The Paradies Shops are a chain of more than 500 shops, mostly in airports and resort hotels all over the U. S. and Canada. A few months ago I was in an airport, and out of books to read. I stopped at Paradies book shop and bought a book. The clerk carefully taped my purchase receipt inside the cover of my book with removable tape, and handed me a bookmark explaining the program, with a list of shops that participate. He handed it back to me, and I suppose I looked puzzled because he explained "You can bring it back to any of our shops in six months, for a 50% refund."

I thought it was a super idea; I often buy books when I'm traveling that I don't plan on keeping, and would just as soon not lug them around in my luggage.

The Paradies Read and Return program works like this:

• Buy a book at any Paradies shop that sells books
• Any book; hardcover or soft, it doesn't matter.
• Read the book and keep the receipt.
• Bring the book back to any Paradies shop that sells books within six months of purchse.
• Paradies will refund 50% of your purchase

Returned books that are in good condition are re-sold for half price. Those that are not in good enough condition for resale are donated to a local literacy charity. Paradies book shops are actually pretty good bookshops; there are a dozen or so that are fairly large and sell nothing but books, but all the ones I've seen at airports carry a decent selection. The Read and Return program started in 2003, and according to a Paradies spokesperson in this 2005 USA Today article, their sales have increased 20% since.

As far as I can see, this is a great program for everybody; charities get books, customers get books at half price, and fewer books end up being tossed after a single read. I notice that author Paul Levine, one of a clutch of authors co-blogging at The Naked Truth about Literature and Life, objects to the Paradies re-sale as the loss of a rightful royalty on the second sale; I don't see that way. The first one's half-off, but there's a good chance that reader will pay full price for the second book. Think how often you've had a friend lend you a book—and you discover an author whose backlist you hunt down. The Paradies program is another doorway to that kind of a relationship with a reader. You're not losing a potential royalty, you're potentially gaining another narrative addict. As for me, I've just added several new authors to my list of people to read . . .