Penguin Gives BEA-Goers Sneak Peek at Book Truck

Last week, Penguin introduced the public to a very fun new concept at BEA. As a way of selling books to the masses in a manner similar to the ever-popular food trucks, Penguin will be launching their brand-new book truck on a cross-country journey.

GalleyCat tells us more:

The 27-foot-long Book Truck contains two bookshelves with 96 feet of shelf space, LED lighting, awnings and café tables and chairs. The Book Pushcart was “inspired by the design of the classic New York City hotdog cart.”  The mobile booksellers will travel the country, you can track them at the Penguin Book Truck site. Here’s more from the release:

The Penguin Book Pushcart will be at the Delecorte Theater in New York City’s Central Park for performances at the 2013 season of Shakespeare in the Park.  The Penguin Book Truck and Pushcart will also visit the American Library Association Conference in Chicago, “Tom Sawyer Day” at the Mark Twain house in Hartford, CT and numerous other bookstores, festivals, library events and author signings throughout the year.  In October, in conjunction with the National Steinbeck Center’s kickoff of the 75th Anniversary of the publication of John Steinbeck’s Pulitzer Prize-winning The Grapes of Wrath, (published by Penguin) the Penguin Book Truck will travel West on Route 66 from Oklahoma to California, following the route of the fictional Joad Family and stopping at numerous museums, universities and historical sites along the way.   

See the original post HERE 

I've gotta say, I'm pretty stoked about this idea (though it's not the first time the concept has been employed. Book Riot has a fun post about the history HERE).

It reminds me of the good ole days when the Scholastic Book Fair came to town. A bookmobile like this can be not only a great marketing tool with the buzz and build-up of excitement as people await the truck's arrival in their hometown, but it's a way to hand-sell books again, to get people excited about reading (and reading in print).

Of course, the idea does pose a few concerns in terms of getting the truck stocked and with a varied enough inventory, but those kinks can be worked out. ;)

I just hope they take the book truck to the beach!