human book

 The human book is person that you can borrow from the library who will tell you the story of their life. This is a Danish idea which has spread around the world since 2000.  The idea behind it is that if people learn more about others, they will begin to challenge their stereotypical notions and lose their prejudices. The books are people who volunteer to talk about an aspect of life in which they have real experience. The published books have titles like An alcoholic, Autism, ADHD, and Bisexuality.  Another strand is to do with people who will tell you their life story as a contribution to local history.

 The reader can borrow a book for a limited time, perhaps twenty minutes. The library then finds a space in which the book and the reader can talk. There are certain rules as, for example, the one that says that the reader can ask any question they like, although the book doesn’t necessarily have to answer. Also the book must be returned in the condition in which it was borrowed. Australia has been a little slow to pick up on this idea but we are experimenting with it now.