage and contribution

The purpose of the event is to honor our volunteer books and librarians. For their courage and valuable contribution to society. The event is free to members, there will be great food, music and people in attendance. A more diverse group of people than you have ever been to a party with, we can promise you that. And when together, they walk the walk they talk. They embrace the diversity and seize the opportunity for learning and for friendship. For that and everything else they give, we are grateful.

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