[Culturechat] English Book Exchange of Lucerne

[Barbara Roy]

	This is a great time of year to stay indoors and
curl up with a good book.  But, if you have ever
traveled or lived abroad from the US and searched
for books or magazines in English, you know they
are expensive with a mark-up of usually 35-50%.
If you live abroad and try to order from a US dot
com company, you end up paying duty and airmail
postage resulting in an even greater increase over
usual purchase price. That can really get
expensive if you are someone for whom reading is a
major hobby.  One of the best resources for
anglo- bookophiles (I know this isn't a real word)
here in central Switzerland is the English Book
Exchange (EBE), Lucerne.
	Now, in its 20th year of existence, the EBE, a very
loosely organized group of over 100 members who
likes to read books written in English, meets ten
times a year, for about an hour and a half,  at
the Hotel Seeburg in Lucerne (bus no. 24 to
Meggen, bus stop "Seeburg" - ample car parking
space available).   There is no obligation to
attend every meeting, you can stay a few minutes
or the full 90, you just turn up when you need and/or
want to donate books. There are thousands of
paperbacks (99.9%fiction) to choose from, and you
may borrow as many as you like for as long as you
like - within reason! There are also magazines and
children's books, and for a small rental fee
videos and DVDs.  The cost of participation is
just 2 Swiss francs (about $1.20 US)-- each time you
attend - no membership fees. This sum covers the 
cost of
sending out newsletters and any surplus goes
towards new books.
	The "group" meets on the third Friday evening and
the third Thursday afternoon alternately each
month, with the exception of July and December
when there is no Book Exchange. It is not
compulsory to donate books but the group is
always grateful for new additions to the stock.
Likewise, magazines (not more than one year old)
and children's books are always welcome.
	The group started out originally when a group of
ex-patriates in search of English books started
meeting in each others homes and exchanging books.
Eventually the library grew too large to be
portable.  The hotel was then owned by an
Englishman, was frequented by British travelers,
and became the local group meeting place.  Now,
the books are in boxes, drawers, and on shelves in
a hotel storage area next to an old bowling
alley!!  Once a year, volunteer members spend an
entire day (I did it last July) alphabetizing the
books and take a nice long break having
lunch in the hotel dining room,
probably eating up any and all earned profit.  A
Englishwoman who has lived in Switzerland with her
husband for over 20 years keeps the group going
and sends out a well written bi-monthly newsletter
via e-mail or regular mail to all interested parties.
	Last Thursday, I showed up with about 15 paperbacks
to return or donate and ended up borrowing even
more.  A sampling of my new prized possessions
include: "The Fifth Child" (Doors Lessing); "A
Sight for Sore Eyes" (Ruth Rendell); "The Blind
Assassin" (Margaret Atwood); "Morning, Noon,
&Night" (Sidney Sheldon); "Encore Provence" (Peter
Mayle) and "When We Were Orphans" (Kazuo
Ishiguro).  The only question now is: where do I
start?
	In addition to finding plenty to read, the best
part of the English Book Exchange for me, an
American living in Switzerland, has been the
opportunity to meet some very nice people and to
be part of the culture here.  Living away from the
USA has its challenges, but it has many benefits
as well.  As it stands now, I am enjoying and
appreciating reading more, paying less, and will
never again take for granted again having
unconditional access to good reading.
	Happy reading to all!!
Barbara Roy	
January 22, 2002