Claremont 'library' Serves a Captive Audience
The Prison Library Project responds to hundreds of requests a week from inmates around the country, and beyond, seeking a little relief from the boredom through reading. Penned inside a stark world of concrete and steel, the messages are often congenial, the words soft.
"Greetings from the other side. I hope this letter finds you in good health, achieveing all your heart's desire."
"Looking at things from a positive outlook helps you see the beauty in life."
"You all will always be in my prayers knowing that thy are truly servants of our God."
The project has been fulfilling that request since 1987, when Claremont resident Rick Moore took over a program begun by spiritual gurus Bo Lozoff and Ram Dass in Durham, N.C. Starting with used books stored in the closet of a friend's yoga studio, Moore eventually established the Thoreau Bookshop, where he could house the project as well as operate a store to fund it. From that evolved the nonprofit Claremont Forum, of which the Prison Library Project is the nexus.
More than 250,000 books have been mailed out over the last two decades. For inventory, the store relies on community members dropping off used books or publishers clearing shelves for a new print edition.
The one book the Prison Library Project can't seem to keep in stock is a dictionary.
READ MORE ! @ LA Times: 12/04/09 by Cornia Knoll
The Prison Library Project responds to hundreds of requests a week from inmates around the country, and beyond, seeking a little relief from the boredom through reading. Penned inside a stark world of concrete and steel, the messages are often congenial, the words soft.
"Greetings from the other side. I hope this letter finds you in good health, achieveing all your heart's desire."
"Looking at things from a positive outlook helps you see the beauty in life."
"You all will always be in my prayers knowing that thy are truly servants of our God."
The project has been fulfilling that request since 1987, when Claremont resident Rick Moore took over a program begun by spiritual gurus Bo Lozoff and Ram Dass in Durham, N.C. Starting with used books stored in the closet of a friend's yoga studio, Moore eventually established the Thoreau Bookshop, where he could house the project as well as operate a store to fund it. From that evolved the nonprofit Claremont Forum, of which the Prison Library Project is the nexus.
More than 250,000 books have been mailed out over the last two decades. For inventory, the store relies on community members dropping off used books or publishers clearing shelves for a new print edition.
The one book the Prison Library Project can't seem to keep in stock is a dictionary.
READ MORE ! @ LA Times: 12/04/09 by Cornia Knoll
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