Israel’s coffee shops take part in ‘Same Old Story’
According to reports in The Jerusalem Post, there is a new fashion to the cafés around Israel. There is a new scheme to promote reading, called ‘Same Old Story’ and it is catching on – over 200 cafes have already taken part. What does the project do? Second hand books are sold to customers for cheap prices. The proceeds are then split between the café and the Same Old Story.
The idea was dreamt up by a traveller, Doley Gotlib. He was interested both in helping the environment and also putting into practice some behaviours he picked up when he back-packed around the world – leave books in coffee shops to (a) save carrying them (b) recycle them and (c) leave a gift for the next visitor. Effectively, using this Same Old Story in cafes around the country, many second hand book stores are inadvertently starting up. Apparently sometimes rather beautiful and unusual books fall into the scheme.
There are other social benefits to the scheme too. Many of those who work with Same Old Story have a disability and the project is designed to help them find a place and a role in the world too.
Coffee shops who want to take part in the scheme can decide how many books they want to accommodate and then the scheme workers make sure that this number is met and replenished as appropriate.
Gotlib has been quoted as hoping that his brainchild travels beyond the borders of Israel and is taken up in other countries too.