The best part of BookCrossing, for me, is releasing books into the wild. I get the occasional journal entry (but only occasional), but the books are always gone when I check on them, and I like thinking about the small, unexpected pleasure I've given the person who finds one of my wild release books. It also gives me a great excuse to go to all the book sales around town, and check out the books at garage sales and thrift stores. I love books, and any excuse to paw through a pile of them is welcome.

I also offer, and accept, books through the mail on another site: www. PaperBackSwap.com. Older, more fragile, or specialized books find happy homes that way, and I've gotten some wonderful books to read.

(Please note: ALL the books on my bookshelf have been released. The only exceptions are books that were originally registered by someone else; I may still have them, but try to release them as soon as I read them. I joined long before the "status" feature was introduced, and I haven't bothered to go back through hundreds of books to make sure their status is correct.)