According to an article in The Spectator, Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park, Washington, has been running an Espresso Book Machine since November, 2009. As the article points out, the Machine didn’t arrive in New York until early this year.
The Google Book project offers access to more than 129 million books online and more than 4 million of these (as well as books in other databases) are available to booksellers with an Espresso Book Printer. Verano says this accessibility offers a new kind of research experience for writers.
Using the circus as an example, Verano explained that writers and researchers now have access to specialty topics through Google Books whereas they might have previously had to find a specialty library.
“[Google Books] allows us to get a glimpse of American culture that doesn’t exist anymore,” Verano said. When Google Books first came out, Verano said some people viewed it as a novelty but he believes it proves its validity by increasing access to these obscure texts.
The oldest book the Third Place Press has ever printed was a book on magic originally published in 1672.
“You feel like you’re sort of glimpsing at a part of direct history,” he said, “even if it’s something as weird as a book on magic.”
The selection of new books is limited on the database but Verano is hoping the catalogue will improve in the future.
I haven’t been there in years, because I now live in a different part of Seattle. But when I did Third Place Books was interesting. The name comes from the idea that we need a ‘third place’ in addition to our homes and offices. When I went, it was unusual in that new and used books were mixed on the same shelves.
If it hasn’t already, Third Place might want to tie into Ingram’s Expresso Book Feed. That’d give them access to many of Lightning Source’s print-on-demand titles. Those titles would be newer than what’s in Google.