Backlist Book Swap Reception to Kick Off Children’s Institute

All registrants for the fourth annual ABC Children’s Institute, taking place June 21–23 in Orlando, Florida, should be thinking about a favorite backlist children’s book to share at the Backlist Book Swap during the institute’s Welcome Reception on June 21.

Book Swap participants are asked to share their pick now to help the American Booksellers Association prepare for the festive reception, which will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Wyndham Orlando Resort International. Books should be at least five years old and still in print; selections can include board books, young adult novels, or anything in between.

Following the Winter Institute’s popular Backlist Book Swap event in January, ABA received many requests from participants who wanted to know who picked up their book during the swap.

To that end, participants in the Children’s Institute Backlist Book Swap are asked to bring two bookmarks to share with their selected book. (Booksellers should bring their store’s bookmark; there will also be blank bookmarks available on-site.)

On the first bookmark, the giver will write the book’s title and a blurb about why they selected that particular title to share. They will also write down their name, business, and e-mail address for the recipient of the book to keep.

On the second bookmark, the giver will write the book’s title and their name, business, and e-mail address, while leaving a blank space for the recipient to fill out their own name, business, and e-mail address. These bookmarks will be placed in a designated area for ABA to retrieve.

Following the Children’s Institute, ABA will supply a full list of the books shared at the Backlist Book Swap, along with information about who brought each title and who took them home.

Backlist Book Swap participants will also be able to snap a photo with their title picks or with colleagues in a traditional photo booth. The Book Swap Photo Booth was a huge hit when it debuted at Winter Institute 11 in Denver; see pictures from the Wi11 Photo Booth here, and a short video of the Swap, produced by Off the Shelf, here.

Anyone planning to participate in the Backlist Book Swap should share their pick with ABA now and set a reminder to bring their chosen book, along with two bookmarks, to the institute in June.

Children’s Institute is open to booksellers at all member stores; registration information is available here. Questions about the institute should be directed to ABC Group Manager Matthew Zoni.

Ci4 is made possible by the support of lead sponsor Baker & Taylor with additional support from publisher sponsors large and small.