World Book Night, March 5, 2011 (UK & Ireland)

World Book Night to give away 1m free books | Books | guardian.co.uk:

Atwood, whose novel The Blind Assassin is among those on offer for donation, said that when she first heard of the event she was 'amazed not only by its magnitude but by its simplicity. The love of writing, the love of reading – these are huge gifts. To be able to give someone else a book you treasure widens the gift circle.'

Le Carré, whose The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is another book that will be given away on World Book Night, said: 'No writer can ask more than this: that his book should be handed in thousands to people who might otherwise never get to read it, and who will in turn hand it to thousands more. That his book should also pass from one generation to another as a story to challenge and excite each reader in his time -that is beyond his most ambitious dreams.'

I didn't quite get the mechanics of the give-away ... individuals registering to be one of 20,000 giving away 48 copies of book they select to whomever they choose, thought it wasn't clear where or how they get the 48 copies? In any event, it sounds like the end result is 1M books, from a pretty good list, being given away. That is pretty awesome.